More Coffee, Anyone

Next week (February 20 to February 24), Superstructure work will continue at 5th and 6th floor levels. Deliveries for the internal systems of the building have been ongoing and will continue, although they should not greatly affect the flow of pedestrian and road traffic.

The following week (February 27 to March 2), we will continue superstructure concrete and slabs on the 5th and 6th floor levels. Deliveries will continue to arrive at the site. The site will not be open on Monday the 20th, Presidents’ Day holiday.

This weekend the site will be open on Saturday, February 18th for superstructure related activities between the work hours of 7AM and 5PM as permitted by the City. To control noise levels within the site, work activities will be limited to the placement of formwork and concrete, plumbing and electrical work, rebar for concrete placement, using the crane and equipment to support all activities. Safety horns are used, and required by law, to coordinate lifting with the crane and to alert the workers of the danger overhead. We have directed the operators to limit the use of horns to one short sounding and to use the crane later in the day so as to avoid any excess noise.

From the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation:

NYU recently revealed its draft Environmental Assessment Statement and draft Scoping Document for its massive proposed zoning changes and taking of public land to allow its planned twenty-year expansion in Greenwich Village. These documents provide greater detail about what NYU is planning, what the potential impacts are of their proposed changes, and how NYU will be required to analyze those impacts for the public review process of their application.

Community Board #2 will be holding a public hearing on the documents and the response to them on Thursday, May 5 (time and location TBD). Following the Community Board hearing, the City Planning Commission will hold a hearing before the documents are finalized and the review and analysis takes place. This process is expected to take several months. After that, the public hearing, review, and approval process for the actual proposed zoning changes and transfers of public land may take place.

Here’s an update on Union Square reconstruction:

Work is progressing quickly to repave the 16th Street transverse. Crews are laying a new concrete base to better support the asphalt pavers for this heavily-trafficked portion of the park. Special care is being taken to preserve the root systems of the elm trees that bisect the pathway, and access to the center lawn for the disabled will be part of the final design. Repaving is expected to be completed by Labor Day.
The center and east play areas are also moving along, with equipment installation nearly complete for both sections. The enormous Big Mountain play feature, fabricated by a silo manufacturer on Long Island, was welded together on site last week. The bulk of the remaining work will encompass retaining wall, decorative fence and bench installation, and final landscaping. In other construction news, Pavilion roof waterproofing, flashing and cornice work continues, as does new plaster work on the interior ceiling. Concrete and paver installation on the east plaza was recently finished, and excavation will soon begin on the east sidewalk south of the 16th Street transverse.

An incredible story about how peepers spend hours looking up the skirts of girls who sit on the steps of Union Square Park.

Next week (October 1 to October 5), Material and equipment deliveries and installation work will continue on all floors. Curtain wall installation on upper floors will continue. Curtain wall installation on the lower floors will proceed along 5th ave inside the construction site. The crane that is on site will remain for the duration of curtain wall installation and will not affect pedestrian or automotive traffic.

The following week (October 8 to October 12) Material and equipment deliveries and installation work will continue on all floors. Curtain wall installation will continue on all floors. Curtain wall installation on the lower floors will proceed along 5th ave inside the construction site. The site will be open on Monday the 8th.

This weekend the site will be open on Saturday, September 29th for superstructure related activities and curtain wall installation between the work hours of 7AM and 5PM as permitted by the City. Con Ed is on site working in the street at 14th Street and 5 Avenue.

More branches of Barnes & Noble are closing. Most recently, the huge store at Lincoln Center was shuttered. However, the megastore on the northern edge of Union Square Park is safe.