Allen Street pedestrian mall

Former Allen Street Bathroom Facility Could Be Converted To Food Concession, Lower East Side

1:00 pm on February 17, 2016 By Reid Wilson

The city is expecting to launch a Request for Proposals (RFP) this March to redevelop the long-vacant Allen Street pedestrian mall (public bathroom), located at Delancey Street on the Lower East Side, into a food concession facility. The Low-Down reports the city’s Parks Department is hoping a restaurant operator will lead renovation on the single-story structure, although already $2 million has been raised for the project. Other considerations for the building include community facility space, a library, a visitor’s center, or a return to the facility’s original use of bathrooms. The Lower Manhattan Development Corp. is also invested in the project.

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3052 West 21st Street

Childs Building Renovation, Amphitheater Construction Underway At 3052 West 21st Street, Coney Island

11:00 am on February 17, 2016 By Reid Wilson

In the summer of 2015, iStar Financial and Coney Island USA received the green light to begin renovation work on the dilapidated three-story, 56,300 square-foot Childs Building, an individual landmark, at 3052 West 21st Street, on Coney Island. The building will be anchored by a restaurant but will also have community space and a rooftop terrace. An interconnected 5,000-seat amphitheater is also planned on the adjacent lot. The New York Times now reports construction is finally underway on both the Childs Building and the performance venue, and the amphitheater’s metal framework can be seen taking shape. The complex is expected to be complete later this year. The developer are leasing the land from the city through a 10-year contract.

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787 Eleventh Avenue

Two-Story Expansion Filed For 464,000 Square-Foot Commercial Building At 787 Eleventh Avenue, Hell’s Kitchen

10:00 am on February 17, 2016 By Reid Wilson

Last July, Georgetown Company and Bill Ackman closed on the eight-story, 464,000 square-foot commercial building at 787 Eleventh Avenue, between West 54th and 55th streets in Hell’s Kitchen, for roughly $250 million. Now the property’s new owners have filed applications to expand the building by two stories or an additional 19,784 square feet. The roof will be raised by 60 feet (to 160 feet) and the latest filings indicate there will be 400,144 square feet of designated commercial space. The ground floor will contain retail space and automobile dealerships, floors two through five will contain automobile shops and services, and floors six through 10 will be office space. Per Curbed, Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management will be occupying the office space. Rafael Viñoly Architects is designing the project.

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3644 Oxford Avenue, image via Bing Maps

Permits Filed: 3644 Oxford Avenue, 14-Story Apartment Building in Riverdale

7:30 am on February 17, 2016 By Rebecca Baird-Remba

New development rarely happens in Riverdale, because big brick co-op buildings and townhouses populated most of the northwestern Bronx neighborhood in the wave of construction that swept across New York City after World War II. But every once in a while, a developer cobbles together a site in the quiet, middle-class enclave. Yesterday, we spotted permits for a 14-story apartment building at 3644 Oxford Avenue, just over the border from Fieldston.

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