Wednesday, July 19, 2017

An update on Steiner East Village, 'Usherer of Alphabet City Gentrification'


[Photo from Saturday]

CityReality provides an update on developer Douglas Steiner's luxury condoplex, Steiner East Village, in a piece titled "Usherer of Alphabet City Gentrification More than 50% Sold."

As the headline suggests, 44 of the building's 82 units along Avenue A between 11th Street and 12th Street have been spoken for.

The building, which features an indoor pool and 5,000-square-foot "rooftop park," also holds the distinction of having an East Village record-breaking sell-out of $225 million.

A passage from the post:

As of mid-July, much of the building’s exterior is complete. Closings are expected to begin this fall with occupancy likely following soon after. A recent episode of Million Dollar Listing featured the building, where celebrity broker Fredrik Ecklund just so happens to be leading sales. Reflecting on the social impact Steiner East Village may have on the community, Ecklund and others commit thousands of dollars to fund a cooking program for kids at a local park.

The CityRealty piece doesn't mention anything about the 11,000 square feet of retail space that will apparently be available along Avenue A. (The last listing we saw is from 2014.) For people concerned about the increase in chain stores here (joining the incoming Trader Joe's and Target around the corner), you can likely count on one or two more in this space.

Steiner bought the former Mary Help of Christians property in 2012 from the Archdiocese of New York for $41 million.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Developer Douglas Steiner lands $130 million loan for EV condo construction

Douglas Steiner's church-replacing condos emerge from the pit; plus new renderings

Developer Douglas Steiner presents Steiner East Village


[The church property in August 2012 via Bobby Williams]

25 comments:

Gojira said...

So let's see. Top photo, big hulking dark building, not much sky, closed-off facade that at some point will enclose a chain retail establishment of some sort probably catering to tourists or Millennials that the majority of local residents will either not be able to afford or want to patronize. Bottom photo, open, sunny, colorful, teeming with street level life in an open-air market filled with all kinds of stuff at all kinds of price points that attracted a mix of shoppers from the EV and beyond, anchored by a lovely, graceful, to-scale old church offering spiritual and emotional support to any who felt the need, be they rich or poor.

Man, what is wrong with this picture?

Anonymous said...

Money catering to money. Misery sure to follow.

Anonymous said...

The next wave which I call "post sports bars" is nearly upon us. The expensive body strollers will soon appear along with a good supply of nannies. Why post sports bar? I believe the new wave of upwardly mobile 30 somethings won't be interested in those kind of places, they can't get shit face and perform at their well paying jobs the next day, They will have a mortgage, a child going to an expensive private school and will be less tolerant of the density of bars and the evening noise they produce. These people will have financial roots in the neighborhood and to protect their investment so many may choose to be active in keeping their blocks kid friendly, peaceful and maintain or improve the standard of life to keep their investment growing. Long term residents who attend the CB3 meetings to fight for our blocks, go against the invasion of bars and bars posing as restaurants may have some new allies in buildings like the Steiner EV.

Anonymous said...

The flea market benefited the neighborhood -- this piece of crap doesn't.

Anonymous said...

I really, really miss that flea market. It was so much fun to browse on weekends. Look at all the people just enjoying themselves and the city--wandering, looking, chatting, flaneuring. It's like developers just want to stamp out any tiny leftover life to this place.

Anonymous said...

The layouts of these units are not bad, though closet space is very limited. But starting at over $2million and going up from there is not exactly inviting to the current residents from rent stabilized units who live around the corner. The EV is changing....there are no affordable units being built.

Anonymous said...

What's wrong with the picture? You. You need a wider perspective. See, e.g. 8:53AM.

Anonymous said...

I used to love that flea market but it really started to go downhill towards the end RE: quality/usefulness of the goods. I'm not exactly sure how it benefited the neighborhood either - were the vendors neighborhood people? Did they pay taxes on their sales, or fees to the Church to rent the space, which was then funneled that money into neighborhood programs?

Giovanni said...

That was such a great flea market. You could get your bike fixed by the guy at the entrance and buy a working computer from the guy in the shed in the back. I bought a nice IMac from him that worked for years. There were some great collectibles dealers there too, especially by the front fence. It was even better than the old flea market on 6th Avenue in the 20s, which is also gone. It had a sense of community that's being paved over by there's condos, where no one is ever home because they're too busy working 80 hours a week or jetting off to a vacation just in case they die young from all the stress. Why do people pay so much to be in a place like this when they're almost never home?

Anonymous said...

Can someone explain to me how this development got approved as rentals with percentage of subsidized apartments but then suddenly changed in condos?

Anonymous said...

I agree with Gojira about the difference in the photos. The top one is dark, depressing, lifeless. The bottom one is the complete opposite and looks like a place I want to be.

Are we taking bets on the retail space yet? I'm going with a mega-Walgreens, which will complement the glaring fluorescence of the 7-11 nicely.

Gojira said...

Yeah, @Anon. 10:29, pardon me for wanting the neighborhood to be home to more than just students, brohos, and the rich and privileged, and for wanting it to offer a visually and financially interesting and inclusive mix of things accessible to all. What could I possibly have been thinking?!? Of course, let's just turn it over to our 1% overlords and all move to Iowa the way we are always being urged to do by clueless yobs!

Anonymous said...

God, I live on 11th and I dread the arrival of these families with their giant-sized strollers filled with kids that should be walking already. And all the nannies!

All of this luxury housing isn't improving the 'hood in any way. These people don't care about those who have made this neighborhood their home for decades and largely just work long hours and buy crap only from asking "Alexa" for it on Amazon. I have a neighbor who just moved in: He gets roughly 10 boxes a week from Amazon. I never see him dropping any money in an actual neighborhood store. He never has any bags and the garbage is overflowing with boxes every week because he's living off Amazon Prime; it's gross. We call him Amazonian Queen. He could give a crap about neighborhood business. That's the attitude of people now. There is no neighborhood for them beyond themselves or their family.

Anonymous said...

When Target comes please don't forget about your nearby deli because Target sells laundry detergent for 36 cents less. Make a conscious effort to support our family owned and operated shops or face a future of ordering everything from Amazon or standing in line for an hour at Trader Joe's.

Anonymous said...

The absolute nerve of some people, working hard and trying to better their future. Better they should just sit back and wait for the socialist state to build them affordable (i.e. practically free) housing and services.

The force is strong with the E.V. Gripers today!

Anonymous said...

36c? Try $3.

Anonymous said...

Gojira, how do we nominate you for sainthood? Saint Gojira of the EV. I really like the sound of that.

Anonymous said...

"The absolute nerve of some people, working hard and trying to better their future. Better they should just sit back and wait for the socialist state to build them affordable (i.e. practically free) housing and services."

"Affordable Housing Program Gives City Tax Break to Developers"

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/10/nyregion/affordable-housing-city-tax-break-developers.html

Formally know as the 421-a program.

Thank you REBNY comrade. I think we all know who the real “socialists” are here. Your hypocrisy is off the charts.

Gojira said...

@Anon. 5:15, you could have begun the application process at the 110-year-old Mary Help of Christians Catholic church that was demolished to make way for $2,000,000.00+ condos...

Anonymous said...

Hey Gojira, your post was 110% dead on but I hate to break it you to:

The church sold out.

What/who ARE the tens of millions of tax-free dollars the church made selling out going to? The poor? The mentally ill? Those in need of affordable homes?

I never, ever hear about what these churches and synagogues do with their free money.

Jude said...

You read my mind!My old stomping grounds are not only tremendously expensive but extremely ugly. Who needs another Trader Joe's? I bet they erect another Starbucks next as well. SMH!

afbp said...

'free money'---nope---legal defense fund......

Brian said...

The building itself does not seem offensive to me. Much worse could have been built there. What is alarming is the pricing of the units at $2000/sf.

Anonymous said...

@Anon. 5:15, you could have begun the application process at the 110-year-old Mary Help of Christians Catholic church that was demolished to make way for $2,000,000.00+ condos...

Well, I guess they just weren't strong enough in the Lord and the power of His might, then, eh? Money talks, shit walks, same as it ever was. As someone above said, it was the church that sold out. Maybe someday we can have an adult conversation about what practical purpose these churches serve anyway -- and it doesn't start with satisfying the aesthetic-historical sensibilities of the likes of the Gojirabots -- but until then, keep walking.

Anonymous said...

It's a really nice building. It's too bad affordable housing isn't design as nice.