St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery, a Manhattan parish that Alexander Hamilton helped incorporate, was granted approval to sell its “air rights” on July 21 by New York City’s Landmarks Preservation Commission.
“In New York, you own not just your lateral space, but also your vertical space,” explains the Rev. Anne Marie Witchger, rector of the historic parish.
“For a building like St. Mark’s, a historic building, we own the property on which our building sits—our building and our grounds—but then we also own the space above our heads…which means that in theory we could have chosen to build a much larger building.”
The unique New York City mechanism, officially called transferable development rights (TDRs), allows the parish to transfer 27,000 square feet, or about 20 percent of its development rights.
A development purchasing TDRs from what is called a granting site allows it to build a taller structure than what is permitted by zoning regulations.
Witchger said the sale will allow the church to direct all operating income and pledges toward mission, rather than expensive repairs and renovations (some of which require approval and oversight by the preservation agency) that could strain the church’s limited resources.
“We don’t have to worry about these vital repairs anymore…instead, we can say, we ‘have these things covered.’ We can keep our building in sound repair, and we can continue to do the vital mission work and ministry work that we’ve been doing for so long,” Witchger told The Living Church.
Describing St. Mark’s financial situation as similar to a household “living paycheck to paycheck,” Witchger said thinking about the long-term sustainability of Manhattan’s second-oldest church building had been very difficult.
“We have struggled to plan for the long-term care for our building, and even things like…a leak or an emergency repair that needs to happen can often throw our whole budget into uncertainty,” the rector said.
The sale will be finalized by year’s end, and until then, specifics of the agreement, including the amount of the sale, cannot be disclosed.
St. Mark’s current building was consecrated in May 1799 and sits on land purchased by Petrus Stuyvesant a century earlier. The church hosts 12-step groups, children’s programs and outreach programs throughout the week, and the churchyard is open for public use.
“We’re an incredibly active space and a vibrant worshiping community… but we do all of that and we’ve historically done all of that with very humble resources,” Witchger said.
A system in place since the 1960s for landmarked properties, TDRs could be transferred to a development in front of or adjacent to a landmarked property through a special permit. Selling the rights could have a physical impact on the space.
But in December 2024, the New York City Council approved a housing resolution updating zoning laws across the city. The new guidelines expanded which developments could receive TDRs.
Source: Landmarks Preservation Commission
St. Mark’s, located on East 10th Street and Second Avenue, is the granting site in this arrangement. It will transfer its rights to a housing development along Third Avenue, a location that is neither in front of nor adjacent to the parish. Both sites are in the East Village neighborhood where the median rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $3,995.
Witchger said the response from parishioners and the community to the sale had been supportive. Both the Standing Committee of the Diocese of New York and Bishop Matthew Heyd also gave their formal approval.
Heyd said he is proud of what St. Mark’s has accomplished. “Our story is renewal. Stewardship of our property is so important to the vibrant future of our local communities,” Heyd told TLC.
A diocesan resolution stipulates that 10 percent of the proceeds will be tithed to the diocese to help meet congregational property needs and lower health care costs for congregations and clergy. Thirty percent of the proceeds is set aside for a maintenance plan, the progress of which will be inspected by the commission every 10 years.
The diocese noted that other Manhattan parishes have announced air rights agreements, including St. Bartholomew’s in Midtown Manhattan, which sold its TDRs to JPMorgan Chase for its new headquarters along Park Avenue.
According to commission chair Lisa Kersavage, the approval given to St. Mark’s is the first for a faith-based organization since new zoning changes were implemented.
“By making it easier for landmarks like St. Mark’s-in-the-Bowery Church to transfer development rights to nearby sites, the City is helping property owners, including religious institutions, fund essential maintenance while supporting new residential development citywide,” Kersavage told TLC.
Caleb Maglaya Galaraga is The Living Church’s Episcopal Church reporter. His work has also appeared in Christianity Today, Broadview Magazine, and Presbyterian Outlook, among other publications.