Jared Kushner plans to build a residential penthouse on the Puck Building, The hideous proposed penthouse and three-story additions have been designed by Sherida E. Paulsen of PKSB Architects, a former chairwoman of the landmarks commission, and Jose Ramirez of J. L. Ramirez Architect. It was denied outright by CB#2’s Landmarks Committee and held over at the Landmarks Preservation Committee meeting on September 20th. The Historic Districts Council is strongly opposed to this application for blatantly visible rooftop additions on one of New York City’s most distinctive landmarks, the Puck Building.
The Landmarks Preservation Commission made no decision at their September 20th review of these current plans.
The owners filed plans to convert the cellar and first floor to retail use in January 2011, having acquired a zoning change from M1-5b to C6-3. Though granted with the understanding of the SoHo Alliance that the remaining floors would retain M1-5b uses, this evidently paved the way for the residential penthouse scheme now seeking Landmarks approval.
A just released statement from CB#2 Manhattan reinforces concern:
CB 2 joined the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation and the Historic Districts Council in opposing an application to construct a massive, out-of-scale glass-enclosed penthouse for a private residence on top of the historic Puck Building. In its resolution and subsequent letter to the Landmarks Preservation Commission, the community board said it was very concerned about the dangerous precedent that would be set for a rooftop addition to be added to such a special individual landmark structure without any legal justification from a Landmarks Law perspective.
We support this perspective. The full frontal effect of this penthouse addition will be visible from NoHo; there will be limited visibility on West Houston St. The precedent, should a penthouse addition of this magnitude be realized, will be seen throughout Manhattan on virtually any landmarked building.