88-49 179th Place

Plans Approved for Masjid Al-Arapha’s Three-Story Mosque at 88-49 179th Place, Jamaica

6:00 am on September 6, 2016 By Reid Wilson

The Buildings Department has approved plans for Masjid Al-Arapha to build a three-story, 15,120-square-foot religious facility at 88-49 179th Place, located immeadiately east of downtown Jamaica. The project will measure 15,120 square feet and rise 35 feet in height. It will contain prayer areas on the ground and second floors, followed by classrooms for children ages three through 12 on the third floor. The cellar will contain a kitchen and a 22-car parking garage. Jamil M. Coppin’s Fresh Meadows-based architecture firm is the architect of record. The 80-foot-wide, 8,615-square-foot property is currently vacant. The Jamaica-179th Street stop on the F train is located a block away.

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L Train Flooding Post-Sandy

Why This Weekend’s Weather Forecast is Bad News for the L Train’s Long-Term Prospects

4:00 pm on September 2, 2016 By Nikolai Fedak

New York City has long dealt with storms, but recently, things have been getting more turbulent. In 2011, Hurricane Irene almost flooded the subways; the city’s sigh of relief was quickly suffocated by Sandy only one year later, which wrecked much of the system. This past winter, while Delaware and southern New Jersey were again hit by record tides during Central Park’s heaviest-ever snowstorm, the city escaped relatively unscathed. But, on Sunday, New Yorkers may not be so lucky, as guidance from NOAA’s storm surge model shows a substantial storm surge into the city, which would approach the tipping point for flooding of underground infrastructure.

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152 East 87th Street, rendering by Ismael Levya Architects

Work Reaches Street Level on 19-Story, 56-Unit Mixed-Use Project at 152 East 87th Street, Upper East Side

2:00 pm on September 2, 2016 By Reid Wilson

Not including several stories of steel frame retained from the former parking garage, construction has reached street level on the 19-story, 56-unit mixed-use building under development at 152 East 87th Street, on the Upper East Side. Photos of the progress have been posted to the YIMBY Forums. The latest permits indicate the project, categorized as an expansion of the existing garage, will measure 155,764 square feet and rise 210 feet above street level. A 151-car parking garage, a part of which will be operated commercially, will be located on the cellar through third floors, followed by residential units on the fourth through 19th floors. The units will be condominiums and should average 2,411 square feet apiece. Gordon Haskett is the developer and Ismael Leyva Architects is behind the architecture. Completion is expected in late 2017.

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73 Clay Street

Reveal for Five-Story, 84-Unit Mixed-Use Building Planned at 73 Clay Street, Newark

1:00 pm on September 2, 2016 By Reid Wilson

A rendering has been revealed of the five-story, 84-unit mixed-use building planned at 73-87 Clay Street, located on the corner of Spring Street in the Lower Broadway section of Newark, New Jersey. Dubbed Spring Street Commons, it will host 7,500 square feet of commercial-retail space on the ground floor, in addition to a 21-car parking garage, Jersey Digs reported. It’s not known if the apartments will be condominiums or rentals, but the latter is more likely. The site is currently occupied by two low-rise industrial properties, both of which must first be demolished. Newark-based Paris Real Estate Inc. is the developer. The project was approved by the city’s Central Planning Board back in June of 2015.

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