Plans have been filed to replace the old Mermaid Inn building with an 18-story tower.
The construction never stops in NYC, and a new luxury high-rise will soon join the UWS skyline. The building that previously housed seafood restaurant Mermaid Inn is expected to transform into an 18-story condo building in the near future.
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Crain’s New York Business reported on Monday that condo developer Nortco Development had filed plans with the NYC Department of Buildings for the address 200 West 88th Street (also 574 Amsterdam Avenue) through an entity called Amsterdam 88 LLC. The vacant street-level commercial space of the proposed building runs from 568-574 Amsterdam Ave.
In July 2023, we reported that the Mermaid Inn site was set to be demolished. A Crain’s article at the time stated demolition permits had been filed for 568, 570, 572, and 574 Amsterdam Ave, between West 87th and West 88th streets, by developer Frank Ortiz on behalf of Nortco. Nortco had initially acquired the four adjacent UWS properties in 2018 for $46 million, foreshadowing its ambitious development plans. The developer recently refinanced its debt on the properties, a strategic move made in July of this year.
A demolition truck at the building this week.
New plans filed on September 10 detail a grand vision for a large residential and commercial project. PincusCo reported that the proposed building will have 37 units, stand 215 feet tall, and span over 114,000 square feet. Issac & Stern, known for lavish mixed-use projects in NYC, are named as the architects.
The planning documents filed under job number #1033215 show there will be a parking garage on the second floor, though intentions for the ground-floor and first-floor retail spaces are still unclear. Plans also outline the intention to use the cellar for practical amenities such as bicycle storage as well as luxury amenities including a fitness room, a yoga studio, and a music room.
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Mermaid Inn had a good run at this location, occupying 570 Amsterdam Avenue for 15 years. In April 2023, we reported their closure and relocation to 335 Columbus Avenue at 76th Street. Signage is up at the new spot and the restaurant expects it to open “very soon,” per a recent Instagram post.
Mermaid Inn has additional locations in Greenwich Village, Chelsea, and Times Square.
ILTUWS will provide updates when we learn more about the upcoming building–and once the new Mermaid Inn opens.
200 West 88th Street, once the site of Wizard Automatic Laundry & Dry Cleaning, which I’m sure many of us recall fondly or otherwise.
Such a shame. A big square glass and metal box brings so much toxic air and aesthetically a lot the less pleasing then what already exists to the neighborhood.
Another incongruous, out-of-scale, monstrosity for rich non-New Yorkers. People, pay attention to the horrors of the oddly named “City of Yes Housing Opportunity ” (COYHO), which will destroy our civic spaces as we know them, and that provides scant ” affordable” housing. It’s all about letting developers do whatever they want with our city and make millions+++. It’s all heartbreaking.
The wrecking of NYC continues as historic architecture is torn down in favor of ugly no-personality glass buildings for the uber wealthy.
Define “luxury”?
Also did the restaurant own the building?
If you google any of these addresses, you can still see listings for apartments in these buildings. What happened to the tenants? Were they relocated? Bought out? I live in a similar style building just two blocks down, this makes me very nervous that my landlord will follow suit and sell my building, too.