Council Okays South St. Seaport Revamp

NEW YORK CITY-The City Council gave unanimous approval Wednesday to Howard Hughes Corp.'s plan for redeveloping South Street Seaport, but not before extracting a few concessions from the Dallas-based owner/developer. Chief among them is the addition of two food markets and the delay of Pier 17 construction until after Labor Day, thereby allowing the pier's existing tenants to stay through the summer.

In a release, Howard Hughes says it has agreed to incorporate a locally and regionally sourced food market at the Seaport by October 2014 as part of the redevelopment. The food market will be open to the public seven days a week. Additionally, Council approval mandated that any proposal for a mixed-use project at the Seaport's Tin Building—which formerly housed the Fulton Fish Market—must include a food market of at least 10,000 square feet that similarly features locally and regionally sourced food items from multiple vendors.

“Today's agreement will bring a year-round, seven-days-a-week food market back to one of the oldest neighborhoods in the country, where the food trade helped build New York City into a thriving port town,” Council Speaker Christine Quinn says in a statement. “New York City will no longer be one of the only major cities in the country without a destination food market, but instead will soon be home to tens of thousands of square feet of indoor space specifically for local and regional sourced food.”

As part of a $200-million redevelopment plan, construction on a new Pier 17 retail pavilion will commence Oct. 1; Howard Hughes Corp. had originally sought to begin it by July 1. It will include an open rooftop with 40% more space than exists at present. It is slated for completion in 2015. 

“Our vision for a revitalized South Street Seaport has taken an important step forward today,” David R. Weinreb, Howard Hughes' CEO, says in a statement. “I am particularly pleased because the redevelopment will have a catalytic effect on Lower Manhattan and help the area continue to recover from the impact of Hurricane Sandy.”