New York Institute of Technology Campus: The Next 15 CPW?

[londonlawyer]

Has anyone ever considered what a colossal waste of resources these crappy buildings are? These buildings, together with the dilapidated "dance studio," next door sit among some of the most expensive condos in the city. The site probably could procure a fortune, and the school could move elsewhere.

[lofter1]

Where is this building you're talking about?

[londonlawyer]

Broadway and 61st. The school owns four or five contiguous buildings that run all the way to Columbus.

http://maps.google.com/maps?rlz=1T4G...ed=0CAkQ8gEwAA

[babybackribs2314]

If we're talking about NYIT, you can't leave out the Amsterdam Houses starting on 62nd and 10th. THAT is a huge waste of prime real estate and actually detracts from the neighborhood's value, unlike NYIT.

[BBMW]

The city would never sell off the Amsterdam Houses. Even if they could double or triple the unit count by selling the land and using the money to build new housing on cheaper land (that the city would likely already own) out in the boroughs, the PR debacle of shipping poor public house residents out to the boroughs to make way for a high income developement on the UWS would be too much for city hall to stomach.

As far as NYIT, they want a Manhattan presence, and have it with these buildings. If a developer could show them how they could have their cake and eat it too (keep the presence, but harvest the cash value of the buildings), they might go for it. But I'm guessing that hasn't happened. The main way that could work is if there were a lot of unused air rights in the buildings, and they could be replaced by larger buildings. Again, I'm guessing that's not the case.

[lofter1]

DOF records indicate that NYIT owns two of the buildings they now use here (2-story building at 1849 Bway & 12-story corner building at 1851-1857 Bway). Adjacent buildings, where NYIT also does business, apparently have different owners.

The NYIT owned parcel (irregular shape, due to the diagonal frontage along Broadway) measures about 15,600 sf (~ 120' x 130'). Not sure what zoning there would allow to rise.

[Derek2k3]

I think these are a decent set of buildings. Not on the top of my list of things to tear down.
And the colleges in this area help make this area interesting. CPW is beautiful but kind of a snore.

[BBMW]

Also, while you could do a very nice development on that block, it would never be 15 CPW. The money side of 15 CPW, from the standpoint of condo values, is, well, the CPW side, with the park views. The side facing broadway is the "back" of the building, replete iwth faily plebeian retail (Best Buy?)

I'm guessing any redevelopment of the NYIT buildings would have NYIT in the lover floors, with condos above, and maybe retail at ground level.

[londonlawyer]

I think these are a decent set of buildings. Not on the top of my list of things to tear down.
And the colleges in this area help make this area interesting. CPW is beautiful but kind of a snore.

I'm referring to this 1970s POJ, and the two little run-down structures to the south of it. The one on the far south corner with Starbucks is nice, and NYIT does not occupy it.

[BBMW]

If if a developer could cut a deal with NYIT for those buildings, they'd probably make a major attempt to do the whole block.

[ASchwarz]

The city would never sell off the Amsterdam Houses.

No, they wouldn't sell it, but they will likely eventually redevelop it, and build new towers, as they're doing all over the city nowadays.

NYCHA properties with developable land rights are being developed, or plans are going through the land use process, in every corner of the city.