Harlem's One45 Project Loses Civil Rights Museum As Sharpton Drops Out

HARLEM, NY — Harlem's hotly contested One45 development lost its centerpiece tenant on Monday, as the Rev. Al Sharpton announced he was withdrawing his proposed Museum of Civil Rights from the proposal after weeks of uncertainty.

The withdrawal comes as the two-tower proposal enters the final stage of its public review process — though developers vowed Monday that the project would push forward.

The news was delivered in the form of a letter sent to One45's developers by Sharpton and Jonathan Lippman, a former State Appeals Court judge who has worked with Sharpton on the museum.

"After several months of good-faith negotiations and circumstances beyond the control of all parties relating to the configuration of your project, the Civil Rights Foundation Inc. has concluded that the space you have offered for the Museum of Civil Rights (MOCR) is not adequate to build the state-of-the-art museum that we envisioned and are committed to," reads the letter, which was obtained by Patch.

The letter did not specify whether Sharpton's civil rights group, the National Action Network, would still lease space in the development for a new headquarters, as has been the plan for months. (NAN's existing "house of justice" will be bulldozed to make way for the development, which will rise on the corner of West 145th Street and Lenox Avenue.)

Bruce Teitelbaum, One45's lead developer, told Patch in a statement Monday that "Our project is on."

"We are moving ahead and will have more to say in the coming days," Teitelbaum said.

More housing urged

Starting in March, allies of Sharpton began to publicly waver about his organization's participation in One45. Residents and local officials have been rising up in opposition to the project, citing a lack of affordable apartments and fears that it would contribute to Harlem's gentrification.

A rival developer, Don Peebles, claimed that Sharpton had agreed to move the museum to his own proposed skyscraper in Midtown. A top ally of Sharpton's denied those claims to Patch in March, but conceded that NAN had "listened" to offers about joining that project, which remains far from winning all the approvals it would need to be built.

The museum had been slated to occupy a 44,000-square-foot space along West 145th Street, in between One45's two 363-foot-tall towers.

Sharpton and Lippman's letter offered few details about why that space had been deemed insufficient, saying only that the museum's mission of telling the story of the Civil Rights Movement in the Northern U.S. could not be done "within the confines of the available space that you have told us can be leased to us."

The letter urges One45's developers to put the museum space toward a different use: "more affordable housing and senior housing," which has been the dominant request of those opposed to the project.

Last week, the City Planning Commission approved the required rezonings for One45, after the project faced disapproving recommendations from Community Board 10 and Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine.

Its fate now lies in the City Council, which has until mid-June to hold a final vote, whose outcome will be far from certain.

Historically, the Council has often respected the wishes of the local member when considering land-use actions. If that policy holds, One45 would be certain to fail, as Harlem Councilmember Kristin Richardson Jordan has embarked on a self-described "crusade" to defeat the project.

Last year, however, the Council approved the contentious New York Blood Center rezoning over the objections of Upper East Side City Councilmember Ben Kallos, suggesting that the "member deference" policy may be waning. Indeed, City & State reported in January that Richardson Jordan had "ruffled feathers" among her Council colleagues, in part by voting against Adrienne Adams for speaker — suggesting that One45 could ultimately pass without her support.

The project promises to add offices, retail space and a total of 866 apartments, including about 220 that would be designated as affordable.

Related coverage:

• Harlem's One45 Rezoning Advances To City Council, Setting Up Showdown
• Harlem's One45 Project Thrown Into Confusion As Sharpton Wavers
• Harlem's One45 Project Rejected By BP Over Affordability Concerns
• Harlem Board Rejects One45 Development, But Battle Continues