UPPER WEST SIDE — A chunk of facade from a century-old co-op building came crashing down to the sidewalk below Tuesday morning — alarming neighbors in the wake of a similar incident last year that killed a 2-year-old girl.
The chunk of masonry dislodged from just above a third-floor window at the four-story co-op building at 302 W. 102nd St., near West End Avenue, landing onto the sidewalk and smashing into several pieces around 9:25 a.m., FDNY officials said.
No one was injured.
The FDNY roped off an area in front of the building Tuesday morning as an official from the city Department of Buildings' emergency team surveyed the scene.
The incident left neighbors shaken, after bricks from another building on West End Avenue plunged to the ground last year, fatally striking 2-year-old Greta Greene.
"I have a small daughter. This is a beautiful building, but wow — that's crazy that it's crumbling," said Greg Bullock, who lives on the block between West End Avenue and Riverside Drive, adding that he'd be more careful when walking with the girl there.
"We won't linger in front of this building."
Another resident of the block said she'd also be changing her daily habits going forward.
"I walk my dog here every morning," said Barbara Blumberg, adding that she would switch to the other side of the street going forward.
"It's dangerous," added another block resident named Rafael, who declined to give his last name.
The 106-year-old building was landmarked in June 2015 under the Riverside-West End Historic District Extension II and requires Landmarks Preservation Commission approval for any facade work. Department of Buildings records show no applications by the building owners for any such work.
The building was hit with a department violation for failure to maintain the exterior wall Tuesday, and the owners were ordered to install a sidewalk shed at the location.
“Proper facade maintenance is critical to ensuring the safety of the public," a DOB spokesperson said. "Property owners have a responsibility to make repairs when necessary, and any failure to safely maintain a facade will result in enforcement action by the Department.”
In May of last year, bricks from luxury senior apartment building the Esplanade at 305 West End Ave. fell and killed Greene as she sat in her stroller next to her grandmother. The building's owners now face possible jail time after the city brought criminal charges.
Additionally, residents from 711 West End Ave. recently warned that the cracks in their building's facade also posed imminent danger and could lead to someone getting seriously hurt or killed.
One of the building's owners did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
