By Gabriela Resto-Montero
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
UPPER EAST SIDE — Residents temporarily displaced from their homes along Second Avenue because of subway construction will soon receive generous compensation from the MTA.
The agency was ready to pay out between $6 million and $8 million, out of the subway's $4.5 billion budget, to relocate tenants either to an extended hotel stay or another apartment while their buildings are structurally reinforced, the New York Post reported.
Those who choose the rent voucher will receive $4,810 a month for a studio apartment, $6,000 a month for a one-bedroom, and $9,000 a month for a two-bedroom, the Post reported.
In addition to the stipend, residents will receive $40 a day for food and moving costs, the paper reported.
Renters can also choose to say at the Hotel Marmara at 301 East 94th Street.
The MTA expects tenants at the six affected apartment buildings between East 93rd and East 97th Streets to be away from their homes from 30 to 60 days, said Kevin Ortiz, spokesman for the agency.
Residents will begin moving out this Saturday, the Post reported.
The agency wanted to keep residents living and shopping in the area during the relocations so they could patronize local businesses that have been hurt by the subway construction, spokesman Aaron Donovan told the paper.
At a City Council hearing last week, businesses on Second Avenue that are struggling to hold on called for the MTA to step up its efforts to help them survive.
