A NoHo parking lot is at the center of a new housing fight downtown.
Leaders in the area are protesting a proposal to build a 200-unit apartment complex on the site, arguing its design doesn’t fit in with the area’s character.
The lot at Lafayette and Great Jones streets currently houses a set of automated parking structures that can store more than 110 cars. It falls within the landmarked NoHo historic district, though even opponents of the apartment building concede the parking has no historic value.
The proposed development requires approval from the Landmarks Preservation Commission, which is scheduled to review the plan on March 10.
Proponents say the development would help address the city’s housing shortage. But downtown preservationists argue the planned 18-story tower would dwarf the area’s other buildings.
“[The proposed building] could not feel more out of place, as if it landed off of a spaceship in the neighborhood,” said Andrew Berman, the executive director of Village Preservation. “We all acknowledge that there’s obviously much better uses for that site than a parking lot. The question is, what’s really the appropriate design within a historic district?”
The dispute is an example of the lot-by-lot battle over building housing in New York City, particularly in Downtown Manhattan neighborhoods where locals have campaigned against new developments. The parking lot is just a few blocks away from the Elizabeth Street Garden, where the city last year dropped plans to build new affordable housing for low-income seniors following years of protests by community groups.
“I hope we change our frame on what is preserving the character of a neighborhood,” said Ryder Kessler, a member of Manhattan Community Board 2 who supports the housing project for the parking lot. “We might say this should stay a parking lot, but the character of the neighborhood is changing already.”
A presentation from the building’s developers, EJME and Edison Properties, pitches its “punched window” terracotta exterior as one that fits in with NoHo’s aesthetic.
“It’s exactly what the SoHo/NoHo rezoning was designed to deliver,” said Joseph Meng, a spokesperson for the developer group.
The proposed NoHo development is made possible through a rezoning in the area that was approved by the city in 2021, as well as the “City of Yes” legislation passed under former Mayor Eric Adams in 2024 that aimed to speed up approval for new development.
Under the proposal, the site would include between 200 and 210 units, roughly 50 of which would be designated as affordable housing for people who make 60% of the area’s median income — or about $77,000 a year for a two-person household.
Councilmember Harvey Epstein, who represents the neighborhood, said he has concerns with the development. He wants more of the apartments in the building to be designated as affordable housing.
“I think there are some problems with the conceptual nature of the building. It’s over-bulked for the neighborhood.” Epstein said. “I fundamentally believe we need more affordable housing in the city. … Projects that are fully affordable, I understand having more bulk. But a project at 75% market, it feels like a different equation to me.”