NYC Judge OKs Homeless Shelter on "Billionaire's Row"

New York City officials received the go-ahead to open a homeless shelter in an old hotel in midtown Manhattan - one which happens to be back-to-back with one of the most luxurious and expensive condo buildings in the world. 

A coalition of homeowners on West 58th Street sought an order to block a move by the city and its agencies to open a shelter in the former Park Savoy hotel at 158 West 58th. Among other things, they argued that the building was not up to fire safety codes and that it would create a public nuisance.

But Judge Alexander Tisch, in a ruling handed down Thursday, brushed aside those concerns. 

"The Court finds that the decision to open a homeless shelter at the premises has a rational basis and is therefore not arbitrary and capricious," Tisch wrote.

The Park Savoy backs up to One57, the supertall skyscraper on 57th Street where billionaire Michael Dell reportedly bought a $100 million penthouse. 

The West 58th Street Coalition, on its Facebook page, says its neighborhood is "under threat" by the shelter plan.

"While we understand the need to shelter the city's homeless, we believe the residents on our block deserve to be consulted before one of our buildings is filled with recently released parolees," the coalition wrote in an April 2018 position statement. 

Photo Credit: Extell Development Co.

from NBC New York - Top Stories http://bit.ly/2vveSwy