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City OKs Demolition of Three Gramercy Buildings for Development Project

By Noah Hurowitz | December 4, 2015 6:29pm | Updated on December 7, 2015 8:50am
 The development project at 253-261 Third Ave. displaced Plug Uglies, a popular Gramercy bar.
The development project at 253-261 Third Ave. displaced Plug Uglies, a popular Gramercy bar.
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DNAInfo/Noah Hurowitz

GRAMERCY — The city has approved the demolition of three Third Avenue buildings — part of a five-property parcel that a Chelsea developer bought last summer.

The Department of Buildings gave Alfa Development the green light to demolish buildings at 257-261 Third Ave., between East 20th and East 21st streets, joining two other properties on the block at 253 and 255, which were also approved for demolition earlier year, records show.

The properties at 253, 255 and 261 Third Ave. were originally destined for affordable housing, but the two firms partnering on that project, Apex Investments and Property Markets Group sold the properties to Alfa in August for $69.6 million and the affordable plan fell by the wayside, according to a report by The Real Deal.

Shortly before finalizing the deal, Alfa also snapped up 257 and 259 Third Ave., giving them a contiguous set of properties taking up about half of the block.

Even before the approval for demolition, the project displaced several business on the block, including Plug Uglies, a popular bar that moved to a new location across the street in November.

A representative of Alfa Development did not respond to a request for comment.