Demolition permits filed for former Church of the Nativity and La Salle building next door

[Photos by Josh Charow]

Last week brought news that Gemini Rosemont, an L.A.-based real-estate investor that specializes in "tenants in high growth and tech centric industries," bought the former Church of the Nativity property on Second Avenue as well as the former La Salle annex next door for $40 million.



In addition last week, the demolition permits were filed for both buildings, per DOB records.



For now, the corner building at Second Street, 38 Second Ave., is not part of the unspecified new development expected here. (But a lot of observers figure that status will change.)

The Church of the Nativity closed after a service on July 31, 2015, merging with Most Holy Redeemer on Third Street.

No word yet on what Gemini Rosemont has planned for their new East Village parcel. Their other NYC projects include the 13-floor, 45-unit condoplex on 14th Street and Sixth Avenue that will look something like this...


[Rendering via Binyan Studios]

Thanks to Josh Charow for the photos!

A bendy thing moment at 11 Avenue C as new development passes the halfway mark

The work has really progressed here at 11 Avenue C at Second Street... where the new 10-story residential building has been in the bendy-thing phase this summer...



You can see how far it has progressed...



That was after the foundation work started in December 2016 on this triangular lot that housed the neighborhood's last gas station. (Real-estate sites always incorrectly name the BP on Second Avenue at First Street.)

Rotwein + Blake are the architects of record. Here's more about 11 Avenue C/350 E. Houston St. via their website:

The narrow triangular site, presented numerous challenges from its odd shape to zoning constraints, Rotwein+Blake crafted a well thought-out solution to maximize potential development opportunity for the client. At ten stories, the building will have 4,600 SF of ground level retail, 46 residential apartments and a landscaped roof terrace.

The buildings retail component engages the more lively Houston Street side on a pedestrian level, with an abundance of storefront glass, awnings and stone details, while the residential entrance on 2nd Street, creates a more private and embracing gesture. The brick and zinc façade blend a modern twist to a historic warehouse style, reminiscent of the now, chic residential adaptive reuse projects of Soho and Tribeca.

The plywood rendering states the project's completion date as March 2018.



Previously on EV Grieve:
You have a little longer to get gas on Avenue C

Plans filed for new 9-story building at site of Mobil station on East Houston and Avenue C

State seizes Mobil station on Avenue C and Houston for nonpayment of taxes

New residential building for former Mobil station lot will be 10 floors with 0 zero affordable units

A look inside the last East Village gas station

Pile driving for new building on Avenue C prompts arrival of crack monitors next door

11 Avenue C finally makes first appearance above street level

Over on East Houston at Avenue C we have the first above-ground sighting of the longtime-coming 11 Avenue C...



Work has really picked up here of late in this triangular lot (the former Mobil station) ...







Foundation work started in December 2016. And now, in May 2019, the first level is just visible over the plywood.

This has been a disruptive build to date, as neighbors have said. There were multiple complaints filed with the city in early 2017 about the construction possibly destabilizing the building next door — 249 E. Second St. There was a partial stop-work order issued in April 2017 when No. 249 reportedly shifted.

The city OK'd plans for a 10-story, mixed-use building with 46 residential unit in December 2016.

Here's a look at the plywood rendering...



Rotwein + Blake are the architects of record. Here's more about 11 Avenue C/350 E. Houston St. via their website:

The narrow triangular site, presented numerous challenges from its odd shape to zoning constraints, Rotwein+Blake crafted a well thought-out solution to maximize potential development opportunity for the client. At ten stories, the building will have 4,600 SF of ground level retail, 46 residential apartments and a landscaped roof terrace.

The buildings retail component engages the more lively Houston Street side on a pedestrian level, with an abundance of storefront glass, awnings and stone details, while the residential entrance on 2nd Street, creates a more private and embracing gesture. The brick and zinc façade blend a modern twist to a historic warehouse style, reminiscent of the now, chic residential adaptive reuse projects of Soho and Tribeca.

The plywood rendering states the project's completion date as March 2018.



Previously on EV Grieve:
You have a little longer to get gas on Avenue C

Plans filed for new 9-story building at site of Mobil station on East Houston and Avenue C

State seizes Mobil station on Avenue C and Houston for nonpayment of taxes

New residential building for former Mobil station lot will be 10 floors with 0 zero affordable units

A look inside the last East Village gas station

Pile driving for new building on Avenue C prompts arrival of crack monitors next door

A future look at the former 650 E. 6th St.

Beyond the plywood here are the remains of 650 E. Sixth St., the former four-story building just west of Avenue C that workers demolished to make way for a 7-story building that will apparently house condos.



This comes nearly three years after the building's new owners filed plans for the project.

As New York Yimby noted in January 2016: "The 8,491-square-foot project will include 7,761 square feet of residential space, which means units will average 1,552 square feet apiece, indicative of condominiums."

No sign of an official rendering just yet via RSVP Architecture Studio, whose other EV work includes the BP-replacing condoplex on Second Avenue and First Street.

This is this on the plywood...



---


[EVG photo of No. 650 from February 2018]

Full FULL reveal at 287 E. Houston St.

Workers removed the sidewalk bridge from outside 287 E. Houston St. late last week... providing a full FULL reveal of the 11-floor condoplex — called 287/LES — here between Clinton and Suffolk.

As previously reported, the 120-foot-tall luxury building features 27 residences ... with two to four units on each story, including two duplexes on the first and second floors and a penthouse duplex on the top two floors. The units start at $1.175 million.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Quickly reaching the top of 287 E. Houston St.

11 stories of condos to join the growing East Houston residential corridor


[The lot previously, via Google Street View]

Full reveal at 287 E. Houston St. (aka 287/LES)

[Saturday]

Workers removed the scaffolding and construction netting from 287 E. Houston St. late last week... providing a full reveal of the 11-floor condoplex — called 287/LES — here between Clinton and Suffolk...


[Friday]

As previously reported, the 120-foot-tall luxury building features 27 residences ... with two to four units on each story, including two duplexes on the first and second floors and a penthouse duplex on the top two floors. The units start at $1.175 million.

Here's more about 287/LES via Corcoran:

287/LES is the most successful ground-up new development on Houston Street. An Italian-inspired presence resonates outside with an elegant façade comprised of blackened steel, black textured brick and oversized floor-to-ceiling windows.

Amenities include a part-time doorman complemented by virtual doorman technology, a full-time superintendent, a fitness center, bicycle storage, private storage for purchase, supplemental commercial-grade laundry room, and a landscaped common rooftop terrace with outdoor kitchen.

And the final product...


[AA Studio]

The lot here previously housed a tax-preparation business; a landscaping business also shared part of the property.


[Google Street View]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Quickly reaching the top of 287 E. Houston St.

11 stories of condos to join the growing East Houston residential corridor

Here's what the new condoplex at 118 E. 1st St. will look like

Back on Monday, we noted that construction had started in the empty lot at 118 E. First St. between Avenue A and First Avenue.

At that point, there hadn't been any sign of renderings for the 9-story condoplex with ground-floor retail.

However, workers affixed the rendering on the plywood yesterday. And here ya go...



As previously noted, the 9-story residential building will include seven units divided over 12,500 square feet of residential space — most likely condos. And from the look of the rendering, everyone will have a terrace to take in the sights and sounds of the tranquil East Houston Street and Essex intersection.

Warren Freyer's Freyer Architects is designing the building. The developers have been previously ID'd as Acacia 118, LLC, based in Nolita, and fronted by Cynthia Wu and Robert Marty.

Previously on EV Grieve:
118 E. 1st St. arrives on the market with so many possibilities, and air rights

118 E. 1st. St. will yield to a new 9-floor residential building

Demolition of 118 E. 1st St. begins to make way for 9-story residential building

Construction starts at 118 E. 1st St., future home of a 9-floor residential building

Report: New building permits filed for former St. Denis Hotel property

[Image via Wikipedia Commons]

Plans are moving forward for a new office development at 799 Broadway at 11th Street — the former St. Denis Hotel.

The Real Deal reported that Normandy Real Estate Partners filed permit applications for a new 12-story building.

Here's more from New York Yimby:

Original reports said the development of 799 Broadway was limited to a gut renovation of the interior structure and a vertical expansion of the historic corner property. Permits filed ... however, reveal the construction of a new, 12-story, 182-foot-tall building containing 182,626 square feet of Class-A office space. An additional 10,032 square feet will be dedicated to an unspecified community facility.

TRD also had an updated rendering of the building via design firm Perkins + Will...



Demolition permits haven't been filed just yet for 799 Broadway. As previously noted, the 165-year-old building is noteworthy for many reasons. It opened in 1853 as the St. Denis Hotel, which is where Ulysses S. Grant wrote his post-Civil War memoirs and Alexander Graham Bell provided the first demonstration of the telephone to New Yorkers.

However, the building is not landmarked... and it is not in a Historic District.

Vanishing New York's Jeremiah Moss, a former tenant at the address, wrote a feature titled "The Death and Life of a Great American Building" for The New York Review of Books back in March.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Former St. Denis Hotel selling for $100 million

End of days at the St. Denis

7-story residential building planned for former Blue Man Group facilities on 3rd Street

Permits have been filed for a 7-floor residential building at 238 E. Third St. between Avenue B and Avenue C.

Here's more from New York Yimby, who first reported on the development:

The new structure will be designed by Vikatos Architect, and will comprise a total of 20,928 square feet of living area with a total built-up area of 27,657 square feet.

The building will rise seven floors above ground to 75 feet, with additional cellar living area and a basement. 20 rental units are planned, in total, putting the average unit at about 1,046 square feet.

The building, which the Blue Man Group owned at one point for use as a practice facility, hit the market last September with a $12 million ask.

The listing noted at the time: "This is an excellent opportunity for a developer to acquire a 50’ wide development site in the East Village. In addition, considering how unique the building is, the offering presents an incredibly rare opportunity in which the current building and configuration could be maintained for a user."

Given the new-building specs, it appears that the current structure will come down, though demo permits haven't been filed yet.

In a previous life, the building served as a movie theater. Public records from July 2017 list two of the founders of the Blue Man Group — Chris Wink and Philip Stanton — as the previous owners, who received $18.6 million for this and another LES property.

Per NYY, Vinbaytel Property Development is the new owner of No. 238. Vinbaytel has developed several East Village condos in recent years, including at 227 E. Seventh St., 67 Avenue C and 26 Avenue B.

Demolition permits filed for northeast corner of 3rd Avenue and St. Mark's Place

[EVG file photo]

Permits were filed today to demolish the existing low-rise buildings at 3 St. Mark’s Place, 23 and 25-27 Third Avenue presumably to make way for the seven-story, 66,000-square-foot office building with ground-floor retail slated for this corner.

As reported back in November, plans are in the works to redevelop this three-building assemblage ... from the former McDonald's to the corner.



REEC picked up the 99-year leasehold for the addresses for a little more than $150 million, per The Real Deal.

McDonald's and Papaya King have already closed. The Continental said in January that their last day is July 1. There haven't been any closing dates announced yet for Korilla BBQ, E Smoke Shop and the smaller shops that line St. Mark's Place.

So far there aren't any new building permits filed for the property, owned by the Gabay family.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Shake Shack effect? McDonald's on 3rd Avenue at St. Mark's Place has closed after 20 years

Report: Northeast corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Ave. fetching $50 million for development site

Report: NE corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue will yield to a 7-story office building

650 E. 6th St.prepped for demolition; new condoplex on the way

An EVG reader shared the news this past Friday that workers started prepping the four-story 650 E. Sixth St. for demolition.

The building here just west of Avenue C is coming down to make way for a 7-story building that will apparently house condos.



This comes nearly two years after the building's new owners filed plans for the project. (The DOB OK'd the new-building permit in December.)

As New York Yimby noted in January 2016: "The 8,491-square-foot project will include 7,761 square feet of residential space, which means units will average 1,552 square feet apiece, indicative of condominiums."

Public records show that this building changed hands for $2.8 million in August 2013. The new owner is named East Village LLC in the filing.

No sign of a rendering just yet via RSVP Architecture Studio, whose other EV work includes the incoming condoplex on Second Avenue and First Street.

Meanwhile, in a positive development on this block, the city finally removed one of the two portable boilers late last year that had been parked here since Superstorm Sandy in 2012.



Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Plans in the works to convert 650 E. 6th St. to condos

1st residents moving into Steiner East Village

Here's part of a news release that arrived late last week about Steiner East Village, the block-engulfing condoplex on Avenue A between 11th Street and 12th Street...

Steiner East Village has welcomed its first residents, as closings have begun at the 82-unit, 7-story, full service luxury condominium developed by Steiner NYC. The project, which includes one- to four-bedroom condos and penthouses, is now 75% sold and has entered its final phase of sales.

The classic, loft-style interiors at Steiner East Village are designed by Paris Forino and offer ten-foot-plus ceiling heights, oversized windows, exquisite marble finishes, wide plank floors, top-of-the-line appliances, and an abundance of light and air.

The building’s amenity spaces, encompassing over 16,000 square-feet, are best-in-class for the East Village and include a transcendent 50’-indoor pool, lush garden, 2,000-square foot fitness center, sauna, steam room, parking, resident library with fireplace, bike storage, pet spa, children’s playroom, and a 4,000-square-foot common roofdeck with stunning, protected views.

The release includes a rendering of the pool ...



And no word yet about what might be coming to Stei Town's retail spaces along Avenue A.

Developer Douglas Steiner bought the former Mary Help of Christians property in 2012 from the Archdiocese of New York for $41 million. During the summer of 2013, workers demolished the church, school and rectory.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The 'senseless shocking self-destruction' of Mary Help of Christians

Residences rising from the former Mary Help of Christians lot will now be market-rate condos

Ongoing construction at condoplex on Avenue A enters the swimming pool phase

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

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


[The church property as seen from 11th Street in August 2012 via Bobby Williams]

Construction watch: 79-89 Avenue D

Checking in on 79-89 Avenue D, the 12-story retail-residential building nearing completion here between Seventh Street and Sixth Street.

As previously reported, the project by L+M Development Partners will include 110 apartment units (rentals!), 22 of which will be permanently affordable. Amenities will include a fitness center, landscaped roof deck and an outdoor terrace.

The address was previously one-level storefronts that included a Rite Aid, which relocated one block north to the ground floor of the Arabella 101 building. Rite Aid signed a lease to return to the retail space at No. 79.

...and here's a look at the Sixth Street side...



Previously on EV Grieve:
Report: Space that houses Rite Aid on Avenue D hits market for $22.5 million

Report: New 12-story, mixed-use building in the works for Avenue D

Permit pre-filed for new 12-floor building at 79-89 Avenue D

Construction watch: 255 E. Houston St.

Developer Samy Mahfar's controversial development at 255 E. Houston has finally made its first appearance above the plywood here between Norfolk and Suffolk.

In September 2016, Mahfar withdrew his application — after a five-year fight — for a commercial zoning change for this property and surrounding parcels.

He had approval for a 10-story building. However, amended work permits now show a 13-story building (waiting for approval). An article published by the Commercial Observer back on Dec. 20 mentioned that it will be 14 floors. (The article was about Mahfar scoring a $39.5 million construction loan from Bank of the Ozarks for the 88-unit apartment building. It's not clear if any of the units will be designated as affordable housing.)

The current plywood rendering along East Houston shows this...



No. 255 previously housed the day-care center Action For Progress.


[EVG photo of No. 255 from 2012]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Next for 255 E. Houston St.: Community facility/school/medical building?

10-story building now in the works for 255 E. Houston St.

Debate over commercial overlay for 255 E. Houston St. and surrounding blocks continues

Report: Samy Mahfar drops bid for commercial overlay on East Houston and parts of the LES

Top photos from Saturday

Window watch at 32 E. 1st St.

Here's an end of the year look at 32 E. First St. (aka 24 Second Ave.), the 10-story 31-unit condoplex at the site of a former BP station... the windows are (mostly) all in... soon enough, we'll see that advertised limestone exoskeleton ...



Sales started in September, with homes ranging from $1.175 million to $8.7 million. There will be ground-floor retail too.


[Via CityReality]

Previously on EV Grieve:
Check out the new 10-story building for the former 2nd Avenue BP station

2nd Avenue residential complex now complete with renderings on the plywood

Report: NE corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Avenue will yield to a 7-story office building

Plans are in the works to redevelop the three-building assemblage on the northeast corner of Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place.

According to The Real Deal:

[Real Estate Equities Corporation REEC], led by Brandon Miller and Mark Siegel, is planning to demolish the existing low-rise buildings at 3 St. Mark’s Place, 23 and 25-27 Third Avenue to make way for one new property. Plans call for a seven-story, 66,000-square-foot office building, including 6,000 square feet of corner retail.

That will mean the end of the businesses along here, including the Continental, Korilla BBQ, E Smoke Shop and Papaya King. (The former McDonald's structure is also part of the new development.)



REEC picked up the 99-year leasehold for the properties for a little more than $150 million, per The Real Deal.

In June 2015, The Real Deal reported that real-estate investor Arthur Shapolsky was in contract to buy the corner buildings for roughly $50 million.

However, Joseph Gabay, whose family owns the properties, told me this past June that they had not been sold despite the continued rumors.

That situation has apparently changed. Gabay did not respond to an email to confirm this deal.

As of last evening, there weren't any new permits on file with the Department of Buildings indicating any new work on the properties. There isn't any word just yet on a timeline for the businesses to close.

The development will likely fuel more talk of the Midtown Southification of this part of the neighborhood with 51 Astor Place/IBM Watson Building/Death Star right across the Avenue.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The Shake Shack effect? McDonald's on 3rd Avenue at St. Mark's Place has closed after 20 years

Report: Northeast corner of St. Mark's Place and 3rd Ave. fetching $50 million for development site

Look at the old BP station on 2nd Avenue now

Here on Second Avenue at First Street (officially 32 E. First St.!), work is zipping along on the 10-story 31-unit condoplex at the site of a former BP station.



Sales started last month, with homes ranging from $1.175 million to $8.7 million. (Six of the homes are apparently already in contract, per Streeteasy.)

Here's a description of the building:

Inspired by the contemporary aesthetic of Italian rationalist design, 32 East 1st Street purposely lives within its urban context, presenting a substantial limestone exoskeleton accentuated by expansive windows and geometric metal detailing.

And here is the view from First Street...





And soon enough!


[Via CityReality]

The BP station closed in July 2014. This was the second-to-last gas station in the East Village, joined later by the Mobil station on Avenue C and East Houston in September 2014.

Previously on EV Grieve:
The 2nd Avenue BP station has closed

Permits filed to demolish former 2nd Avenue BP station

More about the 10-story building taking the place of the former BP station at 24 2nd Ave.

Check out the new 10-story building for the former 2nd Avenue BP station

A ballerina for 2nd Avenue

2nd Avenue residential complex now complete with renderings on the plywood