Charney Companies files plans to create 240 dorm rooms in Morningside Heights
97 Claremont Avenue (Credit - Google)
Charney Companies submitted a major alteration application for the conversion of the building at 97 Claremont Avenue in Morningside Heights, Manhattan that currently has 88 residential units, into a dormitory with 240 units. The plan was filed with the New York City Department of Buildings on March 4, 2025 under job number M01153510. It calls for the increase in size of the building from a eight-story building with 88 dwelling units to a eight-story building with 240 dwelling units. The project is described in the filing as: Alteration CO filed for the renovation of an existing dormitory building. Sam Charney, founder and principal of Charney Companies, filed the plans.
This property was sold by Riverside Church in the City of New York for $38 million to Charney Companies on March 18, 2024.
97 Claremont Avenue
| wdt_ID | floor | comment | description | persons_permitted | occupancy_label | zoning_use | dwelling_units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Basement | SUPER'S APARTMENT (1 CLASS A UNIT) [MARKETING: 1ST FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | 1 | |
| 2 | Basement | GENERATOR, WATER PUMP, ELECTRICAL, FIRE PUMP, AND COMPACTOR ROOMS [MARKETING: 1ST FLOOR] | Mechanical and/or electrical equipment room | N/A | Factory and Industrial | ||
| 3 | Basement | SHARED KITCHEN, GRAB & GO DINING, STUDY ROOMS (RESIDENTIAL AMENITIES) [MARKETING: 1ST FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | 8 | Residential | ||
| 4 | Basement | BIKE STORAGE ROOM (53 SPACES, 408 SF) [MARKETING: 1ST FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | 2 | Residential | ||
| 5 | Basement | LOBBY AND MAIL ROOMS [MARKETING: 1ST FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | ||
| 6 | Basement | LAUNDRY ROOM (RESIDENTIAL AMENITY) [MARKETING: 1ST FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | 1 | Residential | ||
| 7 | Basement | SUPER'S OFFICE, LOCKER ROOM, STORAGE AND TOOL ROOM [MARKETING: 1ST FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | 17 | Residential | ||
| 8 | Basement | EXERCISE ROOM (RESIDENTIAL AMENITY) [MARKETING: 1ST FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | 5 | Residential | ||
| 9 | 1 | STORAGE LOFT [MARKETING: 2ND FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | ||
| 10 | 1 | 35 DORMITORY ROOMS (CLASS B DWELLING UNITS) AND SHARED BATHROOM FACILITIES [MARKETING: 2ND FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | 35 | |
| 11 | 2 | 38 DORMITORY ROOMS (CLASS B DWELLING UNITS) AND SHARED BATHROOM FACILITIES [MARKETING 3RD FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | 38 | |
| 12 | 3 | 38 DORMITORY ROOMS (CLASS B DWELLING UNITS) AND SHARED BATHROOM FACILITIES [MARKETING: 4TH FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | 38 | |
| 13 | 4 | 38 DORMITORY ROOMS (CLASS B DWELLING UNITS) AND SHARED BATHROOM FACILITIES [MARKETING: 5TH FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | 38 | |
| 14 | 5 | 37 DORMITORY ROOMS (CLASS B DWELLING UNITS) AND SHARED BATHROOM FACILITIES [MARKETING: 6TH FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | 37 | |
| 15 | 6 | 33 DORMITORY ROOMS (CLASS B DWELLING UNITS) AND SHARED BATHROOM FACILITIES [MARKETING: 7TH FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | 33 | |
| 16 | 7 | MECHANICAL AND HOT WATER ROOMS [MARKETING: 8TH FLOOR] | Mechanical and/or electrical equipment room | N/A | Factory and Industrial | ||
| 17 | 7 | 20 DORMITORY ROOMS (CLASS B DWELLING UNITS) AND SHARED BATHROOM FACILITIES [MARKETING: 8TH FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | N/A | Residential | 20 | |
| 18 | 8 | MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT ON ROOF [MARKETING: 9TH FLOOR] | Mechanical and/or electrical equipment room | N/A | Factory and Industrial | ||
| 19 | 8 | RESIDENTIAL AMENITY ROOM [MARKETING: 9TH FLOOR] | Student Dormitory | 5 | Residential |
The property
The parcel has frontage of 225 feet and is 100 feet deep with a total lot size of 14,350 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is R8 which allows for up to 6.02 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $13 million. The most recent loan totaled $8.2 million and was provided by Madison Realty Capital on March 18, 2024.
Violations and lawsuits
According to city public data, the property has received one DOB violation and $8,350 in OATH penalties in the last year.
There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the property for the past 24 months.
The neighborhood
In Morningside Heights, The bulk, or 45 percent of the 19.1 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with specialty buildings next occupying 43 percent of the space. In sales, Morningside Heights has near average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $38 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 43rd highest in Manhattan. For development, Morningside Heights has near average amount of major developments among other neighborhoods and is the 31st highest in Manhattan. It had 473,930 square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 2 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.
The owner
The PincusCo database currently indicates that Charney Companies owned at least 16 commercial properties with 139 residential units in New York City with 221,821 square feet and a city-determined market value of $51 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $114.6 million in debt, with top three lenders as Madison Realty Capital, Arbor Realty Trust, and Santander Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 35 percent of the 221,821 square feet of built space are specialty properties, with elevator properties next occupying 29 percent of the space. The bulk, or 37 percent of the built space, is in Queens, with Manhattan next at 35 percent of the space.
The surrounding
Within a 400-foot radius of 101 Claremont Avenue, PincusCo identified one commercial real estate item of interests occurred over the past 24 months. It was a sale which Union Theological Seminary bought 27 condo units in the zero-square-foot, 195-unit mixed-use building (RM) on 100 Claremont Avenue and zero other properties for $23.5 million from Lendlease on September 25, 2023.
Direct link to the property’s ACRIS page and link to DOB NOW portal.