The New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) and the New York City Industrial Development Agency (NYCIDA) recently launched the Manhattan Commercial Revitalization Program (M-CORE).

Financial assistance in the form of tax incentives may be available to owners of commercial office buildings that demonstrate near-term plans for significant renovations including:

• The introduction of new layouts, building systems, infrastructure, energy efficiency improvements, common areas, health and wellness measures, programming and/or amenities that are sought by tenants.
• Thoughtful strategies around ground floor uses that will draw foot traffic and activate the surrounding commercial corridor.

Eligible buildings must be located in Manhattan south of 59th Street, be at least 250,000 gross square feet in size, and must have been constructed before the year 2000.

Owners must invest at least 75 percent of the project location’s current assessed value for land and building as determined by the New York City Department of Finance for the most recent available year.

Applications to the Manhattan Commercial Revitalization (M-CORE) program will be evaluated by NYCIDA staff on several key aspects, including the scope and budget of transformative improvements, tenant attraction plan, project readiness, and compliance with applicable local laws and regulations, including Local Law 97 emission-reduction targets.

The application process is competitive and NYCIDA will consider applications representing up to 10 million square feet of combined eligible office space. The pre-application will be available on June 8, 2023.