The city's Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing yesterday on a proposed new 8-story building in the TriBeCa North Historic District.
The building at 50 Laight Street was unanimously approved by the landmarks committee of Community Board 1 recently and the commission members yesterday indicated they were very favorably impressed with the overall design.
The commission, however, took no action and the developer and architect were asked to explore the possible substitution of metal for fiberglass spandrels and to supply more views of the proposed buildng.
The mid-block building, which is about 100 feet west of Hudson Street, has been designed by German G. Longoria for Kengo Watanabe, the developer.
The red-brick building will contain five full-floor apartments of about 2,100 square feet each and a duplex penthouse.
The top floor of the building will be setback with a terrace behind a row of arches on the seventh floor.
The building will replace a one-story garage building designed by George W. Swiller in 1940 and a one-story freight terminal building designed by Augustus N. Allen built in 1919.
Roberta Brandes Gratz, a member of the commission, said that the "effort that has gone into the design is visible and appropriate."
Other commissioners noted that the commission has often approved the use of fiberglass to replace cornices.
The building at 50 Laight Street was unanimously approved by the landmarks committee of Community Board 1 recently and the commission members yesterday indicated they were very favorably impressed with the overall design.
The commission, however, took no action and the developer and architect were asked to explore the possible substitution of metal for fiberglass spandrels and to supply more views of the proposed buildng.
The mid-block building, which is about 100 feet west of Hudson Street, has been designed by German G. Longoria for Kengo Watanabe, the developer.
The red-brick building will contain five full-floor apartments of about 2,100 square feet each and a duplex penthouse.
The top floor of the building will be setback with a terrace behind a row of arches on the seventh floor.
The building will replace a one-story garage building designed by George W. Swiller in 1940 and a one-story freight terminal building designed by Augustus N. Allen built in 1919.
Roberta Brandes Gratz, a member of the commission, said that the "effort that has gone into the design is visible and appropriate."
Other commissioners noted that the commission has often approved the use of fiberglass to replace cornices.
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
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