The Schermerhorn
Are you an artist living in New York, and in need of some affordable housing? The Brooklyn Arts Council will be hosting a seminar on affordable housing Tuesday, May 24th, to discuss such opportunities as The Schermerhorn. A permanent housing residence in downtown Brooklyn, The Schermerhorn aims to provide affordable spaces for perform-y types (read: actors, screenwriters, musicians, dancers, editors, composers, set designers, producers, singers, directors and other performing arts and entertainment professionals). Monthly rent starts at $635, while the income of residents cannot exceed $33,660 or be less than $21,770.
The remaining non-artist apartments will be reserved for formerly homeless individuals living with HIV/AIDS or mental health needs. In many ways, that makes the project seems less about moving artists in particular, and more about creating neighborhoods with room for all: it’s terrible, but artists are the acceptable face of poverty, the acceptable face of mental illness, and the acceptable face of AIDS. Even for an essentially positive project like this, artist-types are probably a necessary front to appease the neighbors. As for the living situation that results, it will likely have a few pluses and minuses: every now and again someone will stumble on their way to recovery, but on the other hand you’re yuppie-free and live next to every train in the world. I’m sure anybody moving in from Bushwick won’t mind.
Correction: The original version of this post mistakenly stated that applicants must already live in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Clinton Hill, Downtown, DUMBO, Fort Greene, or Vinegar Hill in order to be eligible. Applicants living outside of downtown Brooklyn may also qualify.
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