Stephen Ross, chairman of the Related Companies, and Ruppert playground

The Related Companies is bringing a state-of-the-art cancer treatment center to its Upper East Side development site occupied by a beloved park, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The site, at 205 East 92nd Street between Second and Third Avenues, is currently home to Ruppert Playground, which Related took over in 1983 from the city and agreed to preserve for 25 years. Now that the period has expired and Related is moving forward to develop the site, neighbors are rallying to save the public space (note: correction appended). While Related is in the process of trying to find a suitable compromise with residents of the neighborhood, the firm has exceeded its legal obligation to the playground and can begin development without interference. [more]

Stephen Ross, chairman of the Related Companies, and Ruppert playground

Related Companies has locked down the popular Ruppert playground, a one-acre park squeezed between two skyscrapers spanning 92nd to 93rd streets and Second to Third avenues on the Upper East Side, holding it hostage until the city agrees to give it several million dollars in tax breaks for an adjoining rental property, Carnegie Park, the New York Post reported.

Related purchased the site from the city for $10 million in 1983 under a plan to revive the area. Per the agreement, the company had to maintain the park through June 2008, but has kept it clean and safe until now. It will return the park to the ownership of the city if granted the tax breaks, the Post said. [more]

Related Companies is finally preparing its longheld Upper East Side development site for the construction of a residential tower, the Wall Street Journal reported, and is closing down the park that currently occupies the land today.

Related acquired the land at 205 East 92nd Street, between Second and Third avenues, along with a nearby parcel for $10 million in 1983 from the city. As part of the purchase, Related had to maintain the 92nd Street plot as a community playground until June 2008. As The Real Deal reported in 2009, the company filed plans for a 49-story residential tower with 49 affordable rental units, 127 market-rate rentals and 66 condominium units. Today, the company will shut down the park to begin “preparatory site work” for development opportunities it is said to be evaluating. [more]

A showing of over 100 Upper East Side residents yesterday and speeches
made by politicians were a testament to the enormous community
opposition the Related Companies faces over its residential tower
proposal at 205 East 92nd Street. Yesterday’s meeting resulted
in Community Board 8′s vote to reject the developer’s application for a
421-a tax abatement, which would give it a tax break on the project’s
market-rate condominium component, in return for inclusion of
affordable rental units. Residents hope Related will abandon its plans if it cannot get the tax exemption. [more]