Contemplating the "Depot District"

It's hard to ignore how out of place the new building at 76 North Seventh Street is. Its lack of compatibility with the neighborhood seems particularly stunning when approached from the north, after leaving the parking lot at the Central Fire Station, but it seems wrong from any angle.

The question of compatibility with its surroundings came up three years ago, when the Historic Preservation Commission was reviewing the designs for this building and the one proposed for 75 North Seventh Street across the street. At that time, HPC member Miranda Barry observed, "You're creating an entirely different neighborhood that never existed before." Walter Chatham, who was the architect for the two buildings then being proposed, argued that such a neighborhood did exist before, citing other 19th-century buildings of similar mass in the area that survive (the Pocketbook Factory) or have been lost (the Gifford-Wood building).

During the discussion, Chatham shared this rendering of what was being imagined for the "Depot District." 

At a later meeting of the HPC, Chatham likened the new buildings then being proposed to the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center when they were first built in the early 1970s. In the beginning, they stood out by themselves, but in time they were contextualized as other buildings were constructed around them. Given that there is now just one "Depot District" building, he might better have cited the Dakota on the Upper West Side, which which was out of character with its surroundings when it was built in the late 1880s.

Photo from Andrew Alpern, The Dakota: A History of the World's Best-Known Apartment Building (Princeton Architectural Press, 2015)

There's no telling how long 76 North Seventh Street will stand there alone, uncontextualized. Earlier this month, Galvan announced it was "pausing" development of 75 North Seventh, the building across the street. According to Dan Kent, the suspension of was "due to macroeconomic uncertainties." There are some who are of the opinion development was paused because it seemed unlikely their application for a PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) and other financial benefits was going to be approved by the Hudson Industrial Development Agency (IDA). Whatever the reason, 76 North Seventh Street could be waiting a while for the neighborhood with which it will be compatible to become a reality.

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