The permit says it's a temporary restaurant. Maybe something for the holiday crush on Fifth? Can they build a structure in a few weeks? The permit expires in a few months, so there isn't much time.
The new developers were in front of City Planning for modifications to the tower just a few weeks back, so I'm speculating that this is a holiday restaurant:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/cpc/070470.pdf
Do you know how much was the construction loan or a ballpark figure? That should tell us if it was meant for the tower or for the one story bank.
It would be such a complete shame if all of this turned out to be just for a bank branch as the buildings (particularly the corner building) that was torn down was actually very nice.
Under construction is a simple spread-footing foundation with no basement. There is a large number of barrels on site that suggest contaminated ground remediation.
Documents which can be found on the Department of Finance website for 400 Fifth show that the site was most likely contaminated by an above-ground storage tank in a previous building -- and that remediation must take place before any building / digging can take place.
The plot thickens!
All you sleuthy types can slog through the documents by going HERE ...
Then click the "View Document" at the bottom of the page.
Once you're there the actual May 16, 2007 "Declaration" will eventually appear (it's a JAVA thing that is a bit slow to load) including a May 10, 2007 Letter (go to Page 31 of that document) from the NYC Department of Environmental Protection to City Planning which describes how the site ...
The same letter describes the current developer's plan to build:"was home to an 11-story building constructed circa 1900 and since demolished. One 10,000-gallon above-ground storage tank was identified on site for the storage of fuel oil but documentation showing proper removal/disposal has not been provided."
"... a 57-story, 632-foot-tall mixed use building with 389 residential units and 200 hotel rooms on the upper floors ... "
Posted on curbed:
The construction site at the NWC of W36St & 5th Ave is housing a "temporary" Bank of America branch that will be up for just 10 days. The reported cost is $2M (the construction mgr told me $1M, but I heard otherwise). Being built by an event company. Will be 1 story and approximate 65 X 70. When I passed yesterday they were tamping down stone dust and had excavated for footings and steel.
$2 million for a temporary bank that will be open for only 10 days. None of this makes any sense.
I hope that is true about the bank branch only being temporary. Sure want to see that nice Gwathmey-designed tower rise very soon.
Will add some height to an area that needs some more, especially viewing the skyline from either the east or west. Plus this tower's got a nice crown.
Bank or Restaurant??
They had a full crew working late at night under floodlights. There is a tall scaffold set against the building to the north, holding the hazmat barrels. These are hidden by trees that have been placed in front of them.
A restaurant would make alot more sense, I don't like the thought of holding money in a temporary structure, perhaps in what might even be just be a glorified tent.Originally Posted by mkeit
from curbed:
...The story is that Bank of America is planning on giving New Yorkers a very large holiday present this year in the form of a large, VERY large, gift box. A firm specializing in special events is currently working 24 hours a day, seven days a week to construct a huge "gift box" with all the trimmings. In it will be all sorts of special events for New Yorkers to enjoy during the holiday season. The big rush is on to get in completed in time for Black Friday, which a mere 15 days away. Can't wait to see how this one turns out!...
We've seen this sort of temporary promotional set-up before. In fact, if you all remember just last year, Charmin did something similar in Times Square with their free public toilets.
The site developers probably agreed since they weren't going to do anything on this site before then anyway and they'd also make a few extra bucks in the process.
This idea seems crazy.
How much foot traffic is there on Fifth above 34th?
That stretch of Fifth up to ~ 39th Street has always been pretty dead (comparitively).
Are the marketing brains thinking that folks will say, "Ooh, ooh -- c'mon, let's go over to that new B of A on Fifth"
They have to spend all those service charges on something...
From racked.com today:
Renderings Of BofA's "Gift Box" Pop-Up, Revealed!
Monday, November 12, 2007, by Leslie Price
Whoa—Bank of America wasn't kidding around when they decided to plop a gigantic glass and steel gift box on the corner of 36th Street and Fifth Avenue. Here's a rendering of what the thing will look like when it's completed. For fun, you can compare that with this shot of the site taken today by an obsessed reader.
The gift box will have capacity for up to 300 people and will only be up for 10 days (!) beginning November 23rd. Here are some of the services that will be rendered there free of charge (per press materials):
· Free gift wrapping services
· Free concierge (providing access to the city's hottest tickets, tours and dining experiences)
· Free hot chocolate and coffee
· Free digital greeting cards (for Internet posting and sharing) with accompanying still shots
· Family room styled seating areas (to rest weary bones)
· Children's arts, crafts and play area (to entertain and occupy our little ones)
· Public restrooms, ATM-cash access, banking reps, daily entertainers and more
· Soup kitchen for the homeless
Just kidding about that last one! But there will be some sort of charity give-away for the Make-A-Wish foundation, so it's not solely a giant ad for BofA's BankAmericard.
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