AvalonBay abandons West Side plans

AvalonBay has abandoned its plans to construct a new luxury rental development on the far West Side, Crain’s reported. The company has decided not to lease four parcels of land owned by Four Plus Corp. located on a block bounded by West 56th and West 57th streets and 11tg and 12th avenues. A lease deal had been pending since February 2008, but it was put on hold due to the recession.

AvalonBay had planned to build a 44-story rental development with retail on the ground floor and roughly 700 apartments, including some affordable housing units, on the site. Fred Harris, senior vice president of development at AvalonBay, confirmed that the company is no longer working on the project. He said AvalonBay is focusing its efforts on projects where it owns the land, such as its new 691-unit Chelsea development near the High Line, and a planned 800-unit rental development called AvalonBay Willoughby in downtown Brooklyn, blocks away from its recently completed Avalon Fort Greene tower.

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Four Plus, a real estate investment company created by John Appleby to manage his family’s assets, did not return a call for comment. The site has been owned by the Appleby family for generations, according to sources. While it is ideal for residential development, there is one downside: The property is adjacent to a city-owned garbage truck station. According to sources, TF Cornerstone is interested in leasing and developing the site, but the company declined to comment. Sources said Four Plus is a long-term investor in real estate and will likely simply wait until it can strike up a favorable deal. [Crain’s]