The New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America is preparing to leave its modest Lower East Side headquarters for two significantly more expensive offices in Manhattan and Brooklyn, despite Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s campaign pledge to cut government spending.
The move comes as the organization is also beginning to pay its two elected co-chairs $95,000 annual salaries plus benefits, dramatically increasing its recurring expenses.
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The organization says its growth and expanding political operation require additional space and full-time leadership, while critics have seized on the costs and amenities as inconsistent with the group’s frequent attacks on wealth and landlords.
NYC-DSA says local member dues will help finance the expansion and has been actively fundraising for new office space.
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The two new offices will cost NYC-DSA approximately $22,000 per month, according to reporting by the New York Post.
The larger expense is a Manhattan office reportedly costing $15,000 monthly inside a 14-story building with amenities including a doorman, 24-hour security and a furnished rooftop.
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The organization is also leasing a Brooklyn location in Bedford-Stuyvesant for another $7,000 per month, giving NYC-DSA its first dedicated office in that borough.
The new spaces replace the chapter’s smaller Lower East Side headquarters, where it had been paying approximately $5,200 per month.
The financial expansion follows an August vote approving salaries for co-chairs Grace Mausser and Gustavo Gordillo, who had previously served in those positions as unpaid volunteers.
Each will now receive $95,000 annually plus benefits under what the organization describes as a pilot program intended to make leadership a full-time position.
NYC-DSA’s Citywide Leadership Committee approved the compensation plan by a 51-10 vote following votes by the organization’s geographic branches.
The combined salaries and benefits are expected to cost approximately $20,000 per month, making leadership compensation one of the chapter’s largest expenses.
Budget documents reviewed by City & State New York showed the chapter receiving approximately $84,700 in monthly revenue, primarily through national and local membership dues.
NYC-DSA has argued that paying its leaders will allow people without independent financial means to hold demanding leadership positions while coordinating with elected officials, campaigns and the city government.
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The organization has also been encouraging members to increase local dues specifically to help raise $20,000 in monthly donations for office space throughout the city.
Its own fundraising page says local dues pay for rent, utilities, campaign materials, technology and staff.
The Manhattan lease has attracted additional attention because the building is reportedly owned by members of the Chetrit family, prominent New York real-estate developers who have faced tenant litigation.
That arrangement has provided political critics with an easy opening against an organization that describes its mission as building working-class power and challenging the influence of wealthy interests.
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Former New York City Council Minority Leader Joe Borelli mocked the contrast, telling the Post that the group appeared to be “cosplaying as extras in Succession.”
🚨 BREAKING: ‘Cosplaying As Extras In Succession’: DSA Reportedly Shelling Out $22,000 A Month For Two New Luxury Offices
‘We hate capitalism’.https://t.co/AHqFCS603s
— Cyber Hunter (@Gene_SD) September 5, 2026
The move comes during a period of increased visibility for NYC-DSA, which says it has more than 15,000 members and has become increasingly involved in city and state electoral politics.
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The organization has defended its growing budget as a consequence of that expansion, arguing that increased staffing and physical space are necessary to support campaigns and political organizing.
Critics, however, are likely to continue focusing on the optics of a socialist organization spending $22,000 every month on offices with amenities that would not traditionally be associated with a bare-bones political operation, The Daily Caller reported.
NYC-DSA’s new Manhattan office is expected to host its first meeting later this month, formally beginning a substantially more expensive chapter in the organization’s growth.
This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.
