Housing Lottery Opens for Three Units in Bed Stuy, Starting at $2,188 a Month

Are these really affordable?

A housing lottery has opened for three apartments in a seven-story building at 410 Tompkins Avenue in Bed Stuy. Constructed in 2019, the building’s name is Hancock Manor.

Of the affordable apartments, there are two studios and a single one-bedroom unit. Monthly rents start at $2,188 and top out at $2,305.

The lottery is set at an area median income range of 130 percent. Eligible incomes range between $75,018 and $133,120 for households of one to three people.

The development has a contentious history. Initial renderings provoked outrage in the neighborhood and on private email lists and Facebook groups. With its Hitchcockian birds circling a grey facade with mirrored cracks, the rendering was dubbed the “Bulgarian Neo-Goth Super-Villain Crack Lair” by Brownstoner commenters.

Since then, things have changed. Currently, the building has a simplified look, with a mix of grey paneling and brick on the facade. There is a total of 35 units and space for shops on the ground floor, including a fresh grocery. Parking for 18 vehicles will be on the second floor, an indoor recreation room and outdoor space will be on the third floor, more recreation space on the sixth floor and outdoor space on the roof.

The building was designed by Fischer + Makooi — the former of the pair referring to the well-known late Brooklyn architect Karl Fischer. The developer, Vasco Ventures, is a private real estate investment group based in Midwood that specializes in acquiring distressed property and estate sales. Its founder and principal is Isay (Izzy) Ildatov. In 2016, one of the principals at the firm, Ephraim Vashovsky, was arrested for alleged tenant harassment, according to reports at the time.

Leasing for market-rate units began in April 2019. A market rate one-bedroom recently listed for $2,273, less than an affordable unit on a higher floor, according to StreetEasy. Based on the listing photos, the units have white walls, dark hardwood flooring and open kitchens. Some of the units have small balconies. Still, they don’t quite have the pizazz of earlier interior renderings, which had sleeping pods and urinating dog topiaries.

Applications for the affordable housing lottery must be submitted by December 14, 2020. Apply through NYC Housing Connect. To learn more about how to apply for affordable housing, read Brownstoner’s guide.

Related Stories

• Sleeping Pods, Urinating Dog Topiaries Come to Bed Stuy’s Former ‘Bulgarian Crack Lair’
• Former ‘Bulgarian Neo-Goth Super-Villain Crack Lair’ Tops Out on Tompkins in Bed Stuy
• Bed Stuy’s Controversial “Bulgarian Neo-Goth Super-Villain Crack Lair” Gets a New Look

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