All stories about "Mendel Brach"

There is news this morning about Williamsburg's Original Finger Building, the tall building between N. 7 and N. 8 Streets that brought the phrase itself into the vocabulary. Yesterday, the obscure, yet powerful, Board of Standards and Appeals issued a final determination that construction of the Finger can continue at 10 stories. Back in February, a judge issued a ruling that the Finger couldn't rise to 16 stories because the developers didn't have the right to use rooftop space at adjacent buildings. A final decision in that case still hasn't been made. Meanwhile, work can resume on the stalled hulk, assuming it gets all its construction equipment back. (The lifts were repossessed a while back.) Opponents say "the fight is not over" and that they're going to continue fighting the legality of building. We can be fairly certain the Finger will continue to entertain throughout 2008, if not 2009.
· Williamsburg Finger Building Gets Thumbs Up [Gowanus Lounge]
· Finger Building Decision Put on Hold [Curbed]
· It's Official: Judge Flips Bird to Finger Building [Curbed]

1) New York Times architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff finally got around to checking out the Hudson Yards plans, and woo boy, he is not happy. Ouroussoff drops the hammer on the whole process, writing that the proposals are "not just a disappointment for their lack of imagination, they are also a grim referendum on the state of large-scale planning in New York City." Wham! The Related bid is "disturbing," the Vornado/Durst bid is "slightly less disturbing." The "only one worth serious consideration" is Extell's proposal (right), which didn't fare so well in the people's vote. Interesting. ['In Plans for Railyards, a Mix of Towers and Parks'/Nicolai Ouroussoff]

2) The latest regarding One Madison Park and its increasingly notorious $45 million penthouse. A "European Pritzker Prize-winning architect" will be brought in to design just the 22nd Street entrance (because 23rd Street is yucky) and the penthouse will come with a private butler, paid for by the condominium, who will live in a one-bedroom unit on a lower floor. There is a debate going on about whether or not that is possible, however. You know Tim Robbins ain't gonna be pleased about paying for somebody else's manservant. [Big Deal/Josh Barbanel]

3) Joyce Cohen finally figured out who would buy in the Simone in Windsor Terrace, a building that immediately puts you one foot in the grave upon purchase: people whose only other option is the Bronx. Makes sense. [The Hunt/Joyce Cohen]

[Photo via Flickr/TresspassersWill/Will Femia]

Williamsburg's controversial Finger Building on North 8th Street almost seems quaint now, given the hulking glass towers being constructed nearby in the 'Burg. Still, that's not going to stop this case from further evolving into the blood feud of our times. Even though a judge has already capped the building at 10 floors instead of the planned 16, Finger plaintiff Scott Spector isn't stopping there. According to The Architect's Newspaper (via The Real Deal), Spector still wants the whole thing knocked down because of the building's violation of his air rights. Apparently he also wants to take down architect Robert Scarano, no stranger to complaints. This has been a rough patch for developer Mendel Brach—a very rough patch. If you pass him on the street, try to avoid the dishing out of noogies.
· Call to tear down Burg's Finger [TRD]
· Do Neighbors Want to Chop Off Part of Burg's Finger? [Curbed]