The renovations are now in the rooftop-clock phase at 250 E. Houston St., the former Red Square here between Avenue A and Avenue B.
The west-facing clock wall is undergoing a makeover now...
The original Red Square developers, Michael Rosen and Michael Shaoul, reportedly put the clock in this spot to cover the water tower and elevator shaft. The distinctive clock is a take on MoMA’s "Askew" watch that features a random sequence of numbers. (Hungarian graphic designer Tibor Kalman created this version.)
The Dermot Company, which bought the 13-floor building for $100 million in 2016, has stated they are "creating a more updated style and fit for the cool East Village neighborhood" with the renovations at the retail-residential complex.
While the 18-foot statue of Vladimir Lenin, which stood atop Red Square for 22 years was removed in 2016 (before eventually returning not too far away), the clock appears to be in the renovated building's plans.
Renderings of the new-look No. 250 include the clock with the numbers still out of sequence...
Previously on EV Grieve:
Rumors: Red Square has been sold
New ownership makes it official at the former Red Square on East Houston
Apartment listings at 250 E. Houston look to offer glimpse of former Red Square's future
Long-vacant retail space hits the rental market at 250 E. Houston St.
Former Red Square lobby gets the plywood treatment on East Houston
The first beachhead in the real estate developer invasion of the neighborhood. Thank you "I am not yuppie scum" Michael Rosen. The Lenin statue was his idea to add something that he thought would deflect criticism of his high end [for that time] development, on a side note Richard Johnson of Page 6 told me, when I was waging street war on gentrification , that he used to live nearby and could see the statue from his apartment. He said that when some Eastern European workers were doing work on his apartment they asked if he had a bazooka so they could blow up the statue.I never had a problem with the statue but at various points in time I thought the same about the building and Christadora house which was also a Rosen gentrification beachhead.
ReplyDeleteOh, yes…Christodora has been known as "Yuppie Towers" for the entire time I've lived here; it looms large in every window of my apartment. My deceased roommate reminisced about how before the renovation of the Christodora into condos, he would often see flashlights panning up the stairwells as people ascended and descended the stairs there.
ReplyDeleteIn truth, squatters saved the Christodora house for its ultimate developer by fixing the roof. Current residents there aren't able to use the pool in the basement because there's a stipulation in the deed that the pool must be for community use—having been originally used by P.S. 64 students—and it's scandalous to think of it being used by the rif-raf of the neighborhood rubbing elbows with the elite Christodora residents.