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).  (read more…)

Rendering of proposed building at 27 East 4th Street. Image Credit: SRA Architecture and Engineering.

Applicants responded to public testimony, which focused on potential damage to the adjoining landmarks, by detailing the excavation, construction and monitoring plans for the new building. On March 12, 2013, the Landmarks Preservation Commission continued a hearing on a proposed new building at 27 East 4th Street, in the NoHo Historic District Extension. The proposed building is adjacent to the Merchant’s House, an individual exterior and interior landmark and museum at 29 East 4th Street.

At the first hearing on September 11, 2012, elected officials, representatives of the museum, the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation, which owns the property, Manhattan Community Board 2, and members of the public, all expressed strong concern about the potential negative impact of the project on the Merchant’s House. (See CityLand’s past coverage here). The hearing was cut short due to the quantity of public testimony and without an opportunity for the applicants to respond to the criticism or for Commissioners to comment on the application.

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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.

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