N.Y. Property Boom a Boon for Venerable Charities

The longstanding social-service and anti-poverty agencies that clustered in a swath of Midtown Manhattan once nicknamed Charity Row are cashing in on the neighborhood’s real-estate boom, selling stately 19th-century buildings they have occupied for decades in nine-figure deals, writes The Wall Street Journal.

The latest departure involves the United Charities Building on East 22nd Street, jointly owned by the Community Service Society of New York, the Children’s Aid Society, and New York City Mission Society. The Renaissance Revival-style edifice hits the market March 27 and could fetch more than $100-million as a residential conversion, according to building officials and the broker handling the sale.

That follows United Cerebral Palsy of New York City’s $135-million sale of its 23rd Street headquarters last fall. Few nonprofit groups remain in the vicinity.

The moves reflect changing space needs and financial circumstances for charities seeking to boost cash reserves and endowments that were battered by the drops in giving and government funding after the recession. “Our mission is about serving the poor of New York City, not about preserving a beautiful, historic building,” said David R. Jones, president and CEO of the Community Service Society.