Healthier Skin Coming to 4th Ave. and 12th St.

Community Board #3 has voted overwhelmingly to support designation of the proposed East Village/Lower East Side and East 10th Street Historic Districts. This is a major step towards preservation of the irreplaceable and increasingly threatened historic resources and character of the East Village. However, the Landmarks Preservation Committee must still approve the move.

Brit chain Pret A Manger had moved into the former Tisserie space at 857 Broadway (at 17th Street), and now comes official word that when it opens for a test run this Friday, it will give away 3,000 free sandwiches starting at 12:15 p.m. — provided you snag one of the flyers that will be given away at the Union Square subway entrances between 8 a.m. and 9:25 a.m. that morning. Pret is calling this the “Guinea Pig Day” for what will be their U.S. flagship (the store features a fresh design and free Wi-Fi), but for better or worse, cuy won’t be served — instead, Pret is sourcing food directly from Greenmarket vendors. The location opens fully on June 22.

The spectacular old stable building at 128 East 13th has finally been converted into the Peridance Center with six studios, a theater, and a cafe.

The New York Times reports on the new busway and the potentially positive effect it has on real estate prices, although it seems certain not everyone would agree.

Last year the local business improvement district did a survey about what people really think about Union Square. You can check out some results here.

The New School, has picked up 34-42 West 14th St, a five-story, 180,000 square foot building, for $153 million.

The seller was Samson Associates and the sale closed on Jan. 10, according to the Commercial Observer. Samson had owned the property since 1985. The building’s tenants will remain and pay rent to the school until their leases expire but those leases won’t be renewed. The school will take over space over time and convert it to academic uses. The building has about 25k SF of ground-floor retail space and comes with additional air rights.

Note that price: $153 million.