Yeshiva University’s uptown campus will expand to include a new residence hall, to be located at the University grounds’ southern edge. Commentator sources have unearthed Yeshiva plans to finally alleviate an escalating demand for living space by opening a dormitory some three blocks from the new facility’s closest counterpart, forty-year old Rubin Hall.
The six-story building that Yeshiva will be acquiring, situated at 2461 Amsterdam Avenue, currently houses members of the local community. The facility is presently owned by a shell company of real estate mogul Richard Parkoff, landlord of much of the property surrounding Yeshiva, including the Posman’s bookstore edifice. The acquisition will mark one of Yeshiva’s most significant uptown purchases in decades.
Formally, Yeshiva has applied for tax-exempt bonds to be secured from the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York for the purpose of financing the renovation and opening of “an existing building located at 2461 Amsterdam Avenue . . . to be used as student housing.” The requested bonds will aid in financing some nine total projects, most of which involve planned improvements on already-existing Yeshiva properties. Nonetheless, buried among the host of undertakings stand the finalization of construction plans on the Glueck Torah Technology Building, a project originally uncovered in last year’s Commentator, and the momentous announcement of a new dormitory for the uptown men.
Yeshiva’s precise intentions remain somewhat unclear; what is known is that YU has submitted the application for bonds to the Dormitory Authority, listing among the requested money’s uses the acquisition and renovation of the new residence hall on W. 182nd Street and Amsterdam Avenue. If granted, the bonds afford an educational institution like Yeshiva the opportunity of securing funding for the project, to be paid back over an extended period of time, under tax-exempt status. The process for finalizing the issuing of the bonds involves numerous stages of applications, hearings, and approvals from both of the involved parties.
Being listed among eight other intended projects, however, leaves the immediacy with which this specific move will be pursued in question, despite the clear necessity to address the overflowing dormitories. “It is not uncommon for a college to group a list of projects together,” explained Dorm Authority Press Officer Claudia Hutton. Hutton maintained that the simple listing of the building acquisition evidences Yeshiva’s intentions to act on that plan, albeit on an unclear timetable.
Action on the part of current property owner Richard Parkoff, however, might seem to compound this evidence in reaffirming speculation that the project is being pursued with immediacy. The property deed, which listed 2461 Amsterdam Avenue as an asset of 2461 Amsterdam Company since September 1984, when Parkoff originally purchased it from the city, remarkably changed hands this past October 19, to 2461 Amsterdam LLC, possibly indicating preparation for an upcoming transfer of ownership. The concurrent timing of Parkoff’s move and Yeshiva’s bond application suggest a clear conclusion – that Yeshiva indeed plans to purchase and renovate 2461 Amsterdam quite soon.
Perhaps most disturbing about the covert plans is that they are proceeding so stealthily. From Public Relations Directors to the Office of Facilities and Supporting Services, the Yeshiva administration stood clueless when questioned regarding any new building purchases on campus. “I’d expect to be informed,” admitted University Dean of Students David Himber of any plans that were truly impending. In light of the fact that Himber serves as direct supervisor to the Office of University Housing, his expectation seems quite reasonable.
The Dormitory Authority of New York is the nation’s largest such organization, last year issuing some $2.4 billion worth of bonds. The most recent move made by Yeshiva this past January 31 – the holding of a public hearing at which any objections to the issuing of the special tax-exempt bonds were fielded – is, according to the Dormitory Authority’s Hutton, “one of the last steps before a bond sale.” And so, it seems clear that Yeshiva is poised to acquire the funds and open the new residence hall in the near future.
Beyond news of the simple acquisition of the building and intended renovation plan to furnish it into a residence hall stands the particular location of the new dormitory; by targeting 2461 Amsterdam, Yeshiva’s plans promise to significantly alter the face of the entire uptown campus, effectively extending it some three blocks by adding one of its most crucial segments to its edge. With the exception of the Empire State Garage, Yeshiva now controls a continuous line of property, from the Morg Residence Hall extending through to its newest acquisition, resulting in an expanded uptown campus. The magnitude of Yeshiva’s housing problems and the relatively insignificant size of the new dorm, pending the anticipated renovations, can also be framed against this backdrop. The adjacent Parking Lot D provides Yeshiva with the option of transforming the building into a larger dormitory. Director of Supporting Services Jeffrey Rosengarten recognized the possibility of constructing on Parking Lot D, even without acknowledging Yeshiva’s connection to 2461, when discussing possible projects in that area. The facility was built in 1909 and currently contains some twenty-four units. It was purchased back in 1984 for a sum total of $117,000. Attorneys handling the bond application at the Dormitory Authority have confirmed that Yeshiva does plan on renovating the facility somewhat, a reassuring piece of information for those who have seen the current status of the seemingly rundown facility.