COVID-19 Response: Suspension of ElectricWeb for April 2020

Issuance Date: 04/6/2020

To: Owners and Contractors

Purpose: Guidance to owners and contractors regarding enforcement of Essential vs. Nonessential construction in accordance with NYS Governor’s Executive Order 202.6 and subsequent orders, and the Guidance on Executive Order 202.6 published by NYS ESDC Item 9

Related Code/Zoning Section(s):

• AC 28-103.8
• AC 28-201.1
• New York State Gubernatorial Emergency Order 202.6 and subsequent orders and related Empire State Development Corporation guidelines
• New York City Mayoral Emergency Order 103 and subsequent mayoral emergency orders

_________________________________________________________________

In accordance with NYS Governor’s Executive Order 202.6 and the Guidance on Executive Order 202.6 and subsequent orders published by NYS ESDC Item 9, (1) All non-essential construction must shut down except emergency construction, (e.g. a project necessary to protect health and safety of the occupants, or to continue a project if it would be unsafe to allow to remain undone until it is safe to shut the site). (2) Essential construction may continue and includes roads, bridges, transit facilities, utilities, hospitals or health care facilities, affordable housing, and homeless shelters. At every site, if essential or emergency non-essential construction, this includes maintaining social distance, including for purposes of elevators/meals/entry and exit. Sites that cannot maintain distance and safety best practices must close and enforcement will be provided by the state in coordination with the city/local governments. This will include fines of up to $10,000 per violation. (3) For purposes of this section construction work does not include a single worker, who is the sole employee/worker on a job site.

Only the following construction projects permitted by the NYC Department of Buildings or otherwise regulated by the NYC Construction Codes and the NYC Electrical Code shall be permitted to continue until further notice. This guidance does not apply to construction on roads, bridges, and transit facilities that is allowable under the Governor’s Executive Orders and ESDC Guidance.

Melanie E. La Rocca

Commissioner

280 Broadway (7th Floor)

New York, NY 10007

Tel 212 393 2002

www.nyc.gov/buildings

1. Emergency construction (ESDC Item 9, bullet 1):

a. Project necessary to protect the health and safety of the occupants:

i. Emergency work ordered by the Department;

ii. Restoration of essential services – heat, hot water, cold water, gas, electricity, or other utility services; or

iii. Work necessary to address any condition requiring immediate corrective action that severely affects life, health, safety, property, or significant number of persons.

b. Project required to continue to the extent it would be unsafe to allow work to remain undone. Such project may continue only until it is safe to shut the site.

2. Essential construction (ESDC Item 9, bullet 2):

a. Utilities;

b. Hospitals or health care facilities;

c. Transitional and/ or Homeless shelters;

d. Affordable housing: Construction work on public housing, or a private or multiple dwelling or real property that is a new building (NB) or that is 100% vacant; or is work on unoccupied public housing units for the designation as housing for specific populations (i.e. shelter set aside, domestic violence referrals), or work on the exterior to address emergency conditions requiring immediate corrective action, set forth in Section 1(a)(iii) or within public housing, correction of critical systems for seasonal preparedness for the 2020-2021 heating season of an existing public housing building. Construction work on a private or multiple dwelling or real property that is a new buildin (NB) or that is 100% vacant that is now used or will be converted to such use: (i) For the provisio of affordable inclusionary housing or mandatory inclusionary housing pursuant to the New Yor city zoning resolution; or (ii) Where no less than 30% of the residential units are subject to a regulatory agreement, restrictive declaration, or similar instrument with a local, state, or federal governmental entity or a local housing authority in a city with a population of one million or more.

e. Other essential construction as approved by the Department.

3. Work that is limited to a single worker, who is the sole employee/worker on a job site (ESDC Item 9, bullet 3)

                                          ALL OTHER WORK TO CEASE

All other construction and demolition work permitted by the NYC Department of Buildings or otherwise regulated by the NYC Construction Codes and the NYC Electrical Code shall cease and comply with Buildings Bulletin 2020-004.

All complaints from the public or workers should be directed to 311 where a Class “A” complaint will be generated for DOB to address.

For a determination that work is either essential or emergency work in accordance with New York State Gubernatorial Emergency Order 202.6 and subsequent orders and related Empire State Development Corporation guidelines shall be submitted to the Department in a form and manner acceptable to the Department.

Reference: 

NYS Governor’s Executive Order 202.6 (MARCH 30, 2020 at 11:00 AM)

Unions Urge Governor to Lift Construction Ban

A growing number of contractors, unions and Pennsylvania county government officials are pleading Gov. Tom Wolf to lift his ban on construction activity because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Among those leading the campaign is Berks County Commissioner chairman Christian Leinbach.

“I saw a letter from Johnny Dougherty, IBEW out of Philadelphia, saying, ‘Hey, we need to get our members back to work.’ 

And, I agree with that very much,” said Leinbach. “The construction industry and the trades people that serve that industry are really foundational to our economy.”

Leinbach, who leads the COVID-19 task force for Berks County, also sent a letter to Wolf.

“The tone of the letter is positive,” he noted. “We don’t take any opportunity to take any shots at the governor.”

He said construction workers know how to take care of themselves on a job site amid a health crisis, and he believes they can continue to do it safely.

“They have very clear guidelines relative to operating within the COVID-19 health crisis that we’re in,” he said. “And, anyone that’s worked in the construction industry — you have a 50,000-square-foot building that’s being built, and you have 15 to 20 construction workers. They’re not all shoulder-to-shoulder in the corner working. They’re spread out over the job site.”

Leinbach is cautiously optimistic that Wolf will give a fair hearing to the growing chorus of those asking him to rescind his suspension order.

Construction is considered a “non-life-sustaining business” under Wolf’s coronavirus closures.

47-story Luxury Tower Planned at Broad and Spruce St

In the heart of the city, new 47-story skyscraper with luxury condominiums and amenities is set to go up at the corner of Broad and Spruce Streets, overlooking the Kimmel Center. 

The tower, named Arthaus, is being developed by Carl Dranoff, who had previously planned to construct a 45-story SLS International Hotel & Residences on the site. 

The hotel plan was downsized last year, and then scrapped entirely, in favor of the new, solely residential, Arthaus building.

The $275 million tower will include 108 condominiums ranging from 1,600 to nearly 5,500 square feet, along with 151 parking spaces.

The building’s luxury amenities will include a 75-foot pool, a dining salon which will feature celebrity chefs doing demonstrations, and a sky garden with a greenhouse.

The Arthaus name is inspired by the Bauhaus—an architecture movement founded by Walter Gropius in 1919 that helped shape modern design and architecture for decades to come.

About the Arthaus design, “excess was replaced by beauty that will also meet the needs and desires of real people.” 

They point to the tiered facade of the primarily glass building, which is aesthetically pleasing and which, “gives every unit its own corner, with two full exterior walls of breathtaking views.”

Carl Dranoff said it was the goal of his team and architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox to bring a vertical tower that would be a sort of landmark for the Avenue of the Arts. 

The upper levels look like steps going to the sky, while the lower levels feature brick and clay tiles that relate to the Kimmel Center across the Street.

The condominium units, which start at two bedrooms, feature floor-to-ceiling glass, terraces, kitchens with marble backsplashes and a marble waterfall countertop. 
The largest unit stretches over two stories with four bedrooms, five baths, a private elevator, and a massive terrace. 

The bottom floors will have four units a piece, with that number decreasing as you move up the building. 

The units will cost around $1,200 to $1,500 per square foot, with the largest unit costing as much as $8.2 million and the smallest as low as $1.9 million. 

When factoring in the location, the luxury nature of the units, and the amenities, it’s a bargain compared to similar New York condos, the developer says.

The tower is a far cry from the earlier plans for the site, which has been empty for years but once held Philadelphia International Records. 

It wasn’t until late last year that Dranoff announced he was scrapping the hotel portion of the project entirely, after only receiving $1.4 million of the $19 million he needed from a Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant to complete the hotel portion. 

This time the money they did secure from RACP grants, amounting to about $2.4 million, will go toward a restaurant on the first floor of the building.

The Arthaus tower is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2021.

New 30-Story Tower to Rise on North Broad St

The latest project in the wave of new development along North Broad Street is 30-story mixed-use tower named “Mural West,” a 30-story apartment building slated to rise on a parking lot at 523 North Broad Street.

The tower will have 290 residential units on the upper floors with ground-floor retail space. 

Also included on the lot is a separate, one-story restaurant and 24 on-site parking spaces.

Mural West sits just next to Meg Saligman’s popular 1999 mural “Common Threads,” which provides inspiration for the new development. 

A diagonal open space called “common ground” runs between the tower and the restaurant, directly below the mural.

The development plan preserves the mural, while the park enhances the viewer experience by providing a quiet respite from the urban neighborhood with trees, seating, and information about the mural and its creation.

The building is designed by AOS Architects and will be developed by EBRM, the group behind the Divine Lorraine Hotel.

The project is the latest in a recent boom of development along North Broad Street. 

In 2017 the Divine Lorraine Hotel was restored, followed by the Met Philly in 2018. The Nest,  new development geared toward Temple University students opened last year, while another new, 14-story project behind the Divine Lorraine recently broke ground. 

Giant 30-acre Development Planned for Philly Waterfront

A vacant 30-acre site on the Delaware River will soon be getting nearly 1,100 new homes, including apartments and row houses.

The development spans a plot of land between the waterfront and Beach Street in Old Richmond, just below Graffiti Pier. 

The project is designed by ISA Architects and Hickok Cole.

The overall development which is billed as a “hybrid community,” will include four seven-story apartment buildings on the eastern side of the site with 850 units, ranging from one to two-bedrooms. 

The apartment buildings will also include 744 parking spots, a community center with an outdoor plaza, and a community pavilion.

A road separates the apartment buildings from the complex of 248 row houses on the riverfront side of the land, ranging from three to five bedrooms with roof decks and parking for two cars.

As part of the Delaware River Waterfront Cooperation’s master plan, the project includes green space between the buildings, a pedestrian connection to trails on the water’s edge, and an access point to a public park.

The overall design echoes the row homes built in adjacent Fishtown and Old Richmond.

It’s the largest project to tap the northern banks of the Delaware River for residential development.

Further south, multiple projects like the Views at Penn Treaty, a luxury development with 19 townhouses, and Pier 35 1/2, a 41-townhouse development will soon be moving forward as well. 

47-story Condo Tower Planned for Broad and Spruce

A new, 47-story skyscraper with luxury condos and amenities is set to go up at the corner of Broad and Spruce Streets, overlooking the Kimmel Center and the heart of the city.

Plans for the tower, dubbed Arthaus, were announced by developer Carl Dranoff, who had previously tapped the site for a 45-story SLS International Hotel & Residences. That hotel plan was first downsized last year, and then scrapped entirely, in favor of the new, solely residential, Arthaus building.

The $253 million tower includes 108 condos that range from 1,600 to nearly 5,500 square feet, along with 151 parking spaces, and amenities. A 75-foot pool, a “dining salon” that will occasionally feature celebrity chefs doing demonstrations and a sky garden with a greenhouse are listed among the amenities for the building.

The Arthaus name is inspired by the Bauhaus—a school of architecture founded in 1919 that helped shape modern architecture and design for decades to come.

Of the Bauhaus movement and the Arthaus design, Dranoff says, “excess was replaced by beauty that could also meet the needs and desires of real people.” They point to the tiered facade of the primarily glass building, which they call aesthetically pleasing and which, “gives every unit its own corner, with two full exterior walls of breathtaking views.”

Dranoff said it was the goal of his team and architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox to bring a vertical tower that would be a sort of landmark for the Avenue of the Arts. 

The upper levels look like steps going to the sky, while the lower levels feature brick and clay tiles that relate to the Kimmel Center across the Street.

The condos themselves, which start at two bedrooms, feature floor-to-ceiling glass, terraces, kitchens with marble backsplashes and a marble waterfall countertop. The largest condo stretches over two stories with four bedrooms, five baths, a private elevator, and a massive terrace.

The bottom floors will have four units a piece, with that number decreasing as you move up the building. The units will cost around $1,200 to $1,500 per square foot - with the largest unit costing more than $8 million and the smallest as low as $1.9 million. 

When factoring in the location, the luxury nature of the units, and the amenities, it’s a bargain compared to similar New York condos. The Arthaus tower is anticipated to be completed by 2022.

University City Prepares for Massive $6.5B Redevelopment

University City is in for some major changes thanks to a new redevelopment plan from Amtrak and partners SEPTA, Brandywine Realty Trust, and Drexel University. The plan will be the single largest development project in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and turn West Philadelphia into a regional economic hub. 

The development is expected to cost $6.5 billion, with $2 billion going to infrastructure investments and the other $4.5 billion coming from developers.

The project is expected to create 22,000 construction jobs and another 10,000 permanent jobs, and add 8,000 to 10,000 residents to the city’s population.

The massive venture will focus on the area around 30th Street Station, the second-busiest station in the Amtrak system, ultimately turning the area into a second downtown for Philadelphia.

Plans for the station and surrounding neighborhood will start with the capping of the existing Amtrak and SEPTA-owned rail yards to accommodate 10 million square feet of development along the Schuylkill River.

Click to enlarge

New office, retail and residential buildings containing 18 million square feet of total space and 40 acres of open space would be created, with most of the development privately financed.

The project will include housing for 10,000 residents and create 1.2 million square feet of commercial space.

Three pedestrian bridges across the Schuylkill River, linking University City with Logan Square and Center City, are also planned.

The redevelopment site consists of a total of 175 acres in the University City neighborhood, 88 of which is occupied by the Amtrak rail yard.

This project is the culmination of a two-year study of the site, which extends east of Drexel’s campus between Walnut and Spring Garden Streets and northeast from 30th Street Station.

Among the infrastructure improvements are plans to relocate a ramp for the Schuylkill Expressway in favor of a new bus terminal.

Click to enlarge

In addition to the bus facility, Amtrak also plans to expand The Porch at 30th Street Station.

A new gateway park will surround the facility with a tree-lined promenade along the river, a west-side plaza that could be used for large-scale events and a north plaza along Arch Street.

The 30th Street Station itself will also receive a major renovation that will add retail space and a new pedestrian plaza around the train station.

A new underground concourse that will connect the SEPTA subway station at 30th Street to the Amtrak station, is also planned.


 

Massive Development Planned for South Broad Street

A local developer has big plans for the northeast corner of Broad Street and Washington Avenue in South Philadelphia. Bart Blatstein is seeking approval from the city’s Planning Commission to build a major mixed-use development on a vacant 4-acre block that could bring nearly 1,000 apartments and an 80-room hotel to the city.

Known as 1001 South Broad Street, the 4.4-acre mega-project will comprise 1.8 million square feet of retail and residential.

Plans call for the construction of a 34-story, 944-unit luxury apartment tower (with 80 hotel rooms on floors two through nine), 11 ground-floor retail stores, 882 parking spots and 357 bike parking spaces, at the corner of South Broad Street and Washington Avenue.

The 371-foot-high building will need zoning variances for roof decks for non-residential use and a parking garage.

The L-shaped development will also comprise a smaller residential building with approximately 60 units and additional commercial/retail and dining establishments on its fourth-level rooftop, dubbed the ‘Village.’

The Village is set to include outdoor gathering spaces and more intimate exterior pathways lined with small retail boutiques and both formal and casual dining establishments, reminiscent of a French village in Provence.

Overlooking the pedestrian streets, this surface will also feature two stories of quaint but luxurious walk-up apartments totaling approximately 100-120 units.

Additionally, the development will bring office space for modestly-sized businesses and co-working users, as well as three levels of a structured self-park garage with about 625 spaces for the use of residents, shoppers and visitors alike.

The site of the project, viewed as a gateway intersection between South Philadelphia and Center City, is bounded by South Broad Street to the west, Washington Avenue to the south, N. 13th Street on the east and Carpenter Street to the north.

Vehicle access to both the parking facility and the numerous internal off-street loading dock facilities is proposed to be through curb-cuts and entrance portals, two of which are along Carpenter Street and one along Washington Avenue. No curb cuts are proposed along S. Broad or S. 13th Streets.

Blatstein’s proposal, which could bring approximately 1.8 million square feet of residential and commercial space, will be reviewed by the Civic Design and Planning Commission on March 1.

Zoning variances will be needed for the project’s roof decks for non-residential use and parking garage. The site is already zoned CMX-5, the most permissive commercial zoning classification in the city. The CMX-5 zoning requires a special exception to include parking spaces above ground.

Washington Avenue is brimming with potential, and its future has become a hot-button topic in real estate circles. Developers have snapped up its many vacant lots and aging industrial buildings, and the city has been seeking to re-zone the former industrial thoroughfare in order to spur its development.

Trendy businesses have open alongside long-standing construction supply warehouses, seafood mongers and auto-repair shops.

The developer’s past projects in the city include the development of Piazza in Northern Liberties, which is modeled after Rome’s Piazza Navona, as well as shopping centers on Columbus Boulevard in South Philly.

A few years ago, Blatstein unsuccessfully attempted to convert the old Inquirer building on North Broad Street into a hotel and casino.

In a partnership with Cescaphe Event Group, the developer is also planning to convert the former PECO power station next to Penn Treaty Park in Fishtown into a wedding venue and event space.

Mr. Blatstein is currently building a mansion for himself on Rittenhouse Square.

Drexel University's Innovative $3.5 Billion Neighborhood Plan

Fourteen acres next to Philadelphia’s 30th Street train station will be transformed into a $3.5 billion “innovation neighborhood” designed to mix education, housing and entrepreneurship, under plans unveiled by Drexel University. 

Schuylkill Yards is the name of the mixed-use project, which will add up to eight million square feet of offices, labs, and housing in new and recycled buildings next to the third busiest passenger rail station in the country.

Drexel University, which assembled the land and envisioned the project, announced that it has selected Brandywine Realty Trust of Philadelphia to be the master developer and its joint venture partner in the project.

SHoP Architects and the Dutch firm West8 are working on the master plan. SHoP will handle the district planning and development of the architectural standards, and West 8 will be responsible for creating the public realm and development of the landscape standards.

Project renderings show a combination of high-rise and low-rise buildings on a 10-acre site next to Drexel’s main campus, Amtrak’s 30th Street Station, and Brandywine’s Cira Centre development.

“Schuylkill Yards will undeniably transform Philadelphia’s skyline as new towers rise on the west side of the Schuylkill River,” said Gerard H. Sweeney, president and CEO of Brandywine Realty Trust.

Proposed uses in this “collaborative neighborhood” include entrepreneurial spaces, educational facilities and research laboratories, corporate offices, residential and retail spaces, hospitality and cultural venues, and public open spaces.

While the community is being designed for a wide range of users, from educational and medical institutions to residents and businesses, developers say the common theme will be the pursuit of innovation.

“Drexel has always believed there’s a superior use for this unique location — essentially the 50 yard line of the Eastern Seaboard — as a neighborhood built around collaboration and innovation. That’s why the University assembled these parcels, and the time is right to put this vision into action,” said Drexel President John A. Fry.

“Schuylkill Yards is more than a large-scale development; it will be the heart of America’s next great urban innovation district.”

The developers say this is a long-term investment in Philadelphia and its University City neighborhood, and it’s aimed at people who want to live or work in the area and have easy access to the train station.

Besides its proximity to 30th Street Station, Schuylkill Yards will have connections to Philadelphia’s international airport. The master plan calls for a new gateway to Drexel and University City, a real estate submarket with a high concentration of education and medical institutions.

Construction of Schuylkill Yards will take place in multiple phases. As master developer, Brandywine, will oversee a team that includes Gotham Organization leading the residential development, and Longfellow Real Estate Partners leading the life sciences component.

When completed, developers say, the site will contain a mix of repurposed existing buildings and new towers connected by a “diverse network of public spaces.”

Before	After
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The development will begin with the creation of Drexel Square, a 1.3 acre park at 30th and Market streets, directly across from Amtrak’s 30th Street Station. In addition, they say, the historic former Bulletin Building will be re-imagined by transforming its east facade with “inside/out viewports and a dynamic front screen.”

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said the project represents “one of the most valuable assemblages of real estate” in the nation.

“Schuylkill Yards is a big step forward in University City’s transition to a next-generation business district,” he said. “It will provide our region’s current and future innovators with a central hub for collaboration and signal to the world that Philadelphia is ready for business in the 21st century’s new economy.”

Schuylkill Yards “will bring new, innovative businesses and residents to Pennsylvania, and the potential economic impact is tremendous,” said Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, “Those who choose to make Schuylkill Yards their home will have access to many of the most innovative companies, organizations and educational institutions in our state.”