Affordable Units Arrive Following November ‘Warehousing’ Protest at Williamsburg Buildings

Four months after tenants and activists protested outside two apartment buildings in Williamsburg, an affordable housing lottery has opened for a number of units in the buildings.

The lottery opened for 11 apartments across two six-story buildings, located at 293 and 301 Hooper Street, between Broadway and South 5th Street.

Of the affordable apartments, there is a single studio, six two-bedroom units and four three-bedroom units. Monthly rents start at $1,117 and top out at $2,121. The listing adds that tenants at 293 Hooper pay for just electricity, while tenants at 301 Hooper pay for gas and electricity. 

The lottery is set at an area median income range of 80 percent. Eligible incomes range between $43,303 and $112,800 for households of two to seven people.

In November 2020, the buildings were the target of protests from neighborhood residents and tenant activists who said the owners of the building were warehousing 11 units. Coincidentally, 11 units have now popped up in the affordable lottery. The owners include NYC Housing Partnership, an affordable housing nonprofit whose vice president, Daniel Marks Cohen, is currently running for a city council seat in Manhattan. 

Another owner is NY Quality Housing LLC. That LLC is associated with Robert Rosenberg and the building’s unnamed sponsor (they are probably one and the same), according to a legal agreement between the owners and New York City to preserve the units in the building as affordable housing. Affordable units would be renovated no later than August 2020, according to that agreement, which gives the landlord a partial tax exemption lasting 40 years.

If interested, applications for the affordable housing lottery must be submitted by April 7, 2021. Apply through NYC Housing Connect.

Related Stories

• Affordable Housing Lottery Opens for Six Units in Bed Stuy, Starting at $2,245 a Month
• Locals Object to Density of Proposed Apartment Building Near Barclays in Prospect Heights
• Affordable Housing Lottery Opens for 55 Units in Ocean Hill, Starting at $457 a Month

Sign up for amNY’s COVID-19 newsletter to stay up to date on the latest coronavirus news throughout New York City. Email tips@brownstoner.com with further comments, questions or tips. Follow Brownstoner on Twitter and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.