ELEVATOR WORLD New York Newsletter

Volume 30 | November 2020

ELEVATOR WORLD New York is EW's free monthly newsletter focusing on vertical-transportation news in the Greater New York Region. Contact the EW Editorial Department to submit news or the EW Advertising Department to advertise and reach more than 2,700 subscribers in the New York area.

November 2020

CLADDING NEARLY COMPLETE ON CONDO TOWER AT 30 EAST 31st

The lattice-style exterior cladding on 30 East 31st Street in NoMad is nearing completion, New York YIMBY reported in October. The 39-story, 479-ft-tall residential tower, designed by Morris Adjmi Architects, will have 42 condominium units within its 70,000 ft². Workers are nearly through installing the building's signature external columns, which create a lattice design on the upper floors. A 1,600-ft² banquet hall is planned for one of the lower floors, with amenities, including a lounge with viewing garden, a private dining room with catering kitchen and a fitness center set for the basement and second floor. Units will be priced from US$1.65 million to more than US$12 million. Developers are Ekstein Development and Pinnacle Real Estate, and completion is expected in the first half of 2021.

Left: The lattice cladding on the exterior of 30 East 31st Street in NoMad is nearing completion; photo by Matt Pruznick for New York YIMBY.

THYSSENKRUPP-EQUIPPED JERSEY CITY TOWER NEARLY COMPLETE

88 Regent Street, a 32-story, mixed-use tower in Jersey City, New Jersey, has topped out ahead of anticipated completion in 2021, New York YIMBY reports. Developed by Regent Street, LLC and designed by Marchetto Higgins Stieve, the building will house nearly 400 rental apartments, 9,110 ft² of retail and 5,595 ft² of office space. At the intersection of Jersey Avenue and Regent Street, 88 Regent includes a 12-story podium that is now almost entirely covered in glass. Project architect Antonio Beltran tells ELEVATOR WORLD 88 Regent Street will be served by five thyssenkrupp elevators: two 700-ft/min, 34-stop, 3500-lb-capacity units; one 700 ft/min, 35-stop, 4000-lb-capacity unit; one 700 ft/min, 34-stop, 4500-lb capacity unit; and one 200 ft/min, eight-stop, 3500-lb capacity unit; photo by Michael Young for New York YIMBY.

SUBWAY ELEVATOR REPLACEMENT WORK GETTING DONE EARLY

The replacement schedules for elevators at subway stations in Washington Heights have been advanced, Patch recently reported. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced that work at the 191st Street station, which involved the replacement of four elevators, would be complete by the end of November, two months ahead of the original completion date of February 2021. The early completion allowed MTA to accelerate elevator replacements at the 181st Street station, which was rescheduled to commence on December 5. It is expected to be complete by December 2021. Work at the 181st Street station will include the complete replacement of four elevators and machine room equipment, a new LiftNet system to improve emergency response time to elevator incidents, a battery backup system that will allow passengers to exit the elevator during a power outage, installation of two cameras and fire alarms in each of the elevators and the addition of direct access to the northbound platform from the new elevators. While the 191st Street station remained open, the 181st Street station will be closed for its modernization project. An MTA spokesperson said lower ridership during the pandemic has made it possible to accelerate the pace of elevator work.

CLOSINGS UNDERWAY AT JERSEY CITY CONDO TOWER

Exterior work has wrapped up on 99 Hudson Street, a residential high rise in Jersey City, New York YIMBY reported in November. Standing 900 ft, the tower is the tallest building in New Jersey. Closings on the tower's condominium units have already begun, with 70 reported so far and 150 expected by the end of the year. The 79-story tower, holding 781 residential units, was designed by Perkins Eastman and developed by COA 99 Hudson, LLC. It is wrapped in blue glass on the upper levels and has vertical strips of Jura limestone rising from street level to about two-thirds of the way up. The section holding the residential units sits atop a rectangular-shaped, eight-story podium. In addition to views of Manhattan, the Statue of Liberty and other panoramas, residents will enjoy 65,000 ft² of amenities, including a fitness center with a yoga and Pilates studio, a game room, a golf simulator, a screening room with bar, a children's playroom and a work café. Units range from studios to 2,500-ft² penthouse homes, with prices from US$550,000 to more than US$4 million; photo by Michael Young for New York YIMBY.

EXTERIOR NEARLY FINISHED ON MARGARITAVILLE RESORT

Façade installation was nearing completion on the Margaritaville Resort at 560 Seventh Avenue in Times Square, New York YIMBY reported on October 25. With a design by Stonehill Taylor, the 29-story, 375-ft-tall hotel is now almost fully enclosed in its glass and metal curtain wall, with just the uppermost floors remaining. The 234-room tower, near the Port Authority Bus Terminal, will include a podium topped by a swimming pool and beach-themed lounge area with boardwalk floor and tropical decor. The building will have 4,861 ft² of ground-floor retail, plus a three-story restaurant topped by a LandShark Bar & Grill. No complete renderings have been released, so the final look of the building's unfinished crown has not been made public, but the upper levels will house mechanical units. The developer of the estimated US$300-million project is Sharif El-Gamal of Soho Properties, with MHP Real Estate Services. Completion is expected in 2021; photo by Michael Young for New York YIMBY.

TOWER SERVED BY OTIS SYSTEM TOPS OUT IN JERSEY CITY

Construction on 180 Morgan Street, a 41-story, 482-unit residential tower in Jersey City, New Jersey, has topped out, New York YIMBY reports. Designed by New Jersey firm Marchetto Higgins Stieve (MHS), the structure features a multistory podium topped by an L-shaped tower. The Albanese Group is the developer. MHS tells ELEVATOR WORLD 180 Morgan Street will be served by seven Otis elevators: two 8000-lb borehole hydraulic freight units and five passenger elevators. Of the passenger elevators, two are 2500-lb, 700-ft/min gearless units; one is a 4500-lb, 700-ft/min gearless unit; one is a 4000-lb, 700-ft/min gearless unit; and one is a 3500-lb, 350-ft/min traction unit. All five passenger elevators will be served by Otis' Compass 360 destination-dispatch system; photo by Michael Young for New York YIMBY.

EXTERIOR WORK ON NOMAD ART DECO TOWER NEARLY FINISHED

Exterior work on Rose Hill, an Art Deco-inspired residential tower in NoMad, is nearly complete, New York YIMBY reported in October. The 45-story, 639-ft-tall skyscraper at 30 East 29th Street, designed by CetraRuddy Architecture and developed by Rockefeller Group, will bring 123 condominiums to the neighborhood. Architectural features include a chevron pattern on dark brown panels that run the height of the building, accented by gold-colored diagonal lines atop mesh grilles. The tower is topped by a tiered crown. Units range from one to four bedrooms, with prices starting at US$1.385 million. Completion is set for January 2021; photo by Michael Young for New York YIMBY.

REVISED DESIGN FOR 51-STORY JERSEY CITY MIXED-USE TOWERS

Architect Woods Bagot has released a revised design for a pair of 51-story, 710-ft-tall mixed-use towers at 1 Journal Square Plaza in Jersey City, New Jersey, New York YIMBY reports. Following successful resolution of litigation with Jersey City, the new design for both towers features a glass curtain wall with horizontal extrusions along portions of the exteriors. The previous, boxier design was also 710 ft tall, but comprised 64 stories. Developed by Kushner Cos., the 1.9-million-ft² development will have a nine-story podium housing residences, retail, parking and shared services. The towers themselves will offer an additional 1.3 million ft² of residential space with a total of roughly 1,500 units of varying sizes. Groundbreaking is anticipated in 2021.

Left: 1 Journal Square; rendering by Woods Bagot

MECHANICS CRITICIZE NYCHA'S USE OF UNQUALIFIED LABORERS

A shortage of elevator mechanic helpers has led the NYC Housing Authority (NYCHA) to assign laborers to fill in, but mechanics and their union say the move is compromising safety, The Chief reported in October. A civil-service exam for helpers had been planned for earlier this year but was postponed because of the pandemic. NYCHA is budgeted for 197 helpers but had only 144 on staff. Because it was unable to find qualified helpers, the authority hired 36 laborers to help the mechanics. Among the helpers' duties are to assist with inspections and clean car tops and other workspaces.

Gregory Floyd, president of Teamsters Local 237, which represents NYCHA's elevator mechanics, warned the authority about the risks involved with using inexperienced laborers to perform such dangerous tasks. "If anything happens, the housing authority and the city will be liable, and the consequences could be deadly," he said, adding that NYCHA is having difficulty hiring qualified helpers because their pay of US$31 per hour is as much as US$9 less than what the private sector pays. Union helpers must undergo a three-year apprenticeship, but the laborers were given 30 days of training.

A NYCHA spokesperson said the authority is in the process of setting up interviews to hire new helpers. The authority expects exams to resume sometime during the current fiscal year. NYCHA's elevators, spread across 326 developments, have seen an increasing number of outages, making it difficult for the mechanics to keep up.

JERSEY CITY’S FIFTH TALLEST HEADS TOWARD 2021 COMPLETION

Jersey City, New Jersey’s fifth tallest building at 57 stories and 626 ft, The Charlotte is headed toward completion in the first quarter of 2021, New York YIMBY reports. The glass-and-metal curtain wall is more than halfway to the parapet of the structure, designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects and developed by Roseland Residential Trust at 25 Christopher Columbus Drive. DeSimone Consulting Engineers served as structural engineer and AMA Consulting Engineers and mechanical engineer. The Charlotte will contain 750 residences, a school within its podium, a concrete parking structure topped by a swimming pool and a public plaza; photo by Michael Young for New York YIMBY.

CURTAIN WALL PROGRESSING ON NOMAD RITZ-CARLTON

The installation of the curtain wall exterior on the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in NoMad is progressing quickly ahead of the tower's projected completion in 2021, New York YIMBY reported in October. The 40-story, 580-ft-tall skyscraper at 1185 Broadway will have 250 guest rooms within its 150,000 ft² of space. The tower, set atop a multistory podium, is being clad in glass and gray stone slabs. Meanwhile, the windowless southern-facing side of the building houses the elevator cores. The project architect is Rafael Viñoly, and the developers are Marriott, Ritz-Carlton Hotels and Flag Luxury properties; photo by Michael Young for New York YIMBY.

PHASE THREE OF JERSEY CITY PROJECT SET TO BEGIN

Excavation is expected to begin soon at 151 Bay Street, the site of a 33-story mixed-use tower that will make up the third phase of Jersey City, New Jersey’s Provost Square complex, New York YIMBY reported in November. With a design by SLCE Architects, the tower will incorporate part of the façade of the former A&P Annex Building, which has been stripped to its concrete frame. Once complete, phase three will bring 259 residences, 6,289 ft² of retail and a parking structure with 218 spaces to the corner of Provost and Bay streets. The former A&P building will serve as part of the lobby for a 550-seat, 26,532-ft² performing arts center. The entire complex includes plans for 950 residential units, more than 40,000 ft² of retail space, a 26,000-ft² pedestrian plaza and 17,706 ft² of multipurpose art space. Phase four will consist of a five-story building with 32 housing units, 2,600 ft² of ground-floor retail and a rooftop space. The developer is Toll Brothers; rendering by SLCE Architects.

CONDO TOWER OVERLOOKING MANHATTAN NEARLY COMPLETE

The 30-story, 170-condominium tower Greenwich West at 110 Charlton Street in Hudson Square is expected to open soon, with only the exterior of the ground floor awaiting completion, New York YIMBY reports. Developed by Strategic Capital, Cape Advisors and Forum Absolute Capital Partners and designed by Loci Anima with Adamson Associates, the structure features gently rounded corners, subtly indented bricks between the windows and symmetrical mullions. Sebastian Segers designed the loft-inspired interiors of the homes, which start at US$1.1 million and include several penthouses with landscaped terraces overlooking the Hudson River and Manhattan skyline. Amenities include a 24-hr attended lobby, a fitness center, a communal rooftop terrace and an automated parking garage with direct access to residential elevators; photo by Michael Young for New York YIMBY.

EXCAVATION TO MAKE WAY FOR BROOKLYN MIXED-USE TOWER

Excavation is underway at 141 Willoughby Street in downtown Brooklyn to make way for a 24-story office/retail building designed by SLCE Architects and Fogarty Finger Architecture and developed by Savanna Real Estate, New York YIMBY reports. Previously home to the Institute of Design and Construction, which was demolished, the tower is set to include a technology-oriented retail tenant on the first two floors, with offices above. Landscaped terraces are planned on the ninth and 19^th floors, and the property will feature floor-to-ceiling windows with metallic gold mullions; views including the Manhattan Bridge, East River and downtown Brooklyn; and ample morning sunlight on the eastern side. A completion date has not been announced.

Left: 141 Willoughby Street in the foreground; rendering by SLCE Architects and Fogarty Finger Architecture

CORONAVIRUS IMPACTS SEEN IN CONSTRUCTION PROJECTIONS

Pandemic-related woes have brought down high prospects for the NYC construction market, The Real Deal recently reported. Citing the New York Building Congress and New York Building Foundation, it said, "The pandemic has shaved US$16 billion off projected construction spending in 2020 and 2021" and that the congress estimates spending will reach only US$55.5 billion this year, down from a forecasted US$65.9 billion. Next year's revised spending expectation is to be only a little more (US$56.9 billion) with even less for 2022 (US$56.1 billion). The months-long shutdown of construction deemed nonessential and a broader economic downturn gripping the region are cited as sources of the lower spending forecasts.

UPCOMING EVENTS

2021

NAEC Spring Educational Conference

Tucson, AZ

April 18-21

For more information, visit website.

IAEC Forum 2021 NYC

Crowne Plaza Times Square, NYC

April 19-23

For more information, visit website.

Pop/Joe 46th Annual Memorial Invitational Golf Outing

Port Washington, New York

June 14

For more information, visit website.

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