When General Growth Properties still held the lease on the South Street Seaport, the makeover plans included a 42-story condo/hotel from the SHoP architects team, to go right where the Pier 17 mall is now. Three years later, the Seaport has a new owner in General Growth spinoff Howard Hughes Corp., but otherwise, we're pretty much where we were, looking at a couple of Seaport redevelopment scenarios, with the winner to be announced within the next two months. Except that this time, it looks like the development will actually move forward. DNAinfo has the rundown on the possibilities.
The first option is, like the General Growth plan, a total redevelopment, but the Howard Hughes version calls for knocking down the Pier 17 mall and building low-rise towers instead. The Tin Building would be moved to the tip of the pier, and where the New Market building now stands, a tower would go up. Can we put in a vote for the old SHoP design?
There's also a plan on the table that calls for a not-so-total overhaul of the site: Howard Hughes might opt to hang on to part of Pier 17 mall and rebuild around it. Several mall tenants have recently signed two- to five-year leases, and Algonquin Theater Productions is building a 200-seat theater there, making this possibility sound a little more likely than complete demolition. Or else it's an attempt to keep us on our toes.
· New Seaport Owner to Reveal Development Plans This Spring [DNAinfo]
· South Street Seaport Redevelopment coverage [Curbed]