City officials in New York allowed a developer to segregate a high-rise condo between rich and poor. According to reports by New York Post, developers of Extell, a condo on the Upper West Side, got the Department of Housing Preservation and Development to approve a separate entrance for poorer residents.
The developers of the 33-story condo took advantage of New York’s Inclusionary Housing Program that gives generous tax breaks to developers who allow a certain number of low-income residents to rent from their location. The developers reserved the first four floors to residents who earn $50,000 or less.
However, those who earn $50,000 or less will have to enter through another door. Their windows will face the street while the richer residents will have waterfront views of the Hudson River. Also, poorer residents will not have access to the building’s gym and other amenities.
Some in the New York assembly spoke out against the development. There should be an investigation on how developers were able to convince the Department of Housing Preservation and Development to give a tax break for a venture that openly practices segregation through the use of city funds.
