NEW YORK CITY-In an effort to jump-start Harlem’s local economy, the New York City Economic Development Corp. and city officials selected two developers to rehabilitate the former Taystee Bakery Complex and the historic Corn Exchange Building located along the 125th Street commercial corridor on Wednesday afternoon. The long-vacant sites will be repurposed to include new industrial, office and retail space, which will result in more than 530 permanent jobs, 570 construction jobs and 350,000 square feet of new commercial space in the neighborhood, totaling $116 in private investment.
The larger of the two projects will be the $100-million redevelopment of the bakery complex, which will be transformed into CREATE @ Harlem Green, a 328,000-square-foot commercial and industrial space that will house tenants from creative industries and several locally-based businesses. Upon completion, the development will include 100,000 square feet of manufacturing space, 90,000 square feet of office space, 40,000 square feet of retail space and 10,000 square feet of community facility space here.
Several tenants are already lined up for Harlem Green, the NYCEDC says. Harlem Brewing Co., which currently operates in Saratoga Springs, NY, has agreed to move its production facility, brewing museum, a tap room and gift ship to the complex. Other tenants on-board include Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design, who will operate 53,000 square feet of manufacturing space to be leased as smaller spaces for artisan companies, as well as local baker HerFlan, who will be opening a wholesale production facility and retail outlet as means to expand operations from La Marqueta, also in the neighborhood.
To complete this work, the NYCEDC selected Janus Partners LLC and Monadnock Construction Inc. after the developers responded to a request for expressions of interest in November 2010. Previously, the NYCEDC had conveyed the site to Harlem Real Estate LLC, an affiliate of Citarella. But as a result of the entity’s failure to renovate the site, the New York State Supreme Court awarded title back to the NYCEDC in 2009, according to a statement from the city.
But the new developers are optimistic that the project has potential to create an “exciting urban job and economic development” zone that can bolster East Harlem’s status in the market. The entire 125th Street corridor was rezoned in April 2008 to strengthen the stretch as a regional business district while protecting the scale of the neighborhood’s historic brownstones and its roots in arts & entertainment. “As a locally-based West Harlem company, we are thrilled to have been chosen to bring the community's vision of a master-planned creative hub of commercial and high value-added manufacturing to fruition,” says Scott Metzner, principal of Janus Partners LLC, in a prepared statement after the bid announcement.
In addition, the NYCEDC selected 125th Street Equities LLC to redevelop the Corn Exchange Building. Located on 125th Street and Park Avenue next to the 125th Street Metro North train station, the building was originally constructed in 1883--and despite its landmark status--the structure has been in “severe disrepair” since the early 1970s.
The $16-million renovation of the Corn Exchange will include a complete rehabilitation of the historic base of the building and six upper floors, subject to review by the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission. Once approved, the total development will include approximately 31,00 square feet, with 22,000 square feet slotted for office and 9,000 square feet for retail space.
The selection of developers comes at a time where the city is seeking to bring back industrial and manufacturing jobs to underutilized spaces and waterfronts throughout all five boroughs. “The development of these two sites will create hundreds of new well-paying permanent jobs in Harlem and generate millions of dollars in private investment,” said NYCEDC president Seth Pinsky, in a statement. “From East to West, momentum is gaining in the revitalization of Harlem, bringing new life and vibrancy to sites that for years had been vacant.”
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