Congregation Netzach Yisroel v. Santana

Summary

The court considered whether a religious corporation could recover rent-stabilized apartments for conversion into a yeshiva under Rent Stabilization Code § 2524.4(b)(1). It held that the corporation's amended certificate of incorporation identified religious, charitable, and educational purposes and therefore did not establish that it operated exclusively for charitable or educational purposes as required by the regulation. The respondents' motions to dismiss the holdover proceedings were granted.

Holdings

1. A religious corporation may qualify under the phrase "any institution," but it may recover rent-stabilized premises under § 2524.4(b)(1) only if it is operated exclusively for charitable or educational purposes on a nonprofit basis. Because petitioner's amended certificate of incorporation included religious and other purposes beyond charitable and educational purposes, petitioner did not satisfy the regulation.
2. Petitioner could not use the owner-occupancy provision to avoid the requirements of the separate not-for-profit-institution provision because the two subdivisions establish distinct and mutually exclusive grounds for refusing to renew rent-stabilized leases.

Questions Presented

1. Whether a religious corporation whose certificate of incorporation includes religious and other purposes, in addition to charitable and educational purposes, may recover rent-stabilized apartments for a nonresidential Yeshiva use under Rent Stabilization Code § 2524.4(b)(1).
2. Whether the owner-occupancy provision in Rent Stabilization Code § 2524.4(a) permits petitioner to recover the apartments despite its failure to qualify under the separate not-for-profit-institution provision in subdivision (b).

Disposition

dismissed