In March, O'Grady was taking a walk near her home when she was struck by a car and killed. She was 84. With her passing, news began to spread about the apartment.
Sticking it out in the unit was no easy feat. In addition to the lack of most modern conveniences, past landlords also tried to force O’Grady out. “A fire was set at some point,” with the intention of evicting rent-controlled tenants, says Roberta. “Everybody else left except her.”
According to The New York Times, O'Grady had a 50-year career in the theater -- mostly small roles in Off-Broadway plays. She studied with legendary acting teacher Uta Hagen, appeared in TV soap operas and had small, uncredited roles in "Next Stop Greenwich Village," "Taxi Driver" and other films.
O'Grady's most recent landlord was Adam Pomerantz, he bought the building in 2002 and was surprised to learn that one of his tenants was paying such a low rent.
When Pomrenatz purchased the property, O'Grady was paying $26.45 a month. He looked into whether or not this was legal and his lawyer advised him it was because of rent-stabilization laws, but that he could raise her rent a whopping $1.98 a month.
In addition to possibly being the cheapest unit in Greenwich Village, the apartment may be New York City’s last cold-water flat: It had neither heat nor hot water. There were, however, two working fireplaces.
The building’s only other current residential tenant, 33-year-old Steven Flisler, a producer at NBC, became close with his neighbor.
"She was just a very kind woman. She was a customer in my store," said Pomerantz, who owns Murray's Bagels in the adjacent building. "Overall, she was just a wonderful tenant."
Patricia O'Grady moved to New York in 1955 to pursue a career as an actress. She and three girlfriends found a modest 2-bedroom apartment on the top floor of a four-story, mixed-use commercial building.
She occupied a two-bedroom apartment in Greenwich Village -- one of the city's most desirable neighborhoods -- for the astonishing rent of $28.43 a month, now the landlord plans to increase it to $5,000 dls a month.
