Up for review tomorrow morning at the Landmarks Preservation Commission
is an adaptive reuse and addition of a six-story, 1891 Romanesque Revival building at 16 East 16th Street. Situated near Union Square, at the southeastern edge of the Ladies' Mile Historic District, the former residence hall was designed by prolific architect Robert Henderson Robertson and commissioned by Margaret Louisa Shepard, daughter of William H. Vanderbilt. The building was acquired
in early 2017 by an LLC linked to Cardinal Investmentments
and building permits
were filed this past December to reposition the building into an 87-room boutique hotel.
BKSK Architects
is leading the structure's reinvention. The presentation posted on the LPC website shows an innovative use of technology to abstractly mimic historic architectural details and ornamentation. According to the Ladies' Mile designation report, the building was originally intended to have a seventh story under a peaked roof that was never constructed since this was prohibited under regulations governing lodging houses at the time. Fast-forward to 2020, with the intent to utilize some of the site's unused FAR, the team is proposing to add the never-built seventh story that would be shielded behind a printed metal screen facade evoking the unbuilt Romanesque design.
Due to the cost and lack of details regarding the unbuilt upper story, the team hopes that this modern mirage will persuade the commissioners to green-light the new floor. Images show the perforated metal screen will front glass windows of the hotel behind. The screen, in addition to other elements of the facade, is proposed to be illuminated at night. Precedents BKSK used for the treatment include Brooklyn Navy Yard's BLDG 92, Les Mureaux police station, and the Dear Ginza building in Tokyo.
16 East 16th Street was originally built as The Margaret Louisa Home of the YWCA, an annex facility that provided a temporary home for Protestant women seeking employment. The building housed 78 furnished and decorated bedrooms accommodating 104 women, parlor rooms, reception rooms, private dining rooms, a public restaurant, a kitchen in the basement, and a laundry in the attic. The home was built as an expansion of existing facilities on 15th Street and had an internal corridor connecting the buildings.
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The designation report notes, "While an unusual building type within the district, this building is part of a complex significant for both its social history and its architecture." The Margaret Louisa Home closed in 1946 and was then tenanted by the Sidney Hillman Health Center, which opened in 1951 and installed the current pink marble facade on the ground floor. Drawings show Cardinal Investments/BKSK intends to recreate the original ground floor. The team is also asking to replace the rear pavilion, enclosed corridor, and garden behind the building, bringing the total height of the structure to nine stories. The top floor is proposed to have a drinking/eating establishment according to permits.
Existing lower stories
The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, January 6, 2020, 11:15 AM at 1 Centre Street, 9th Floor.
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