WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL CHRONICLE-EXAMINER. August 6, 2007: The Common Council approved the construction of a glass enclosed gallery/café on the former site of 189 Main Street tonight, 7-0, over the objections of the North Broadway Civic Association, allowing Louis Cappelli, the developer of the concept to expand to the full footprint of the previous 189 Main Street building.
Louis Cappelli, the Super Developer showed the council interior of the project and described it to the chamber audience:
“We’re talking about being able to walk in on the groundfloor. We’re talking about putting a glass elevator on the corner of Main as you first walk in. We’re talking about building a glass bridge across and we’re talking about having dining below from a café point of view. We’re talking about putting crazy little things like glass floors in so that people get the feeling of open space.This 30 feet high. This would be a picture wall that would have some sort of viewing on it. There would be some sort of gallery here we could put together with the Arts Council, or with other suggestions you might have as to what this wants to be. Some are talking about the heritage of White Plains and other things,and we’re open to that. This would be a mixture of gallery, a mixture of dining, downstairs would be a mixture of again café, and you’d be able to go up to the roof and be able to have some outdoor dining on the roof.”
The council saw an overview of the proposed building and an interior view, but did not ask about how the building would be entered, how large the café was going to be and how much of the site was going to be covered by the café, and how many it would seat.
Another question not asked was whether the new gallery/café to be home to Via Quadronno, the “world-class” Manhattan coffee house, would have an entrance from the Ritz Carlton hotel across the new Court Street extension. No details showing entrances and floor levels of the extent of the café in the subterranean level of the new structure were shown during last night’s meeting, prior to the voted approval.
Mr. Cappelli added that he plans to put a wall structure to shield the view of William Street from the hotel, and that he had already spoken to owners of 185 Main about adding that structure, which he said he would be showing the Council in the future.
Malmud said though the process by which the project came to the council was “clumsy,” “I like it very much.” The balance of the council was also enthusiastic about the project, each praising its uniqueness, and forgiving the jumpstart the project had made in the interest of meeting the October 10 opening of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. Councilman Benjamin Boykin emphasized that during the work session on the project, he was assured by Corporation Counsel Edward Dunphy the construction done on the project so far was legal.
In other action, the Common Council adjourned the hearing on the 1133 Westchester Avenue hotel proposed by Robert Weisz and referred two competing affordable housing proposals out to Boards and Commissioners for comment. The two housing proposals seek to hike the percentage of apartments a developer of a multi-family building has to set aside as affordable units from 6% to 10% as well as increase the cash buyout levels a developer has to pay if they choose not to build the affordable units.
