While many Lower East Side veterans might consider a two-year-old art gallery the definition of a newcomer, the Sperone Westwater Gallery has set its sights on blocking the arrival of an even newer arrival. Owners of the Bowery gallery are working alongside preservationists to halt city approval of a 25-story hotel-condominium development that they say will block a sky view, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The proposed 195,000-square-foot development at 10 Stanton Street would sit on the lot behind the Norman Foster-designed gallery. Opponents say the project, spearheaded by real estate investor Rubin Schron, would not fit the character of the neighborhood, casting a shadow on the nearby Sara D. Roosevelt Park, occupying a private garden space that’s part of a housing development and dwarfing the nearby New Museum in its shadow.
Schron reportedly gained community support for the plan after agreeing to apply for federal housing subsidies at the 146-unit housing development until 2035.
Massey Knakal Chairman Bob Knakal said that the building rights for the plot could be worth between $50 and $60 million if approved. [WSJ] — Zachary Kussin