Granite countertops. Terraces. Marble bathrooms. Walk-in closets.
The homeless are livin' large in Brooklyn.
The city is paying hundreds of thousands of dollars a month to rent luxury condos in a Crown Heights building for homeless families, the Daily News has learned.
"It's like a hotel. It's the nicest place I've ever lived in," said Nelson Delgado, 36, who moved into a swanky two-bedroom, two-bath pad two weeks ago.
"It's beautiful," added Delgado, an out-of-work truck driver from Miami who's living with his son Jeff, 17. "The closet in the main room is so big you could put a twin bed in there."
Raymond, another resident who moved in more than a week ago with his wife and two young daughters, said he is still trying to get over his good luck.
"When I first saw it, I was like, 'Damn, everything is brand new,'" said Raymond, who wouldn't give his last name. "It has marble counters and marble floors in the bathrooms, too. I like the big kitchen. That's my favorite."
City officials said the condos - which couldn't attract buyers in the fizzled housing market - are part of an effort to help an "unprecedented" number of homeless families who have ended up on the street because of the tough economy.
Units priced at $350,000
It appears to be the first time a faltering upscale building has found a new purpose as a shelter, said Steven Spinola, president of the Real Estate Board of New York.
Neighbors were furious the 67-unit building on East New York Ave., where apartments were supposed to sell for $250,000 to $350,000, has been turned into a shelter.
"I'm a hardworking taxpayer, and I don't think homeless people should be living better than me," fumed Desmond John, 35, a window salesman who wanted to rent one of the fancy apartments. "They said it's not for rent. It's a shelter. I was shocked."
Luxury brokerage firm HQ Marketing Partners started promoting the condos last summer - with the hook that buyers could custom design the units.
When the market started to tank in the fall - and his gamble on a fringe neighborhood didn't pay off - developer Avi Shriki said he had to come up with a Plan B.
"When the market went south, we knew we had to do something different," said Shriki, 44. "With the market being the way it is you have to be creative."
This spring, Shriki signed a 10-year contract with the Bushwick Economic Development Group to turn the building into a homeless shelter.
Shriki wouldn't say how much he gets paid - but he said he jumped at the chance to get people in his building.
"At least we still own the building and we are paying our mortgage, so that's good," said Shriki. "The outcome is not as bad as some people I know who had to surrender the whole building to the bank."
City pays $90 a night
The city is paying Bushwick Economic Development Corp. $90 a night for each of the apartments, about $2,700 a month - a figure that also covers social services, housing help and job counseling designed to get families back on their feet.
The nonprofit declined to comment.
City officials defended the move, calling it a creative use of a building that otherwise could have become an empty blight.
"This is a case of innovation and outside-the-box thinking that benefits all those involved," said Department of Homeless Services spokeswoman Heather Janik.
Shelter residents said it's not their fault they landed in such swanky digs.
"People are saying we don't deserve to live here," said an 18-year-old man who gave his name only as "Boss," who moved into a two-bedroom apartment with his mom last week.
"Just because a person fell out doesn't mean they don't deserve a place to stay," he said.
