Umbrella House

Umbrella House Umbrella House used to be an Squatter building, is ruled by its neighbors, is a platform to share, t Two weeks later they were just three.

On a freezing cold night in November, 1988, five people in search of a home cracked open an abandoned City-owned building at 21 Avenue C on New York’s Lower East Side. That first winter was rough. By the time spring came several more people had been invited in to occupy the building. They decided to stay and began working diligently: they patched and repaired the roof and closed-up the bulkhead; t

hey sealed windows; they began rebuilding damaged masonry. And they removed massive amounts of rubble and debris. Lots and lots of rubble and debris. They named the building Umbrella House. In subsequent years more people were invited in to squat Umbrella, and work continued. Joists were sistered, floors layed, a rudimentary electrical distribution was installed, and more than a dozen people called the building their home. The biggest milestone in the early years of Umbrella House was the installation by the squatters of waste-lines and a water service connected to the City’s water and sewer system. By 1997 plumbing and electric had been run to all the building’s units, all the apartments were occupied, and over twenty people now lived at Umbrella House. In the early 2000s the Urban Homesteading Assistance Board (UHAB) approached Umbrella House and ten other squatted buildings on the Lower East Side with a plan to go legal. The members of Umbrella House elected to join this process. In 2010 Umbrella House formed an Housing Development Fund Corporation (HDFC) and organized itself as a limited-equity co-op that will provide affordable housing at 21 Avenue C for many decades to come.

Umbrella House Rooftop Garden was open to the public last weekend as part of Open House New York 2018. Thanks to all wh...
10/16/2018

Umbrella House Rooftop Garden was open to the public last weekend as part of Open House New York 2018. Thanks to all who stoped by.

07/05/2017
Getting ready
04/17/2017

Getting ready

07/17/2016
07/17/2016
Estuvimos muy contentos de tenerlos en casa celebrando. Fue un hermoso día. Hoy completamos 62 sombrillas. Gracias a tod...
07/04/2016

Estuvimos muy contentos de tenerlos en casa celebrando. Fue un hermoso día. Hoy completamos 62 sombrillas. Gracias a todos por su presencia y su buena onda. Nos vemos prontoo!!!

We were so happy to see you all at home celebrating. It was a wonderful day. Today we complete 62 umbrellas. Thank you all for coming. We'll see you soon!

Gracias por tan hermoso día
07/03/2016

Gracias por tan hermoso día

07/02/2016

Estamos listos, listas y felices!!!
07/02/2016

Estamos listos, listas y felices!!!

Address

21 Avenue C
New York, NY
10009

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Umbrella House posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Featured

Share