Old Yorkville Shop Building To Be Replaced By High-Rise Tower

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — A small shop building that has stood in Yorkville since the 19th century may soon be replaced by a high-rise apartment tower, according to newly filed plans.

Developer Noam Shemel filed plans Friday for a new 15-story building at 1477 Third Ave., between East 83rd and 84th streets.

That midblock site has long been home to a two-story commercial building that was built in 1895, according to a date emblazoned on its facade.

Most recently home to a yoga studio and gym, the building had also hosted a home furnishings studio and a Radio Shack in recent years.

In July, it was purchased for $8.5 million by Shemel's company, Kano Realty, according to city records. Kano has advertised the retail space for lease this year, describing it as recently renovated, suitable for all uses — "including Cannabis."

Despite standing 15 stories tall, the new building would contain just nine apartments, according to the new plans. It would rise to a height of 152 feet, with 24,000 square feet of residential space (about 2,700 per apartment) and 1,600 square feet of commercial space.

It will be designed by BKSK Architects, whose other projects include the Children's Museum of Manhattan on the Upper West side, the National Museum of Mathematics in NoMad, and hte expansion of the old Tammany Hall Building at 44 Union Square.

No demolition plans have yet been filed for the existing building.

It will be only the latest low-rise Upper East Side building to be expanded or wiped away entirely for a high-rise development. Other, similar projects recently unveiled in the neighborhood include the expansion of an old carriage house on East 75th Street, the construction of a science lab in an old Yorkville factory building, and the two huge demolition projects on opposite corners of East 86th Street.

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