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239 Canal Street zoning and development potential

239 Canal Street, Manhattan 10013 is a 13,388 square foot lot zoned M1-5/R10. RunEnvelope’s engine finds an as-of-right scheme with homes of 160,656 sf (AIRS Senior Housing (100% Affordable)), against 42,544 sf built on the lot today.

The lot

BBL
1-00208-0019
Block / lot
208 / 19
Community district
Manhattan Community District 2
Zoning
M1-5 / R10
Lot area
13,388 sf
Frontage x depth
38 ft x 299 ft
Lot type
Corner
Current use
Commercial and office
Built today
42,544 sf, 6 floors
Year built
1915
Built FAR
3.18

Permitted floor area against what is built

Built on the lot today42,544 sf
Largest scheme with homes: AIRS Senior Housing (100% Affordable)160,656 sf

That leaves 118,112 sf more floor area than stands here now, if the existing building were replaced. The largest scheme with homes and no affordability obligation holds 133,880 sf (Mixed-Use).

City Planning’s PLUTO file lists a residential FAR of 10.00 for this lot, which at 13,388 sf of land is 133,880 sf. The engine’s largest residential-only scheme without an affordability obligation (Max Apartments) holds 133,879 sf, close to that simple multiplication.

Quality Housing height limit in R10 on a wide street: 215 ft (235 ft with the affordability preference). From the district’s rule set.

  • Wide street frontage
  • Mandatory Inclusionary Housing area
  • E-designation on the lot
  • Coastal zone
  • Irregular lot shape

Development scenarios

The largest 6 as-of-right schemes RunEnvelope’s engine produced for this lot, by zoning floor area. A full study also models the building itself: floor plates, heights, setbacks, unit mix and parking.

SchemeTypeFloor areaFARHomes
AIRS Senior Housing (100% Affordable)Income-restricted housing160,65612.00181
Mixed-UseMixed use with homes133,88010.00147
Max ApartmentsHousing133,87910.00281
Shared Housing (SRO)Shared housing (rooms)132,6409.91454 rooms
Sky Exposure Plane OptionHousing96,9657.24116
Max CommercialCommercial66,9405.00None

Floor area is zoning floor area in square feet. Highlighted: the largest scheme with homes. Income-restricted schemes (Universal Affordability Preference, AIRS senior housing) require a share or all of the homes to be affordable. Shared housing counts rooms, not apartments. Schemes that need a landmark transfer of development rights, the FRESH food store bonus or a stack of every program are left off this page; the full study shows them.

What these numbers are

As-of-right only: what the Zoning Resolution allows without a variance, special permit or rezoning. Computed by RunEnvelope’s zoning engine on October 24, 2026 from PLUTO 26v2 lot data, in screening mode: the engine uses the City’s recorded lot area and dimensions, not a surveyed lot outline.

This is not a professional opinion, an appraisal or a statement that anything will or should be built here. Existing tenants, leases and the owner’s plans are not part of it.

What a full study checks

  • ■The actual lot outline, street frontages and yards, not PLUTO's recorded dimensions
  • ■Easements, restrictive declarations and zoning lot agreements on record
  • ■Landmark, waterfront and flood rules that apply to the specific building
  • ■Height, setback and floor-by-floor massing, with floor plans
  • ■Unit count, parking and the affordability program terms

Why this lot has a page: we publish pages only for lots that clear a set of data quality and headroom tests.

This is the screening number. Get the study for 239 Canal Street.

Run the full study