Apthorp owners allege misdeeds in rooftop addition plans | Chappaqua Real Estate
Local politicians and homeowners railed against a plan to add penthouses atop the historic Apthorp condominiums, telling the Landmarks Preservation Commission that the developers withheld key information to hasten regulatory approvals, and that the new units would depress resale values.
AREA Property Partners, the lead developers of the landmarked Upper West Side building, presented plans last night to build four rooftop apartments as part of a two-story addition.
But the proposal has been predictably contentious. Community Board 7 already shot down the plan in a non-binding vote last month, and critics spent two hours blasting the plan before Landmarks, which has the ultimate say on whether or not AREA can move ahead.
Among their complaints: the additions are out of character with the architectural integrity of the Apthorp, which boasts open pergolas and other features reminiscent of the Italian Renaissance; they will block light to the upper levels of the 12-story building; and they’ll be visible from the street — a key consideration for Landmarks approval.
“The developer’s desire to maximize their return, while understandable from the perspective of greater profit, must not become an acceptable rationale for the destruction of those features central to the Apthorp’s historic and architectural landmark status,” said City Council member Gale Brewer, the incoming Manhattan borough president, in testimony she submitted last night.
Several design experts also submitted testimony, including architect Robert A.M. Stern, who called the plan “stylistically inappropriate.”
However, Brewer and other officials raised more serious allegations that the Apthorp developers had failed to gain approvals from unit owners, or even properly notify them, despite promising New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman that they would not proceed without unanimous backing from the owners.
http://therealdeal.com/blog/2013/11/13/apthorp-owners-allege-misdeeds-in-rooftop-addition-plans/
AREA Property Partners, the lead developers of the landmarked Upper West Side building, presented plans last night to build four rooftop apartments as part of a two-story addition.
But the proposal has been predictably contentious. Community Board 7 already shot down the plan in a non-binding vote last month, and critics spent two hours blasting the plan before Landmarks, which has the ultimate say on whether or not AREA can move ahead.
Among their complaints: the additions are out of character with the architectural integrity of the Apthorp, which boasts open pergolas and other features reminiscent of the Italian Renaissance; they will block light to the upper levels of the 12-story building; and they’ll be visible from the street — a key consideration for Landmarks approval.
“The developer’s desire to maximize their return, while understandable from the perspective of greater profit, must not become an acceptable rationale for the destruction of those features central to the Apthorp’s historic and architectural landmark status,” said City Council member Gale Brewer, the incoming Manhattan borough president, in testimony she submitted last night.
Several design experts also submitted testimony, including architect Robert A.M. Stern, who called the plan “stylistically inappropriate.”
However, Brewer and other officials raised more serious allegations that the Apthorp developers had failed to gain approvals from unit owners, or even properly notify them, despite promising New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman that they would not proceed without unanimous backing from the owners.
http://therealdeal.com/blog/2013/11/13/apthorp-owners-allege-misdeeds-in-rooftop-addition-plans/
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