The New York City Board of Standards & Appeals granted a variance in August, 2006, to permit residential use at 100 Varick Street, which is located in a manufacturing zone.

100 Varick Street LLC, of which Charles Friedman is a principal, wanted to demolish an existing three-story, 19th Century commercial building on the site, which is between Watts and Broome Streets in SoHo, and erect a 10-story residential apartment building.

At a prior hearing, Fredrick A. Becker, the zoning lawyer representing the developer, told the board that the proposed building is across the street from buildings taller than 10 stories and would therefore not be altering the project s context.

An early plan for the project called for 27 apartments, but that number was increased to 79 at the previous hearing at the Board of Standards and Appeals.

The zoning and land-use committee of Community Board 2 held a hearing on the proposal recently and had no problem with the zoning change but expressed concerns about the height of the building.

David B. Reck, chairman of the zoning committee of Community Board 2, submitted to the board its resolution in November 2005 that maintained that “the proposed residential occupancy is very appropriate for the site,” adding that “the sub-standard size of the lot creates difficulties in developing the site,” and “the additional costs of building next to the subway are significant for a project of this size.” The board’s resolution recommended approval of the project if it is built to a F.A.R. (floor-to-area ratio) of 8.

The plan subseqently approved by the Board of Standards & Appeals was revised and made smaller and now is a 8-story-high buiilding with just 61 rental apartments.

Michael Even of the EM Design Group is the architect for the project.

The American Red Cross leased space for a downtown headquarters after September 11, 2001 in a low-rise building on the site for five years but negotiated a termination after two years due to the “awkward layout” of the space.

The site is convenient to TriBeCa and has good public transportation.