LINCOLN SQUARE — Step right up for a chance to...wait in a line of 7,500 other applicants for an "affordable" $2,216 apartment right around the corner from Columbus Circle and Central Park.
On Friday, the city’s Department of Housing and Preservation Development opened up the application process for One Columbus Place, a 51-story, 729-unit rental building with scenic views of the park and the city's skyline.
But according to HPD, the application only offers a chance to be waitlisted for the 183 affordable apartments at the building, which is on the corner of West 59th Street and Ninth Avenue.
► READ MORE: Here's How to Boost Your Odds of Scoring Affordable Housing
When the building’s owners, The Brodsky Organization, wanted to extend their 421-a tax exemption for another 15 years, HPD required them to create the waitlist of applicants that would be moved in as vacancies occur, an HPD spokesperson said. HPD added there's no estimation of when the apartments will vacate. Once its capped at 7,500 applicants, the waitlist will only last two years before HPD holds another round of applications to refresh it.
Applications are restricted to those who make 130 percent of the area median income, which is set between the minimum of $72,549 for a single tenant studio and the maximum of $124,020 for a family of four in a two-bedroom. Monthly rents range from $2,116, for a studio, one-bedrooms that cost $2,270, and two-bedrooms that rent for $2,733.
► READ MORE: INTERACTIVE: What is AMI?
If you're one of the lucky 7,500 to get a spot, your patience may eventually be rewarded with an apartment that offers amenities like a concierge, a fitness center, laundry facilities, garage, a children's playroom, and a resident lounge and patio (all for additional amenities fees, of course).
Those interested in trying their luck for a waitlist spot are should apply through the city's Housing Connect website or send an application by mail no later than October 18.
