Alchemy-ABR files plans for 86-unit building in Lenox Hill
1482-1484 First Avenue (Credit - Cyclomedia)
Joel Breitkopf of Alchemy Properties, on behalf of Alchemy-ABR Investment Partners, submitted a new building construction project for an 86-unit, 160,633 square-foot residential (R-2) building at 1484 First Avenue between 77th and 78th streets in Lenox Hill, Manhattan. The plan was filed with the New York City Department of Buildings on November 25, 2024 under job number M01128646. It calls for the construction of a 28-story building. The project is described in the filing as: new 28-story building. The architect is Hill West Architects.
Alchemy Properties and ABR Partners, using the unofficial name Alchemy-ABR Investment Partners for the partnership, paid a total of $34.225 million for two tax parcels at 1482 and 1484 First Avenue, and additional air rights, from three separate sellers in three transactions, and more recently paid $6.6 million for additional air rights from 1488-1490 First Avenue, owned by investor Norman Rappaport.
The development site has 75 feet of frontage on First Avenue, and is 100 feet deep.
About 11 blocks to the north, and a few days earlier, Chess Builders filed two plans with a total of 198 units at a site on the corner of First Avenue and 86th Street.
1484 First Avenue
| wdt_ID | floor | comment | description | persons_permitted | occupancy_label | zoning_use | dwelling_units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cellar | BICYCLE STORAGE ROOM (23 BIKES, 323 SF), SUPER'S WORKSHOP | Storage of non combustible Materials | 2 | Storage | ||
| 2 | Cellar | STORM DETENTION TANK, WATER SERVICE ROOM, FIRE PUMP ROOM, TRASH COMPACTOR ROOM, ATS ROOM, ELECTRICAL SWITCHGEAR ROOM, POE-MDF ROOM, GAS SERVICE ROOM, PUMP CONTROL ROOM | Mechanical and/or electrical equipment room | NA | Factory and Industrial | ||
| 3 | Cellar | RESIDENTIAL AMENITY SPACES - FITNESS AREA (29 OCCUPANTS), SPORTS COURT (11 OCCUPANTS), PET SPA (1 OCCUPANT), LAUNDRY ROOM (1 OCCUPANT) | Apartment | 42 | Residential | ||
| 4 | 1 | RESIDENTIAL AMENITY LOUNGE AND SCREEN ROOM | Apartment | 28 | Residential | ||
| 5 | 1 | RETAIL | Retail Sale | 56 | Mercantile | ||
| 6 | 1 | BICYCLE STORAGE ROOM (23 BIKES, 323 SF), SUPER'S WORKSHOP | Storage of non combustible Materials | 2 | Storage | ||
| 7 | 1 | RESIDENTIAL LOBBY, MAIL ROOM, PACKAGE ROOM | Apartment | NA | Residential | ||
| 8 | 2 | THREE (3) APARTMENTS | Apartment | NA | Residential | 3 | |
| 9 | 2 | TENANT AMENITY LIBRARY, COWORKING AREA AND OUTDOOR TERRACE FOR PASSIVE RECREATION | Apartment | 36 | Residential | ||
| 10 | 2 | TENANT AMENITY PLAYROOM | Apartment | 21 | Residential |
The property
The zoning is C1-9 which allows for up to 2 times floor area ratio (FAR) for commercial and up to 10 times FAR for residential with inclusionary housing.
Violations and lawsuits
According to city public data, the property has received one DOB violation and $1,000 in OATH penalties in the last year.
The property was involved in two lawsuits and zero bankruptcies over the past two years. The highest value suit was a $5 million money judgment concerning a contract filed on January 27, 2023.
The neighborhood
In Lenox Hill, The bulk, or 34 percent of the 53.3 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with specialty buildings next occupying 30 percent of the space. In sales, Lenox Hill has the highest sale turnover among other neighborhoods in the city with $4.5 billion in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Lenox Hill has near average amount of major developments among other neighborhoods and is the 8th highest in Manhattan. It had 3.4 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 6 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.
The block
On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of 20 of the 31 commercial properties representing 280,495 square feet of the 407,449 square feet. The largest owner is Abr Partners, followed by Abro Management and then Alchemy-Abr Investment Partners. On the tax block, there were three new building construction projects totaling 218,480 square feet. The largest is a 86-unit, 160,633 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Joel Breitkopf with plans filed November 25, 2024 and it has not been permitted yet. The second largest is a 16-unit, 28,923 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Urban Spring Capital and filed by Jack Ezra with plans filed October 6, 2023 and it has not been permitted yet.
The owner
The PincusCo database currently indicates that Alchemy Properties owned at least five commercial properties with 45 residential units in New York City with 415,051 square feet and a city-determined market value of $92.7 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $387 million in debt, with top three lenders as JPMorgan Chase, Security Benefit Life Insurance Company, and Signature Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 46 percent of the 415,051 square feet of built space are hotel properties, with office properties next occupying 43 percent of the space. They are all located in Manhattan.
The surrounding
Within a 400-foot radius of 1486 1 Avenue, PincusCo identified nine commercial real estate items of interests occurred over the past 24 months. Of those nine items, one was in new building development. It was a new building permit issued on April 18, 2024 for a 195,299-square-foot residential (R-2) building with 94 residential units at 1487 1st Avenue. Of those nine items, three were sales above $5 million totaling $24.2 million. The most recent of the three was Norbil Trust Co. which bought the 9,262-square-foot, 16-unit rental (C1) on 405 East 78th Street for $10.1 million from Icon Realty Management on September 12, 2024. Of those nine items, five were loans above $5 million totaling $249.5 million. The most recent of the five was Visabe Corp. and Urban Spring Capital in which borrowed $24.5 million from S3 Capital secured by the 14,474-square-foot, one-unit industrial (G1) on 439 East 77th Street on November 13, 2024.
Direct link to the property’s ACRIS page and link to DOB NOW portal.