Developer built Park Slope condos based on erroneously granted permits. In 1998, Flan Realty LLC purchased three contiguous lots; one on 14th Street and two on 15th Street between 7th and 8th Avenues in Park Slope, Brooklyn. In 2000, Buildings approved Flan’s site plan to develop each lot with a fourstory, eight-unit condominium building. The three buildings were part of a single condominium offering plan, but due to a lack of financial resources, Flan only … <Read More>
Future of historic Harlem ballroom debated
Community group claimed landmarking would hinder responsible development plans. On January 16, 2007, Landmarks held a hearing on the Renaissance Ballroom and Casino, comprised of two buildings at Adam Clayton Jr. Boulevard and West 137th Street in Harlem. “The Rennie,” as it was known, was designed by architect Harry Creighton Ingalls and built in stages between 1920 and 1923. One of the first entertainment complexes in Harlem, and one of the largest African-American owned enterprises … <Read More>
Limit in 66-year-old C of O compels office closing
Office space on E. 63rd Street once used by adjacent Barbizon Hotel. Responding to neighbors’ complaints, the Department of Buildings sent an inspector to 148 East 63rd Street, who found that the offices of Relais & Chateaux, hotel and restaurant owners, occupied four floors in the residentially-zoned building. Buildings issued an order to close the offices under the Padlock Law, which OATH ALJ Kara J. Miller upheld after a hearing requested by the owners, Jeanette … <Read More>
BSA denied catering use in synagogue’s basement
Catering hall operated independently of synagogue use. In the 18,000- square-foot basement of its synagogue and school building, Yeshiva Imrei Chaim Viznitz operated a public catering hall. The catering hall had two lobbies, two kitchens and separate entrances to the street, and operated events seven days a week. In 2004 and 2005, the hall held over 320 events including weddings with over 500 guests.
The Department of Buildings issued an order to close down the … <Read More>
Landmarks rejects Madison Avenue tower by vote of 9-1
Developer invited to submit another design. Following a lengthy presentation by real estate developer Aby Rosen’s team, Landmarks indicated its clear unwillingness to approve the 26-story tower addition proposed to top the Parke-Bernet building at 980 Madison Avenue within the Upper East Side Historic District.
The project architect Lord Norman Foster started the January 16th presentation with a photograph of the original 1949 Parke-Bernet building and its appearance now, after a 1950s alteration added another … <Read More>
11-story project approved for Greenwich and Eighth Aves.
Proximity to subway and historic district created uniqueness. Manhattan developer sought a variance to build an 11-story, mixed residential and commercial project on a 10,697-square-foot lot at 122 Greenwich Avenue at Eighth Avenue, arguing that the lot’s proximity to the Eighth Avenue subway line, its split zoning, the shallow depth, its location within the Greenwich Village Historic District, and its odd five-sided shape made an as-of-right building infeasible. The final 11-story undulating glass design necessitated … <Read More>