The MTA on Wednesday approved spending $82 million to take over parcels of land in East Harlem for the next phase of Second Avenue Subway construction, paying nearly twice the value of the land according to an appraiser hired by the agency.
The $82 million acquisition — the single most expensive real estate deal for the Second Avenue Subway project — is considerably higher than what the agency’s own independent appraiser said the land is worth. The contract, published in the MTA Board’s “Book” ahead of its monthly meeting, notes that an appraiser hired by the MTA pegged the land value at $45.4 million, which is what the transit authority initially bid for the parcels.
