Alexico has commissioned Herzog & de Meuron, the architects of 40 Bond Street, to design its planned 58-story, 140-unit apartment tower at 56 Leonard Street on a site it acquired from the New York Law School, according to a report today at Curbed.com.
Attempts by CityRealty to confirm the story with Izak Senbahar, one of the principals of Alexico, and its marketing director, Louise Sunshine, were unsuccessful this afternoon.
The latest plans, filed in June, with the city indicated that the tower's architect was Costas Kondylis.
The Alexico residential tower will be on the 12,500-square-foot site of the Mendik Law Library building on the northeast corner of the block bounded by Church, Leonard and Worth Streets and West Broadway. The area was rezoned in 1995 but the school's property was not included in the new zoning.
Alexico is headed by Ivan Senbahar and Simon Elias, who are converting part of the Mark Hotel on the northwest corner of Madison Avenue and 77th Street to residential condominiums and who were the developers of 165 Charles Street, a Richard Meier-designed apartment building on West Street, and the Grand Beekman and Laurel apartment buildings on First Avenue.
The New York Law School was established in 1891 by some faculty, students and alumni of the Columbia College School of Law who were protesting that school's attempts to dictate teaching methods.
Herzog & de Meuron's design for 40 Bond Street includes huge green glass cylindrical elements and a graffiti-inspired gate. Recently, the firm showed a flamboyant design for a major new philharmonic hall in Hamburg.
The Curbed.com article stated that "Alexico is also developing the Remy in Chelsea, which also happens to be made of stacked glass cubes in a design by - wouldn't you know it - Costas Kondylis." The Remy is the name of a apartment tower planned by Adellco LLC at 101 West 28th Street on the northwest corner at the Avenue of the Americas.
"...our source," the Curbed.com article continued, "has seen the model for 56 Leonard Street, and it bares only 'a very small likeness' to the Remy, and 'looks nothing like' Santiago Calatrava's glass boxes at 80 South Street. Oh, did we mention this tower is going up completely as-of-right?"
The design for the 80 South Street project south of the South Street Seaport called for a stack of ten 4-story townhouses, but the famous project has yet to break ground.
Attempts by CityRealty to confirm the story with Izak Senbahar, one of the principals of Alexico, and its marketing director, Louise Sunshine, were unsuccessful this afternoon.
The latest plans, filed in June, with the city indicated that the tower's architect was Costas Kondylis.
The Alexico residential tower will be on the 12,500-square-foot site of the Mendik Law Library building on the northeast corner of the block bounded by Church, Leonard and Worth Streets and West Broadway. The area was rezoned in 1995 but the school's property was not included in the new zoning.
Alexico is headed by Ivan Senbahar and Simon Elias, who are converting part of the Mark Hotel on the northwest corner of Madison Avenue and 77th Street to residential condominiums and who were the developers of 165 Charles Street, a Richard Meier-designed apartment building on West Street, and the Grand Beekman and Laurel apartment buildings on First Avenue.
The New York Law School was established in 1891 by some faculty, students and alumni of the Columbia College School of Law who were protesting that school's attempts to dictate teaching methods.
Herzog & de Meuron's design for 40 Bond Street includes huge green glass cylindrical elements and a graffiti-inspired gate. Recently, the firm showed a flamboyant design for a major new philharmonic hall in Hamburg.
The Curbed.com article stated that "Alexico is also developing the Remy in Chelsea, which also happens to be made of stacked glass cubes in a design by - wouldn't you know it - Costas Kondylis." The Remy is the name of a apartment tower planned by Adellco LLC at 101 West 28th Street on the northwest corner at the Avenue of the Americas.
"...our source," the Curbed.com article continued, "has seen the model for 56 Leonard Street, and it bares only 'a very small likeness' to the Remy, and 'looks nothing like' Santiago Calatrava's glass boxes at 80 South Street. Oh, did we mention this tower is going up completely as-of-right?"
The design for the 80 South Street project south of the South Street Seaport called for a stack of ten 4-story townhouses, but the famous project has yet to break ground.
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
6sqft delivers the latest on real estate, architecture, and design, straight from New York City.
