New renderings have been posted on-site at 245 West 14th Street, which has been dubbed ‘Village Green West’ by Alfa Development; the images are also up on the project’s website. Kutnicki Bernstein Architects designed the structure, which will soon stand 12 stories tall.
Excavation is well underway, and permits for construction were approved this past December; 245 West 14th Street will total slightly over 47,000 square feet. 500 square feet will be dedicated to a community facility, while another 3,802 square feet will be used for commercial space; the remainder of the property will be divided between 27 residences, translating into an average of over 1,500 square feet per unit. Per the project’s website, the top four floors will have one penthouse each.
245 West 14th Street
Aesthetically, the renderings paint a pretty picture; the cladding will be dominated by brick, and the overall design will be superior to the site’s 14th Street surroundings. The thoroughfare is seeing a gradual trend towards more attractive developments, with DDG’s 345 Meatpacking leading the way; in terms of form, scope, and targeted clientele, 245 West 14th Street will be similar, and the project is aiming for LEED-Gold certification.
245 West 14th Street
While the developments rising along 14th Street are promising, the corridor’s potential is vastly underutilized, even with the new buildings. The neighborhood’s transit accessibility is fantastic, as it is located at the confluence of the A, C, E, 1, 2, 3, and L subway lines; despite this, zoning is prohibitively low. At 12 stories, 245 West 14th Street will be short by Manhattan standards, but visually, Village Green West will dominate its surrounds; while that is not a problem in and of itself, it shows how much potential 14th Street has, and how it is currently wasted on low-rise structures.
A comprehensive re-zoning allowing dense residential and office developments for the transit-rich neighborhood would be most beneficial, though it will be very difficult to achieve, given the prevalence of NIMBYs in the vicinity. Nevertheless, the rise of buildings like 245 West 14th Street and 345 Meatpacking — both of which are significant improvements over their neighbors — shows the corridor is ripe for additional density.
Completion of Village Green West is expected in August of 2015.
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