Rockefeller Unveils New UWS Tower Plans at Site of Former Catholic School

The developers Rockefeller Group and Atlas Capital Group have filed new plans for a 28-story residential tower project, which will rise from what was the Holy Name of Jesus parish school and convent on the Upper West Side.

The Archdiocese of New York sold the plot to the developer in January for $96 million.

The new tower is now slated to include 340 apartment units and span 392,319 square feet.

The firms acquired the property, located at 200 W. 97th St., from a merged Roman Catholic parish— the Holy Name of Jesus and Saint Gregory the Great—for $96 million back in January. Located next to the parish’s existing 136-year-old Gothic revival church and rectory, which is addressed at 206 W. 96th St., the soon-to-be-demolished building served as a parochial school for the parish until its closure in 2013. The church will remain in operation.

The Archdiocese of New York is currently in talks with lawyers representing 1,300 victims in a class-action suit filed against them, with an $800 million out-of-court settlement under negotiation. It has raised about $300 million for accelerated sales of church properties over the past two years, but said unless it raises up to $500 million it additional funds to pay into a fund, then the Archdiocese could be forced into bankruptcy.

Notably, the new tower project will completely preserve the church and rectory, and will in fact provide worshippers with additional space for programming needs.

The project is further utilizing the 485-x tax incentive program, otherwise known as the Affordable Neighborhoods for New Yorkers, which requires that 25 percent of the building’s planned apartment units be designated as permanently affordable. As previously reported by Our Town, this entails targeting households that make between $46,620 and $62,150 a year.

“This project demonstrates what’s possible when thoughtful development aligns with strong public policy and how it can address multiple community needs simultaneously,” Rockefeller Group and Atlas Capital Group said in a joint statement earlier this year.

The Holy Name of Jesus and Saint Gregory the Great has a storied history itself, and was borne of a merger of two parishes (Holy Name of Jesus and Saint Gregory). Saint Gregory held its first Masses in a stable located at 119 West 89th Street, between Columbus and Amsterdam Avenue, before moving into its longtime home on 114 W. 90th St.

After Saint Gregory merged with the Holy Name of Jesus, which already occupied the Gothic revival church, its old W. 90th Street home was deconsecrated. The W. 96th Street church, which includes multiple marble altars and a replica of DaVinci’s “Last Supper” carved in onyx, also helps organize an interdenominational march for peace alongside Episcopalian and Lutheran congregations in the area.

Preservation of the church certainly wasn’t a guarantee, as exemplified by a $33 million deal that the congregation who worships at the nearby West Park Presbyterian struck with a developer.

To the consternation of a number of local residents and advocates, these worshippers are currently seeking permission from the Landmarks Preservation Commission to demolish the 136-year-old church, citing financial hardship and the hefty cost of repairs.

In return, they say they’ve been promised new space for worship in whatever apartment building goes up in its stead, and have turned down outside offers of financial assistance to rebuild the church.

Meanwhile, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York sold its First Avenue headquarters to Vanbarton Group for $103 million last year, which is now undergoing an office-to-residential conversion.

Vanbarton is taking advantage of the same 485x tax break that Rockefeller Group is utilizing for its W. 97th Street project, which will allow it to add six new floors to the current 20-story building in exchange for meeting the 25-percent affordability project.

The Archdiocese is also seeking a luxury condo developer to buy the site of the former St. Brigid School across from Tompkins Square Park in the East Village.

In addition, the Archdioceses said it is currently seeking approval from NY State to use six properties as collateral for a loan that it seeks to raise money for the sex abuse fund. The Archdiocese has not announced which properties it is seeking to use as collateral for the loan.