Alma Realty, which is known for its massive Astoria Cove project in Queens, is heading up to the Bronx. Last week, the Long Island City-based developer filed plans for an eight-story, mixed-use building in the West Farms section of the borough.
The Anbang Insurance Group Co. is planning to convert up to 1,100 hotel rooms of the 1,413-key Waldorf Astoria into an undisclosed number of condominiums. The 47-story, 625-foot-tall luxury hotel is at 301 Park Avenue, located on the block between East 49th and 50th streets in Midtown East. The hotel-to-residential conversion would retain between 300 to 500 hotel rooms, which will also see renovations of their own, according to the Wall Street Journal. The project is expected to cost $1 billion, and would close the Waldorf Astoria for up to three years. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will remain the hotel operator following the conversion. The Landmarks Preservation Commission will have to approve any exterior alterations. The hotel played host to the president of the United States for decades until China-based Angang acquired the property, an individual landmark, for $1.95 billion in 2015. During last year’s United Nations General Assembly, President Barack Obama stayed at the Lotte New York Palace Hotel.
The 36-story, 372-unit residential tower being constructed at 225 East 39th Street, located on Tunnel Exit Street between East 39th and 40th streets in Murray Hill, has topped out since YIMBY’s last update in February, when the structure was 16 stories above street level. Curtain wall installation is now underway on the structure, as seen in photos posted to the YIMBY Forums by Tectonic. The building measures 373,248 square feet in its entirety, and its residential units, which will be rental apartments, should average 922 square feet apiece. Twenty percent of the units, or 75, will rent at below-market rates through the affordable housing lottery. Amenities include a fitness center, a children’s playroom, tenant lounges, a café, a library, a landscaped courtyard, and a recreational area on the 35th floor. Fisher Brothers is the developer, and Handel Architects is behind the architecture. Completion can probably be expected later this year.
Applications for a 15-story, 68-key hotel have been filed at 149-21 Archer Avenue (a.k.a. 92-18 150th Street) in Downtown Jamaica. The structure will encompass 39,084 square feet. Hotel rooms, averaging roughly 250 square feet apiece, will be located on the second through 15th stories, while a lobby will take up the ground floor. Guest amenities include a 1,500-square-foot restaurant in the cellar level and a rooftop bar with a terrace. TCX Development released a rendering of the project earlier this year. Since the time of the release, the number of hotel rooms has shrunk by four. Forest Hills-based ARC Architecture + Design Studio is behind the architecture. The 4,018-square-foot corner lot was previously occupied by a single-story commercial building, which was demolished earlier this year. The site is located two blocks from the Jamaica Center-Parsons/Archer Station on the E, J, and Z trains.
Staten Island-based Forest Side Properties has filed applications for a four-story, three-unit residential building at 730 Bay Street, in Clifton, along Staten Island’s North Shore. The structure will measure 4,729 square feet, which means its full-floor units should average a spacious 1,576 square feet apiece, indicative of condominiums. Amenities include five off-street parking spots and a roof deck. David L. Businelli’s Staten Island-based Studio 16 Architecture is the architect of record. The 68-foot-wide, 8,252-square-foot assemblage consists of a vacant 54-foot-wide lot and the 12-foot-wide property at 726 Bay street, currently occupied by a four-story house. Demolition permits haven’t yet been filed. The site is located three blocks north of the neighborhood’s Staten Island Railway station.
