West Village church to build 70,000 sf residential tower

West Village church St. Luke in the Fields will develop a 15-story residential building to fund its own new buildings.

The church plans to construct a 70,000-square-foot residential rental building at 100 Barrow Street, part of an entire block St. Luke owns. The 153-foot tower would be built as-of-right and is planned to be so-called 80/20 housing, which would give the developer a tax break for making a portion of the residences affordable. Barry Rice, the architect on the project, told the Villager that the developer hasn’t yet applied for the 421a tax exemption, but plans to do so soon.

The project must also secure a “certificate of appropriateness” from the Landmarks Preservation Commission, as the spot lies within the Greenwich Village Historic District. Church representatives, the developer and architect Rice are set to go before the LPC February 4.

The development, which is smaller than the 200,000 square feet allowed by current zoning, is intended to fund the church’s goals to construct a new mission center and expand its private school, according to the Villager.

“People understandably think it would be ideal if we could do those things without any new development on the block,” Reverend Caroline Stacey, rector of St. Luke’s, told the Villager. “But the truth of the matter is that we need that residential building in order to provide the necessary income stream for the school to have what it needs, and for us to build the mission space.” [The Villager] — Julie Strickland