There could be more trouble brewing for the Jean Nouvel-designed MoMA tower at 53 West 53rd Street. Word has gotten out that the West 54-55th Street Block Association has filed an official petition to the New York State Supreme Court, citing environmental violations and the improper transfer of development rights, according to Curbed. Although it’s not yet clear when the court might make a decision on the petition, the document could put a temporary wrench in the works for the development.

After yesterday’s announcement that the City Council had approved the construction of the Jean Nouvel-designed MoMa tower at 53 West 53rd Street, the opposition has pledged to continue its fight to stop the building from making its Midtown debut. “Nobody is against fine architecture,” Justin Peyser, a nearby resident and member of the Coalition for Responsible Midtown Development, told the New York Post. “The problem is where it’s being built.” The coalition, which is staunchly against the tower, will likely wage a legal challenge against the building, according to Peyser. Council member Dan Garodnick, whose district begins just north of the proposed tower site, said that the main gripe among his constituents is that the tower is too tall for the neighborhood.

The New York City Council voted to approve the Jean Nouvel-designed skyscraper today, set to build next to the Museum of Modern Art at 53 West 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues. The vote comes on the heels of massive discord over the proposed tower, which opponents feel is planned to be too tall for the neighborhood. It’s not yet clear whether development group Hines will restrict the height of the structure to 1,050 feet, as had been reported, or whether the tower will extend to 1,250 feet as the Hines group had hoped.

Park Slope’s Argyle condominium will be installing virtual doorman technology. Also, Stonehenge Partners has closed on a $15.3 million first mortgage for 108 West 15th Street. And the Manhattan borough president has announced his support for a hotel and residential skyscraper at 53 West 53rd Street. Click here for the full item. TRD Comments

Jean Nouvel and renderings of 53 West 53rd Street

Developers of a Jean Nouvel-designed skyscraper adjacent to the Museum
of Modern Art have applied to build a tower seven stories taller than
the proposal they originally unveiled two years ago. The willowy design for the tower at 53 West 53rd Street the developer announced in the fall of 2007
was 75 stories tall, but the one included in a recent filing with the Department of City Planning and described on the developer’s Web
site is 82 stories high. The building has been controversial, with Community Board 5 criticizing
its height and bulk in a resolution in March 2008, calling it an
“eccentric, asymmetrical tower.” The mixed-use project from Houston-based international developer Hines
Interests will have 100 hotel rooms and 120 condominium units on the
upper floors, and also include a 60,000-square-foot expansion of MoMa’s
galleries on the second to the fifth floors, the Hines Web site says.
The number of hotel and condo rooms has not changed since 2007, but the
amount of space for the museum has grown from 50,000 in 2007 to 60,000, according to
the latest description on the Web site. A museum spokesperson put the figure at 70,000 square feet. Hines did not immediately respond to requests for comment. [more]