My neighborhood, Sutton Place, running along the East River to River House (on Beekman Place), from 59th Street southward to 52nd, is under threat from new very high-rise buildings (of as many as 100 floors). Henry Kissinger lives in River House. I live and work at the building furthest away from his, at the bridge end. (Our parents used to live a half block from each other at 187th Street in Washington Heights.)
The new monsters can be put up hither and yon in this community at the eastern end of Midtown Manhattan unless the city changes its zoning rules. Currently, nothing can stop the invading cloud-scrapers which started being built when new elevator technology allowed it, before the Global Financial crisis. The GFC led a to hiatus but the building boom resumed a couple of years ago.
Now a site cobbled together by an outfit called Bauhouse (from out of town but not from the Weimar Republic which the senior Kissingers and Oppenheims remembered so fondly) has begun tearing down old walk-up buildings around the corner from my building. The future high-rise site also gained from sale of “air rightsâ€, a city scheme allowing the landlords or coop apartment owners in neighboring buildings to gain from letting in a monster. Many people accepted pricey buyouts for agreeing to vacate the early 20th century buildings.
Last month Bauhouse filed for bankruptcy, which sounds like good news, as the tear-down has only just begun on 58th Street. It owes money to another real estate firm, a local biggie named Kalikow. But the bankruptcy may be a sham. A current lawsuit will determine which side will get to peddle the site.
Meanwhile the Bauhouse threatens my tranquil life, my public transport, my water and sewage, my amenities, my parking spaces–and above all my property values. If the 58th street tear-down gets to lay new foundations in the Manhattan bedrock, originally planned for this summer, it will be exempt from new zoning rules which might prevent future 100-story intruders.
Meanwhile another 6 or 8 sites including an office block belonging to PR firm Ruder & Finn opposite the Kissingers’ building are considered to be at risk of a buyout unless the law is changed quickly to preserve our neighborhood. I am not sure if PR firms consider the PR of their own brands.
Mayor Bill de Blasio, a leftish Democrat non-Sandernista, is believed to be in the pocket of real estate moguls donors, not of course including Donald Trump.
What may save the neighborhood is what is happening in Panama, China, and Russia. The source of much of the demand the mega-high-rise buildings sought to meet was from Russian oligarchs and corrupt Chinese officials hoping to put their money into a safe New York haven. The revelations of shenanigans in Panama have hit Putin’s pals, and the crackdown on corruption under Xi Jinping may save my street. The real estate industry may soon find the demand for McMansions in the clouds has fallen. For the record my real estate risks are far more concentrated than my stock and bond portfolios.
