Nonprofit plans 135K sf Midtown shelter project

UPDATED March 30, 10 p.m.: Nonprofit Project Renewal is facing a battle over a Greenwich Village homeless shelter conversion, but it aims for a similar project in Midtown East.

The organization filed plans for a 21-story shelter at 215 East 45th Street, Crain’s reported. The 217-foot-tall development will span 135,000 square feet and include a 171-bed shelter for women. Dattner Architects is designing the property, which is between Second and Third avenues.

The city owns the seven-story shelter at the site, which will be demolished to make way for the new building. As part of the development process, ownership will be transferred to Project Renewal.

In addition to the shelter, the project is also expected to include 131 permanent housing units, divided between supportive housing and affordable housing; the affordable housing will be for those earning 60 percent of area median income. 

Other features of the project will include on-site social services and a medical clinic for both tenants and the surrounding community. Housing options for current shelter occupants during development is still being considered.

The site is undergoing the ULURP process and the nonprofit is expected to close on financing by the end of the year. Crain’s reported construction on the $125 million project is expected to begin in December and the property should be ready to open by summer 2026.

New York City’s shelter population has risen in recent months as an influx of migrants and asylum seekers has put a bigger strain on the system. In August, the city announced that 11 hotels were being leased to the city to serve the surging population, a move that came only months after the city phased out the use of commercial lodging for children.

Project Renewal has been pursuing another shelter at 27 West 11th Street in Greenwich Village. A 2021 lawsuit alleged construction would disturb asbestos and lead paint in the building, endangering its few remaining tenants, but the nonprofit is still planning a shelter there. Opponents sued again this month, claiming the plans violate city code and would endanger tenants.

— Holden Walter-Warner

Correction: An earlier version of this article said the project would include 106 units. According to additional information provided by the nonprofit, the project will include a 171-bed shelter for women, and 131 units of permanent housing.