By the Village Sun | A Little Italy building that once housed America’s oldest cheese shop must be demolished after part of its wall collapsed on January 10, the Department of Buildings has ordered.
Last Wednesday, part of the exterior brick wall of a four-story building on Mulberry Street buckled and collapsed, leaving a gaping hole in the vacant ground floor.
The building, located at 188 Grand Street, had undergone illegal and unauthorized structural renovations, according to the DOB.
The first floor of the site has been vacant since Areva Dairy, which had been there for more than 130 years, vacated the space this spring. Karen King, the owner of a historic cheese shop, owes her landlord more than $500,000 in unpaid rent due to the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The settlement saw her pay $31,000 and she agreed to leave in March.
“Like most people, I was shocked to learn that the second floor of 188 Grand Street had collapsed,” King said in a statement after the collapse. It was the former home of the store Areva Dairy.
“Normally there would be dozens of people in the store every day buying fresh mozzarella and cannoli.
“Thank God no one was hurt and everyone is safe.”
“My heart just dropped a few beats,” King said late Friday afternoon when he heard that emergency demolition of the entire building had been ordered.
Areva Dairy was planning to reopen at a new location near Lyndhurst, New Jersey. But when asked on Monday what the situation was, a spokesperson for Mr. King said, “There is no update.”
It was not immediately clear what use or tenant the first floor would be renovated for. But the building’s upper floors are occupied by The Farm, a trendy-sounding “rustic Americana” coworking space with reclaimed wood tables, and its “distinguishing feature” is a rooftop with a coffee bar. He was proud of his space.
“It’s not just what’s inside The Farm Soho that makes it New York’s go-to coworking hotspot for entrepreneurs, early-stage startups, and freelancers looking to immerse themselves in a dynamic environment. , where we are based,” the site says. . “Strategically located in New York’s most popular neighborhoods, close to all major subway lines and surrounded by countless restaurants, cafes, and bars perfect for blowing off steam from your busy schedule.”
Little Italy activist Sante Scardillo lives four blocks from the doomed building. He said a few months ago he first noticed a sidewalk construction shed with green-painted plywood siding outside the property, indicating that renovations were being made.
As a side note, there was a 25th anniversary party for the cast of “The Sopranos” last Wednesday at Da Nico Restaurant, up Mulberry Street from 188 Grand Street, and this is what he said. He said that this had spurred the “uproar”. On the street that evening.
“DOB condemned this building,” he said of the 188 grand. “All work was illegal and no permits had been issued.
“It seems like a ploy to get bigger,” he said. “It will be interesting to see how they plan to bypass the Little Italy Special Zone.”
According to the special use district, the corner lot could be rebuilt a little higher than its original height, or about one story, as long as there is no setback from the property line.
Meanwhile, the Bowery Neighborhood Alliance fears the emergency demolition could cause even more destruction. Mitchell Grabler, chair of BAN’s Landmarks Committee, sent a letter to Sarah Carroll, chair of the city’s Landmarks Preservation Committee, warning about the safety of two adjacent landmarks. .
“In light of the DOB’s demolition order, we are extremely concerned about the stability of the adjacent Federal-style individual landmarks at 190 and 192 Grand Street,” he wrote. “We hope that the LPC will work closely with the DOB to ensure that no adjacent landmarks are harmed. Or don’t want another landmark added to the recent list of lost buildings.”