Construction in ‘Vacant’ Building
Among the brownstones and high rises on West 103rd Street between West End Avenue and Riverside Drive, there is one building that appears to be abandoned.
Scaffolding hugs the façade, permits from the Department of Buildings plaster the glass front door and windows are covered in plastic.
But there are actually six tenants living at 315 W. 103rd St. Their home has become a permanent construction site because the landlord apparently falsified a building permit.
Two years ago, Jacob Avid of Dan-Bran Realty LLC bought the building and applied for permits to build a two-story rooftop and rear-yard addition. The permits stated that the eight-unit building was vacant, but it was actually occupied. Read more
Private Café, Public Space
On the corner of West 81st Street and Amsterdam Avenue, the restaurant Monsoon has stood empty since 2005—and so has its enclosed sidewalk café. While passersby didn’t particularly notice the large structure jutting out into the sidewalk—it runs parallel to other outdoor cafés, though it remains the only permanent one—many residents have complained that the large, red painted construct, with its papered up windows and Department of Buildings stickers all over the door, is an eyesore. Read more
