Work To Demolish Entire UES Block Is Underway

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Work to demolish an entire Upper East Side block to make way for the neighborhood's next mega development has begun.

Workers have erected scaffolding that envelops the entire block of First Avenue between East 80th and 79th streets and some additional buildings on the side streets. Extell Development owns the entire street and plans to knock down the low-rises to build a development that could exceed 350,000 square feet.

Demolition plans for the buildings were filed in May. It's unclear how long it will take to fully demolish the buildings and turn the city street into a hole in the ground. Plans have not been filed with the city Department of Buildings that detail the building that's planned for the site.

In March, Extell Development's Gary Barnett told real estate publication The Real Deal that he plans to develop a mixed-use building with at least 250,000 square feet of buildable space on the block. In May, Extell struck a deal with the Church of Saint Monica to add as much as 100,000 square feet in air rights to the planned development.

The new development will likely consist of a residential tower with a school building at its base, Barnett told the Real Deal. One school has already reached out to the developer, but no deals have been made at this point. The assemblage took Barnett more than a decade to put together, he told the Real Deal.

Photo by Brendan Krisel/Patch