Rendering of proposed mixed-use building at 625 West 57th Street. Image Courtesy: Durst Development LLC.
New development plan promises period of residential affordability, lively streetscape, and small public space in Manhattan. On December 19, 2012, the City Planning Commission approved Durst Development LLC’s mixed-use development project at 625 West 57th Street. A unique, pyramid-shaped, 35-story building between West 57th and 58th Streets will be the centerpiece of the project. The building will contain 753 rental units including 151 affordable units, ground floor retail space, and a 285-space accessory parking garage. The development project will also include a conversion of a Manhattan Mini Storage building at 600 West 58th Street to community facility, residential, or retail uses. Finally, an access drive will be built connecting West 57th and West 58th Streets to provide access to the new building’s parking garage and lobby. (See CityLand’s past coverage here).
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Douglas Durst
Douglas Durst, Chairman of The Durst Organization, originally planned to join the U.S. Foreign Service as a career path. Today, Durst is charged with leading one of New York City’s most respected real estate development companies. He represents the third generation of the Durst family to chair the company that was founded by his grandfather in 1915.
Born in New York City, Durst graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 1966 with a degree in economics. He returned to the City to study at New York University’s Graduate School of Public Administration. Durst eventually joined the family business in 1970, and he became president in 1990. Durst’s first major project as president was the Condé Nast Building at 4 Times Square, a major component of the redevelopment of Times Square and the nation’s first large-scale office building to incorporate green building principles.
In July 2010, Durst stepped down as co-president, a position he shared with his cousin, Jonathan “Jody” Durst, to assume the role of company chairman. Although not as active in the day-to-day operations of the company, Durst explains that he has been more involved with their One World Trade Center project than he anticipated. (more…)
