Judge nixes $100-a-month tenant’s bid to raze Related building

Man claims the Ventura on East 86th Street blocks light in his apartment in adjacent property

244 and 240 East 86th Street in Yorkville
244 and 240 East 86th Street in Yorkville

A tenant of a Yorkville rental building lost a lawsuit requesting the demolition of an adjacent apartment building that he claimed blocked light from his home, for which he pays $100 per month.

Chad Ian Lieberman filed a suit last year, alleging that the Related Companies’ 25-story Ventura building at 240 East 86th Street prevented air and light from entering his eight-room apartment at the Manhattan at 244 East 86th Street.

Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Anil Singh ruled last week that Lieberman knew what he was getting into when he moved into the apartment.

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Lieberman’s grandfather Eric Oppenheimer made a deal in 1997 with the owner of 244 East 86th Street, allowing for the then-new building next door to be constructed over an air shaft in exchange for a low rent, court records showed. The landlord said at the time he would reduce Oppenheimer’s rent to $100 from $687 per month if he and his wife were the only ones living there. Oppenheimer’s grandson now rents the four-bedroom apartment.

Court papers showed that the landlord is trying to hike Lieberman’s current rent. [NYDN]Mark Maurer