Builders of Chelsea shelter face lawsuit

The Bowery Residents Committee, together with the Department of Homeless Services, is moving forward with plans to convert an old factory into a homeless shelter
for 328 drug addicts and mentally-ill men at 127 West 25th Street. But the project, which would include extensive medical services alongside the shelter, is not permitted by local zoning
at the Chelsea building, where the BRC signed a 33-year lease and is making $12 million in renovations, the Post reported. Now, the Chelsea Business and Property Owners Association is suing the BRC for trying to “circumvent” local zoning laws that bar such a project, while ignoring city regulations limiting shelters to no more than 200 beds. “This is a classic case of the ends justify the means,” said Dan Connolly, a lawyer for the Chelsea association. Muzzy Rosenblatt, the former Homeless Services commissioner who runs the RBC, believes that the lawsuit is without merit. “The suit will be dismissed and the project will proceed,” he said. [Post]

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