Lower Manhattan Near Bottom Of NYC For Number Of New Homes: Study

LOWER MANHATTAN, NY — During a decade of rapid development in New York City, few neighborhoods trailed behind in the housing gains more than those in Lower Manhattan, according to a new analysis from the city.

Community District 2, which is made up of Greenwich Village, Hudson Square, Little Italy, NoHo, SoHo, South Village, and the West Village, gained 990 new housing units since 2010.

The number considers building demolitions and mergers of existing apartments that offset some of the new construction.

It is the third-lowest total out of the Manhattan community districts and the 11th lowest of every community district in New York City.

Only the Upper East Side, which has added a measly 278 units since 2010, and Washington Height and Inwood, saw less of an increase in available housing.

On the flip side, Midtown Manhattan, Battery Park/Tribeca, and Chelsea/Hell's Kitchen saw the biggest jumps in housing units in their respective Manhattan community districts.

Specifically, the community district for Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen saw by far the biggest jump since 2010 — adding 14,460 housing units in the last decade.

The study was based on filings with the Department of Buildings starting Jan. 1, 2010 through June 1, 2020.

Minimal gains in some neighborhoods, which were first reported by THE CITY, may embolden advocates who are pushing to rezone wealthier neighborhoods in order to build more housing.

The white whale in that fight is SoHo, where Mayor Bill de Blasio, several mayoral candidates and a cohort of pro-development groups have gotten behind a proposal to build more affordable housing — encountering stiff opposition from preservationists.

Under de Blasio's administration, most rezonings have occurred in lower-income areas like East Harlem and Inwood, fueling fears that longtime residents would be displaced.

Patch reporter Nick Garber contributed to this report.