Greenwich Village Rally Will Try To Stop New Tower On Fifth Ave.

GREENWICH VILLAGE, NY — Protesters will ramp up their efforts to stop a 21-story condo from replacing a historic building on Fifth Avenue with a rally on Friday.

The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation has scheduled a rally outside the 14-16 Fifth Ave. property for 11:30 a.m. to protest demolition plans that were filed for the 1848 building, which sits near Washington Square Park in the neighborhood's historic district.

Developers Madison Realty Capital plan to tear down the five-story building to replace it with a 21-story tower, which local preservationists have slammed as "an insult to Greenwich Village and New York City."

"The existing building had at least ten units of affordable rent-stabilized housing, to be replaced by super-luxury units which will no doubt not serve as a primary residence to a single person," the group writes in the rally flyer.

The proposed 21-story building, which will replace the 20 units in the current building with 18 apartments, is four times the height of the average building on the Fifth Avenue block, the society said.

The group is focusing on convincing the Landmarks Preservation Commission about the historical significance of the five-story building to prevent it from being torn down. Organizers said they have already compiled significant documentation about the historical significance of the building.

The landmarks commission will need to approve Madison Realty's plans to demolish the building and their proposal for the 21-story tower since the Fifth Avenue building is in the historic district.

The neighborhood's community board will also review the plans, which were filed late last year.

Madison Realty first bought the building in 2015, when half of its 20 units were listed as rent-regulated. The units lost their rent-regulated status a year later.

Madison Realty has not answered specific questions about their plans, but the company said in a statement in December that it "looks forward to working with the City and the Greenwich Village community on our new residential project at 16 Fifth Avenue."

Friday's rally will be held in front of the 14-16 Fifth Ave. building and is sponsored by Borough President Gale Brewer, State Sen.r Brad Hoylman, Assembly Member Deborah Glick, the Historic Districts Council and the Village Independent Democrats, organizers said.