In June, Village Preservation angrily protested to the City that construction had resumed on a proposed 213-foot tower at 14 Fifth Avenue, which we opposed, despite the fact that the site had been placed on a freeze, construction there had previously damaged neighboring buildings at 10 and 12 Fifth Avenue (in the former so severely that the building was vacated), and promised repairs to neighboring buildings had still not taken place. We found that the City appeared to have issued permits for the new construction despite the City itself having violated its stop-building orders and its obligations to carry out the project. We found that this was yet another failure by the City to monitor construction and at-risk buildings, particularly historic buildings.

After five and a half weeks and countless inquiries (including from City Councilor Erik Bottcher), we finally received a response from the city, telling us the following in response to our protests:

• Violations of the work stoppage order were identified
• Enforcement measures for exceeding the limits set by the work stoppage order are currently being “drafted”
• Enforcement measures were taken because “there was no pedestrian protection provided for sidewalks and footpaths … and there was no adequate order.”

We have also been informed that the owner of 10 Fifth Avenue expects exterior repairs to the building to be completed in late August or early September. and interior repair work will take approximately four to five months, with repairs expected to be completed in December 2024. The building’s vacancy order will be lifted by the NYC Department of Buildings when interior and exterior work is completed and both contracts are accepted.

The owner and the city have consistently failed to meet the promised deadlines. The violations identified will have to be decided by the courts in the fall. The result will then be known. The City still refuses to explain why permits were apparently issued for this work (which may well impact the adjudication of these violations) and why, more than a year and a half later, no one has been held accountable for the dangerous City-approved work that nearly destroyed the 180-year-old landmarked 10 Fifth Avenue and damaged the 120-year-old landmarked 12 Fifth Avenue.

All of this could have been avoided if the City had heeded our call after the 14 Gay Street disaster and implemented stricter controls and measures against developers with a history of damaging construction, such as Madison Realty Capital, the owner of 14 Fifth Avenue. The City continues to refuse to implement such a policy as culprits continue to damage and destroy property throughout New York City, particularly in historic areas.

HELP: