For six decades Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village has been a renter’s paradise, boasting low prices and a secluded tract of prime Manhattan real estate. But the recent shuffle in ownership has shaken a traditionally steady neighborhood.
Financing the construction itself in the 1940’s, The Metropolitan Life Insurance Company owned the complex for the vast majority of its existence until auctioning off the property to Tishman Speyer in 2006 for a record $5.4 billion. Due in large part to the economy, the value of ST/PCV plummeted to around half of what Tishman paid for it. It only took a few years before Tishman had defaulted on its massive loans.
After a brief skirmish between major lender CW Capital and smaller debt holders Pershing Square and Winthrop Realty, ST/PCV finds itself in the uncomfortable position of waiting. CW Capital bought Pershing and Winthrop’s smaller debt and is in a holding pattern regarding the site’s foreclosure, which would officially transfer ownership from Tishman to CW Capital.
Throughout this entire process, the tenants association has been working hard to ensure that tenant needs remain a priority. The most pressing issue revolves around the security of ST/PCV’s rent regulated apartments. The most popular idea being tossed around is a massive conversion to co-op or condominium housing, though it is unlikely that residents would be forced into the responsibility of ownership. “If you are a renter, a rent stabilized tenant, you will be able to stay as a renter. Nobody is going to force you to do anything,” said New York City Council Member Dan Garodnick when speaking at a recent tenants association meeting.
Don Meyers is an original tenant of the complex, his family being the first in his building. “I have pictures of Stuyvesant Town back in 1949 when these trees that are nine stories high were little saplings,” he said. Other than a few years of exploration, Don has been at the same three-bedroom apartment his entire life. “I used to want to leave. I wanted out and to get away from Stuy Town. But I always came back and now I just think it’s wonderful.”
ST/PCV has remained a sanctuary of sorts for its residents. “When you come off the grid, when you come into Stuy Town, in the summer especially, you can feel the quality of the air. It’s not as noisy and it seems cleaner,” Meyers said. David Brodsky, a student at Baruch College and lifelong Stuyvesant Town resident very much enjoyed growing up in the area. “The location is great, they have plenty of playgrounds for kids to play in. I use to use the basketball courts quite a bit myself,” he said.
The neighborhood has, for the most part, remained relatively unscathed by the continually changing city landscape, although a more diverse residential body is certainly noticeable. “It’s become more cosmopolitan and I like that,” said Meyers. There have likewise been some less noticeable changes that are perhaps, for the worse. “When we first got here it was a community and now it seems that you can’t afford to raise a family here anymore,” said Rita Safko, a 25-30 year resident who has raised twins who are now in college. “It’s a younger, transient environment as opposed to a family one,” added Rita’s husband, Ron Safko. Though this loss of community tugs at the heartstrings, there are more immediate issues at hand.
Not since Robert Moses evicted thousands of residents of the formerly Gas House District has this area faced such a daunting scenario. Recently expired was a deal between ST/PCV tenants and CW Capital, which stemmed from the Roberts v. Tishman Speyer Properties, L.P. case and lowered rents Tishman had hiked up. Without a new deal in place, the issue is likely headed back to court. Adding to the pressure, rent regulated apartments, a rarity in Manhattan, could become extinct in a few months. The law protecting rents will expire in 2011.
New York State government will vote on whether to extend the law or let deregulation commence unobstructed. “If rent stabilization goes out, the rents goes up, and fundamental protections that have existed in this community for so long evaporate,” said Garodnick at the tenants association meeting. “If things get deregulated, that means we might be paying the market rent and they’d go sky high,” said Don Meyers. Compared with his current rent, market rates are entirely unfeasible. “You wouldn’t like me if I told you what my rent is,” said Meyers. His rent is $950/month.
On the other hand, David Brodsky isn’t as worried. “There are way too many people living here. It’s a lot of votes if you know what I mean,” he said. Eugene Warren, a spry 87-year old real estate broker with 52 years of experience, agrees with Brodsky’s assessment. “They’re not going to deregulate. Too many people would be hurt. It’s too drastic.”
Assuming that they’re right, the next step for ST/PCV will be deciding if, how, and when to convert units into co-ops or condominiums. It has been stressed by the tenants association that conversion will be optional, a positive sign for many residents. “My situation is similar to others who have been in their apartments for a long time and are paying still low rents and are old. It doesn’t make any sense at all for someone my age to all of a sudden buy this apartment,” said Meyers. “The immediate outlay of so much money along with paying property taxes and maintenance prices once a month could be equal to what I’m paying for rent.”
Ron Safko was also a little skeptical of conversions. “When I first heard co-op or condo I thought it was great. Now I have some reservations about it. Co-op boards can be very challenging,” he said. “However, we’d certainly look at it,” added Rita. Using external resources, the tenants’ association will be putting a plan together over the next few months that will give an indication of where prices will generally land.
There were also worries that having a property mixed with renters and owners would cause a schism in the community. “I don’t think that’ll happen. I’ve lived in buildings before where there were some renting and some owning and there were no problems,” said Ron. David Brodsky added, “it’s not the same as a suburb community where everybody knows each other.” Garodnick addressed the issue by pointing out the vastly different rents that people were paying right now. In the tenants meeting, he argued that if this hasn’t caused any conflict, neither should a blend of renters and owners.
Much can be argued for each side of this issue. What’s unified the community now can tear it apart later. At present, ST/PCV has an ‘us vs. them’ mentality, us being the renters (which includes every resident) and them being the current owner of the property. Unit conversion would break that bond that renters hold with each other. It would test the strength of Stuyvesant Town’s weakening community fellowship. “You still have some sense of community but it’s just not the same,” said Rita. Be that as it may, conversions are still “years” away and ST/PCV still finds itself in limbo. “We’re still in a very ambiguous state right now,” said Meyers. “Anything can happen.”