Offer For Starrett City Rejected
Starrett City, the subsidized housing development in Brooklyn, was sold for $1.3 billion in February, but for the second time, the Department of Housing and Urban Development rejected the deal. The February sale needed to be approved by HUD, because Starrett City is the country's largest subsidized development, and shortly after the sale was announced, State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo got to work on blocking the sale.
HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson called Starrett City "an essential affordable housing resource for the City of New York" and voiced concerns about Clipper's financial plan, suspecting the company would raise rents and force out tenants. Not only that, Clipper's lead investor, David Bistricer, has a bad history as an apartment building owner.
However, it's unclear what will happen next. The NY Times suggests that Clipper will probably end its pursuit of the development and that Starrett's current owner can "can either hold a new auction" or "make required payments to withdraw from state and federal housing programs." Senator Charles Schumer, who also fought to keep the sale from going through, said, "Let's all go back to the drawing board to craft a plan that ... ensures that Starrett City remains a middle-class oasis well into the 21st century."
