300 East 50th Street rendering and zoning diagram via MAG Partners and NYC DOB
A new mixed-income rental tower is coming to 300 East 50th Street in Turtle Bay, bringing 194 much-needed apartments to the heart of Manhattan. Developed by MAG Partners, a woman-owned, WBE-certified real estate company led by MaryAnne Gilmartin, the tower will stand 23 stories tall and reach a height of 275 feet to the top of its mechanical bulkhead.
MAG Partners is collaborating with capital partners RW Realty Advisors, Krown Point, and Safanad on the 170,000-square-foot project. This project follows the opening of MAG's first New York City development, RUBY, a 480-unit, two-towered mixed-income rental development in Chelsea. Additionally, last month, MAG broke ground on another mixed-income rental development at 335 Eighth Avenue which will also be home to German grocery store chain Lidl.
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300 East 50th Street is one of the last projects to qualify under the now-defunct 421-A Affordable NY Program. Thirty percent of the 194 units will be leased at below-market-rate rents to households falling within prescribed income bands based on the area's median income. The tower's footings were laid just before the program's expiration last summer, allowing it to qualify for tax breaks if certain levels of below-market-rate housing are provided. The program facilitated the construction of new market-rate and 'affordable' rental apartments in Manhattan, and its expiration is partially responsible for the drop in housing construction despite all-time record rents in Manhattan.
Excavation work for foundations underway as of early November 2023
Excavation work began at 300 East 50th Street in recent weeks after a group of characterful but shabby walk-up buildings were demolished at the southeast corner of Second Avenue and 50th Street. The tower must be completed on or before June 15, 2026, to receive 421-A benefits.
While the busy design firm of COOKFOX Architects designed MAG's first two projects, and coincidentally the 2015-built condo across the street at 301 East 50th Street, 300 East 50th Street is designed by the context sensitive firm of BKSK Architects, which already has several similarly-sized projects on Second Avenue under its belt.
The single rendering published on MAG's page shows the building will be clad in neutral-toned brick accented by pink and bronze-colored metal framing. To break up the building's two 100-foot-long street walls, the facade will feature several indentations, differentiated window groupings, and setbacks of varying heights. There will be ground-level retail along the well-trafficked Second Avenue, and the main building entrance will likely be on quieter, tree-lined East 50th Street.
Approved permits by the Department of Buildings show there will be between ten to twelve apartments per floor on levels 2-15, and five to seven apartments per floor on levels 16-23. The building will include a common roof deck, bike parking, a lounge, and a fitness center. The site plan indicates an inner courtyard that may also serve as an amenity for residents. Second Avenue is in dire need of some streetscaping/ urban design enhancements and the project will plant five new trees along its two street frontages.
The Turtle Bay - United Nations area is one of the more affordable neighborhoods in Manhattan to rent. While the median monthly asking rent in Manhattan currently stands at $4,751, Turtle Bay median rents come in at $3,999/month (what a bargain!). 300 East 50th Street is close to the United Nations, dozens of consulates, Midtown offices, and shops and restaurants at various price ranges along Second Avenue and neighborhood side streets.
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