The business improvement district of New York is set to rezone an area along Water Street, specifically between Whitehall streets and Fulton, infilling over 110,000 square feet of space in the arcade.
Alliance for Downtown New York reports that the covered walkways in the street's arcades create discomfort to pedestrians as they become too narrow, prompting BID to do a makeover. Environmental assessment shows that the rezoning would pave the way for almost 170,000 square feet of new retail space.
The zoning takes place in 75 Wall Street, 77 Water Street, 7 Hanover Square, 175 Water Street, and 2 New York Plaza where five office buildings are located. The 200 Water Street is allotted for a residential space.
In an interview, BID Spokesperson Maria Alvarado-Behl said transforming Water Street is more of revitalizing Lower Manhattan. She also believes that collaboration with stakeholders is a must to make this significant project happen.
A report from The Real Deal shows that an estimated 17 buildings could be built in the space with a total of 167,357 square feet of retail space, 2,016 square feet of residential space, and 26,967 square feet of office space. One of the 17 buildings is owned by Brookfield Property Partners who also support the zoning project. However, there's no specific plan yet as to the rest of the buildings but restaurants, hotels, drug stores, lobbies, art galleries and clothing stores could potentially take shape there.
New York Real Estate News adds that the property owner of each commercial building will be required to make the spaces around their building more inviting by putting public amenities such as tables, chairs, and plants, among others, making their respective building marketable while contributing to customer-satisfaction.
This rezoning project application came up after the Alliance for Downtown New York's call to improve the area in Water Street. ADNY also believes that such rezoning can solve the uncomfortable pedestrian experience.