The Daily Dirt: City of Yes could speed Flatiron conversion

What does the Flatiron Building conversion have to do with Mayor Adams’ “City of Yes” plan? So glad you asked.

To fully convert the office building to apartments, the owners need authorization from the City Planning Commission. That is because the iconic building is in a C6-4M district, which allows some office-to-residential conversions, but requires a certain percentage of the property (based on lot size) to be preserved for commercial or manufacturing use.

In the Flatiron’s case, 50 percent of the building would need to be preserved as commercial unless City Planning authorizes otherwise. However, the mayor’s City of Yes for Housing Opportunity text amendment would get rid of this requirement and make other changes that would ease office-to-residential conversions.

The owners plan to file for this authorization, but hope the city will make the change first, according to GFP Real Estate’s Jeff Gural. The text amendment is expected to begin public review in the spring. It would reach the City Council for approval about seven months later.

Individual authorization for the Flatiron would not require City Council approval, but does need a waiver from a requirement to create recreational space on the building’s roof. The process could take 12 to 15 months, according to marketing materials. Whichever path it takes, the conversion requires approval from the Landmarks Preservation Commission.

The Brodsky Organization bought a stake in the building and will lead the conversion with the Sorgente Group, Rich Bockmann reported. It is not clear how many residential units will be created, though the owners have reportedly considered as many as 40.

What we’re thinking about: Vornado Realty Trust says it is likely staying out of the casino license competition. Why do you think that is? Send a note to kathryn@therealdeal.com.

A thing we’ve learned: Writer Edith Wharton’s maiden name was Jones, inherited from the same family that inspired the idiom “keeping up with the Joneses.” I read this in the intro to New York Review’s edition of Wharton’s “Ghosts,” a selection of spooky tales, which I highly recommend.

Elsewhere in New York…

— Department of Correction Commissioner Louis Molina has been tapped as an assistant deputy mayor for public safety, Gothamist reports. Mayor Eric Adams called the move a promotion. However, the change comes after a series of reports by a federal monitor detailing deteriorating conditions at Rikers Island.

— Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday announced $50 million in grants for local law enforcement agencies to combat hate crimes and another $25 million for houses of worship to increase security, the New York Times reports. The news comes amid an increase in reported antisemitic attacks and hate crimes against Palestinans.

Closing Time

Residential: The priciest residential closing Tuesday was $47 million for a townhouse at 144 East 65th Street in Lenox Hill.

Commercial: The most expensive commercial closing of the day was $23 million for a hotel at 44-21 Ninth Street, Queens.

New to the Market: The priciest residence to hit the market Tuesday was a condo at 944 Park Avenue on the Upper East Side asking $12.3 million. Compass has the listing.

Breaking Ground: The largest new building filing of the day was for a 4,000 square-foot, two-story residential building at 1061 Grassmere Terrace in Queens. CL Engineering filed the permit application. — Jay Young