It’s hard not to cheer on a holdout building. You’ve seen these underdogs: the old, unfashionable walkups that stand their ground against modern apartment house developers, forcing the big guys to build around them or thwarting new development altogether.
But I don’t think I’ve ever seen a holdout building quite like the tenement that appears to be subsumed by its newer neighbor at 408 East 79th Street, just east of First Avenue.
The tenement, at number 412 for at least a century (at right in 1940), is a 5-story brick building with a fire escape on the facade; it’s the same small apartment building still found all over Manhattan neighborhoods.
The newer neighbor, the Arcadia, is a condo completed in 2005 and designed by Costas Kondylis. The spacious, lovely apartments in this 20-story residence sell for millions.
I wasn’t able to uncover the backstory, but it looks like the tenement stood down the Arcadia…which then swallowed the little building whole.
[Second photo: New York City Department of Records and Information Services]
Tags: 412 East 79th Street, holdout buildings, Holdout Tenements New York City, Old Tenement Yorkville, Tenements Manhattan, Yorkville Neighborhood
Ephemeral New York 
July 20, 2020 at 9:11 am |
Somebody had to buy the air rights, that’s for sure… the owner of that little building must have made some $$$
July 20, 2020 at 3:29 pm |
Yes, it’s still rather strange to see it encased inside the bigger building!
July 20, 2020 at 11:56 am |
Nice job. I love when you use the 1939 Tax Photos.
Best regards,
Brian G. Andersson (Former Commissioner, NYC Dept. of Records)
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July 20, 2020 at 3:29 pm |
Thank you for your service taking care of the records preserving New York City’s history!
July 20, 2020 at 12:44 pm |
sounds like a dramatic headline, but, the little building most likely sold its air rights for big dollars…
July 20, 2020 at 3:02 pm |
Boy, that cornice is long gone!
July 22, 2020 at 1:11 pm |
It’s the fault of the large developers who offer pennies to get the recent out while making millions per new apartment. We have that issue going on with the Pending 25 story development On First between E. 85-86th. They offered the tenant a mere $2,000,000. NOTHING after tax in today’s real estate market. They could offer $10 million plus a guaranteed apt in the new building at his old rent, but NO, the developers greed prevails. I’m rooting for the gold out.
July 25, 2020 at 6:37 am |
I’ve heard of tenants holding out for more than two million, like these two men whose longtime home happened to be located in the middle of the future Hudson Yards. They made 25M!
https://ny.curbed.com/2015/10/6/9914136/hudson-yards-holdouts-get-25m-from-developers
April 29, 2021 at 2:41 pm |
I grew up in this building! The owner, Fred, is no joke! I’m so happy to see it still fighting the good fight. Thank you for posting this.