A controversial plan to construct a high-rise residential building on Fifth Avenue within the Greenwich Village Historic District was narrowly approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) Tuesday morning with 6 in favor and 5 opposed. 

The new tower, developed by Madison Realty Capital and designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects (RAMSA) with Acheson Doyle Partners and Hill West Architects, will rise 224 feet and replace a pair of 1848 rowhouses at 14-16 Fifth Avenue, just one block north of Washington Square Park. Units in the new RAMSA building will be billed luxury condos—a notable pivot from the rent-regulated apartments now on site. 

RAMSA

Paul Whalen, Partner at RAMSA, went before the commission to present the tower in its third iteration, yesterday. The latest design was not significantly dissimilar to those that came before it but did see another 10 feet lopped off the top, and the articulation of the facade changed to create a visual stepping effect that builds off the rooflines of its neighbors to the south.

While the revisions were simple, they were meaningful enough to sway a sufficient number of commissioners to approve the design, specifically those who found height to be the most problematic piece of the development. 

Streetscape diagram showing the scale of 16 Fifth as compared to its neighbors | RAMSA

Chair Sarah Carroll, who was among the six to greenlight the proposal, deemed the new building's height agreeable to the avenue, which boasts a mix of sizes. She added that the existing historic structures are “so heavily altered" that they have "lost their integrity to their period of significance” and that they "don't contribute to the district.” Thus consenting to their demolition.

However, other commissioners, including John Gustaffson, Michael Devonshire, Michael Goldblum, Adi Shamir-Baron, and Diana Chapin, did not waver. While all agreed that the new building was attractive, they could not support the razing of the existing rowhouses. 

Although the old buildings have been judged to be in disrepair and to have undergone so many modifications that they lack any landmark virtue, they do harken back to a time when Fifth Avenue was defined by rowhouses, not the residential towers we see today. In fact, 14-16 are two of only three remaining rowhouses along lower Fifth Avenue (the other, 10th Fifth Avenue, has been restored).

The evolution of 14-16 Fifth Avenue | RAMSA

The LPC's decision comes as an upset to numerous local residents, affordable housing advocates, and preservation groups. During the first public hearing, the LPC heard more than three hours of testimony from those opposing the building and the demolition. Commissioners also received over 500 letters contesting the project leading up to the March 9 hearing, and another 200 letters rejecting the tower in the two months that followed.

A construction timeline for the project has yet to be announced, but we imagine demo permits will be filed soon.