The upper reaches of Orchard Street, between Houston and Stanton, has been a hellzone for awhile now. There's Pomeranc's Mordor on the west side of the street, of course, newly getting its black on. But it's the east side of the street—a block which until 2005 comprised a series of single-story hipster boutiques (and their matching asbestos-friendly roofs)—and its gaping maw of a construction pit, that really completes the tableau.
Navigating construction barriers on this strip recently, we noted a rendering (above)—the first look we've seen of the 15-story apartment building that will carry the address 176-184 Orchard Street (and, for the fun of it, 169-171 Ludlow Street, too, though is perhaps the rendering above incomplete insofar as it doesn't seem to stretch across the entire lot?). Separately, blogger LFSTYL dug up some numbers on the project: 74 apartments, 18 studios, 18 one bedrooms, 34 two bedrooms and 4 three bedroom units, and 16,615 square feet of retail space. Alrighty. To sum up, quoth LFSTYL, "The project looks to be yet another large, uninspired condo complex." To which we'll only add, hell yes.
· So Long LES and Southern Exposure [LFSTYL]
· What's the Matter With Orchard Street? [Curbed]
· Destruction on the LES: Where Will the Hipsters Play? [Curbed]