Map from the Envision SoHo-NoHo Report. Image Credit; Envision SoHo/NoHo/ NYC Planning
On October 7, 2020, Mayor de Blasio announced that the SoHo/NoHo Neighborhood Plan will advance to the City’s public land use review process. The purpose of the Neighborhood Plan is to expand housing opportunities for New Yorkers, support cultural and economic success in the area, and reduce regulatory burdens on residents and workers in the area. (more…)
Richard Lobel testifies before the Board of Standards and Appeals. Image credit: BSA
Board found a hardship caused by the site’s irregular shape. On April 14, 2015 the Board of Standards and Appeals granted 31 BSP LLC a variance to permit converting an existing six-story mixed-use noncomplying building at 31 Bond Street in the NoHo Historic District of Manhattan into a seven-story Use Group 2 residential building. The proposal will remove a backshaft from the rear of the existing building, vacant since 2010, and redistribute floor area to construct a new seventh story with a 1,500 square-foot penthouse.
Rendering of proposed building at 27 East 4th Street. Image Courtesy: SRA Architecture and Engineering.
Applicants take measures to ensure construction does not harm adjacent Merchant’s House. At a public meeting on February 11, 2014, the Landmarks Preservation Commission reviewed a revised proposal for a new building at 27 East 4th Street in the NoHo Historic District Extension. The applicants returned with a revised plan following Commissioners’ comments at a public hearing on March 12, 2013 (Read Cityland past coverage here). (more…)
Rendering of 688 Broadway. Credit: BKSK Architects LLP
Compliments abound for BKSK-designed eleven-story-plus-penthouse building proposed for Broadway lot used for flea market. On October 9, 2012, the Landmarks Preservation Commission approved Downtown RE Holdings LLC’s plan to build an eleven-story-plus-penthouse building at 688 Broadway in the NoHo Historic District. The site has been used as a parking lot and is currently occupied by a flea market.
George Schieferdecker and Harry Kendall, from BKSK Architects, presented Downtown RE Holdings’ proposal. The building would rise up to 150 feet (including bulkhead) and its set-back penthouse would be visible from some vantages. An irregularly shaped brick and terra cotta-glassed screen would sit in front of the building’s metal and glass facade. The building would feature a prominent cornice and a stone base, with its first two stories framed with metal. Kendall pointed out that the building’s height would be neither exceptionally tall nor short for the area. He explained that because the underlying zoning required a set back at 85 feet, the developer would apply to the City Planning Commission to modify the zoning resolution’s bulk regulations.
Credit: SRA Architecture + Engineering
Opposition feared construction would adversely impact individually landmarked building. On September 11, 2012, Landmarks held a hearing on Gary Spindler’s plan to demolish a one-story garage and develop a new nine-story building at 27 East 4th Street in the NoHo Historic District Extension. The property is located at the northern edge of the historic district and is adjacent to the individually landmarked Merchant’s House at 29 East 4th Street, which is not part of the historic district. The Merchant’s House was designated as a landmark in 1965 (a portion of its interior was designated in 1981), and the building currently functions as the Merchant’s House Museum.
Adrian Figueroa and Edward Carroll of SRA Architecture and Engineering presented Spindler’s proposal. According to Carroll, the nine-story building would not be out of context with the block’s “eclectic environment,” and would match the height of the neighboring building to the west at 25 East 4th Street. The building would feature a tripartite glass and steel facade framed by limestone with red masonry on the visible eastern sidewall. Structural engineer Phil Murray, also representing Spindler, testified that they would brace the Merchant’s House’s western wall and excavate the lot in segments, using seismographs to monitor any potential impacts.
