NY Top Court Backs NYC’s Conversion Fee for SoHo, NoHo Lofts

New York City’s requirement that residents of certain buildings in Lower Manhattan pay a fee to convert those buildings from artist quarters to residential use is constitutional, the state’s highest court ruled Tuesday.

The Court of Appeals rejected the Coalition for Fairness in SoHo and NoHo Inc.'s argument that the fee infringes on the property rights of building owners, tenants, and other residents of neighborhoods located south and north of Houston Street in Manhattan. The court overturned a lower appellate court order finding the requirement unconstitutional.

The coalition “failed to identify any compensable property interest” under the Fifth Amendment’s takings ...