A rendering of 625 West 57th Street
The City Council’s Land Use Committee approved Durst Fetner Residential’s development at 625 West 57th Street, a 32-story, 753-unit pyramid-shaped development in Hell’s Kitchen near the Hudson River, Crain’s reported…. [more]
A proposal to erect a slim 14-story tower on a tiny site at 207 West 75th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue has been shot down by an Upper West Side community board, West Side Rag reported, after NY1 anchor Pat Kiernan, who lives in an adjacent building, declared the development “not welcome” in the neighborhood. The proposal will now go before the city’s Board of Standards & Appeals.
The community’s opposition to the 25-foot-wide development was clear, with the votes against it almost unanimous. Nearby residents are concerned that the building would block their light, increase congestion in the neighborhood and affect property values in surrounding buildings, West Side Rag said…. [more]
More than 1,500 New Yorkers are raking in as much as $10,000 a month by illegally subletting their rental apartments, the New York Post reported, as many struggle to find their financial footing in the wake of the recession.
When Tony Chavez lost his job at a hedge fund, he realized he could make a $60,000-a-year profit just by moving out of his apartment, the Post said. He stayed at a friend’s house and started renting out his pad for between $250 and $350 per night.
Renters are required to obtain written permission from their landlords in order to sublet their apartment legally, according to New York State law, and cannot charge more than 10 percent above the current rent. For Class A units, it is also illegal to sublet them for less than 30 consecutive days. The main issue with illegally renting out an apartment is security, said Council member Gale Brewer.
“You have to be concerned about the comings and goings in the building, and you need to know who you’re renting to,” Brewer said. “If people need help making ends meet, they should work on getting a roommate.” … [more]
An Upper West Side bar has ceased operations to avoid going to court against the city, the Village Voice reported. But rather than blame strict community boards, smoking laws, or other city reforms, the Blue Donkey Bar is blaming “the malicious, capricious actions of a [single] neighbor.”
The owners of the bar, at 489 Amsterdam Avenue near 84th Street, claim New York University professor Tim Tomlinson issued repeated noise complaints about the bar to the local police precint, the 311 hotline and local City Council member Gale Brewer to the point that the city slapped them with a nuisance abatement suit. The owners agreed to shut down the bar to avoid going to court…. [more]
City Council member Gale Brewer announced that she will launch an investigation into building conditions within the city’s real estate portfolio after the Daily News reported hundreds of open code violations at city-owned properties. Among the high-profile buildings implicated in the report: One Police Plaza and the Manhattan Criminal Court, each of which have around 100 violations, Gracie Mansion, which had 16, and the Department of Buildings’ own headquarters at 280 Broadway, which had 20. Most of the infractions aren’t a threat to safety, but some are more serious, like the four Environmental Control Board violations at One Police Plaza, including one for failing to prove that emergency exits have their own power supply…. [more]
Bedbugs have been discovered at One Time Warner Center, the Manhattan offices of Time Warner in Columbus Square, and at the headquarters of the Brooklyn district attorney, at 350 Jay Street, the Wall Street Journal reported. The bugs were found last week and were to be exterminated by today. This latest outbreak follows a summer-long bedbug infestation around the city, including at the Hollister store in Soho, Abercrombie & Fitch at the South Street Seaport, a triage room at Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn and at a Victoria’s Secret on the East Side. In the past, the critters have been found in such offices as the Department of Health, the Human Resources Administration and at the City University of New York’s John Jay College, but the government is “usually pretty fast” to resolve the problem, said Council member Gale Brewer, who represents the Upper West Side. Brewer has asked the city to look at other prevention efforts in the battle against the bugs, including buying bug-sniffing dogs. [WSJ]
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Residents at the posh, celeb-friendly 15 Central Park West condo building are riled over a plan to potentially open a wine bar on their block at 25 Central Park West, according to the New York Post. Owners at the pricey building, where last month one buyer paid a record-breaking $6,700 per square foot for a unit, say that their residential community isn’t cut out for a late-night crowd. Opponents of the bar have recruited some elected officials to their cause, including City Council member Gale Brewer, who said that “it’s a problem to serve alcohol in a residential neighborhood.” The community board plans to review the potential wine bar’s liquor license request June 9. The space at 25 Central Park West has sat vacant since the summer of 2007, when Gristedes closed shop. [Post]
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A model for the Riverside Center, a 2,500-apartment mixed-use development designed by Extell Development for the Upper West Side, was revealed to the public this week, according to the Westside Independent. The complex, which would stretch between 59th and 61st streets and between West End Avenue and the West Side Highway, would include five residential towers, 210,000 square feet of retail space, a movie theater, a 250-room hotel, and a school for grades K through eight, if Extell’s proposal goes through. This unveiling came on the heels of massive community input on the project, but City Council member Gale Brewer said that Extell’s latest plans didn’t adequately address the residents’ concerns. “It’s an improvement, but it’s not a big improvement,” Brewer said. “The environmental issues have not really been answered.”
The New York City Council voted today to approve Fordham University’s proposed expansion plan. The expansion, which includes a new law school, dorms, parking garages and residential towers, will extend between 60th and 62nd streets and Amsterdam and Columbus avenues. Council member Gale Brewer negotiated some concessions, including reduced heights for Fordham’s new buildings, earlier this month. Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s approval is the final step needed before the 25-year expansion project can go forward, and he is expected to support it. After expanding, the campus, built for 3,500 students, will be able to serve more than 10,000 students. … [more]
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