Court upholds city’s fee for converting Soho artists’ units

January 13, 2026 / no comments

New York’s highest court on Tuesday upheld the city’s ability to charge owners a fee when converting apartments reserved for artists, reversing a lower court’s ruling that the practice was unconstitutional.  The New York Court of Appeals, in a 6-1 decision, found that a state Appellate Court wrongfully concluded that a portion of the 2021 Soho and Noho rezoning violated the Fifth Amendment’s takings clause.  As part of the rezoning, new rules were applied to so-called Joint Live-Work Quarters for Artists, which are reserved for artists certified by the city. Owners of such units must pay $100 per square foot […]

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