Plans for the to-be-demolished 1357-1363 Second Avenue (between East 71st and East 72nd streets) have been revealed. The future home of a 21-story tower will be built in tandem with a four-story apartment building at a sister site on East 71st Street, Patch has reported.
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Real estate development firm Chetrit Group demolished the 133-year-old Church of St. John the Martyr at 252 East 72nd Street in April 2020. The developer did not define its plans for the site at the time.
Just around the corner, Chetrit Group scooped up lots numbered as 1357-1363 Second Avenue in 2018 for $47.2 million. Early April 2022 brought the announcement that these properties – once home to a five-story apartment building and street level retailers – would be cleared, though specifics were not known at the time.
A high-rise project was suspected, but Upper East Siders finally know what to expect.
“The 21-story, 230-foot-tall tower will be built on the corner of Second Avenue and East 72nd Street, containing 54 apartments spread across more than 150,000 square feet — plus about 5,700 square feet of commercial space,” according to Patch. Two brownstones at 257-259 East 71st Street were demolished in 2019 and “will become the four-story, 40-foot-tall building, which will contain just four apartments — all of them affordable.”
Both buildings will be constructed as of right (with no restrictions or special guidelines). The 21-story building will be a mixed-use building with a cellar and will top out at 230 feet. It will contain 5,694 square feet of commercial floor area, 157,409 square feet of residential floor area and 54 dwelling units, according to the project description filed with New York City Planning.
The future 40-foot tall, four unit building on East 71st Street will be a “100% affordable residential building” with a zoning floor area of 3,600 square feet. What exactly is affordable? That was not defined within the building’s plans.
The projects are not yet finalized. Due to proximity to the Second Avenue Subway, “the only action necessary to facilitate the Proposed Developments is a joint certification from the MTA and CPC as to whether or not a transit easement volume is required on the Development Site pursuant to ZR Section 95-041.”
The easement certification is on the May 11 agenda of Community Board 8’s Land Use Committee meeting.
