Columbus Square’s First Phase Will Include One of NYC’s Largest Solar Panel Arrays

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorNew York—Stellar Management and the Chetrit Group’s Columbus Square, a green mixed-use community comprised of five buildings, 710 apartments and 300,000 sq. ft. of retail space, is set to open two of its buildings this summer.The 15-story, 100-unit 801 Amsterdam Avenue and the 29-story, 359-unit 808 Columbus Avenue are slated for…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorNew York—Stellar Management and the Chetrit Group’s Columbus Square, a green mixed-use community comprised of five buildings, 710 apartments and 300,000 sq. ft. of retail space, is set to open two of its buildings this summer.The 15-story, 100-unit 801 Amsterdam Avenue and the 29-story, 359-unit 808 Columbus Avenue are slated for delivery this summer, with the 12-story, 56-unit 775 Columbus Avenue, the 15-story, 132-unit 795 Columbus Avenue and the 14-story, 63-unit 805 Columbus Avenue slated to follow within the next 12 months. Roughly one building is slated to open every three months for the next year, notes Peter Rosenberg, director of development at Stellar Management.Designed by Costas Kondylis & Partner LLP and SLCE Architects, the community will feature over five acres of green space. Each building will have a green rooftop, including a two-acre landscaped rooftop at 808 Columbus Avenue, and 160 newly planted trees in conjunction with Mayor Bloomberg’s Million Trees NYC program. Green features of the community include one of the largest solar panel arrays in the city—200 panels on the roof of 808 Columbus Avenue—which will contribute 60 kW of electricity for apartments and common areas, and a Tri-Generation System, which, Rosenberg tells MHN, is “an electrical generating plant that burns natural gas for air conditioning in Whole Foods and heating in the rest of the building. Usually, when you build these plants, in the winter or the summer, there’s nothing to do with the waste heat. This has loads to use all year round and is converting fuel to energy at 85 percent efficiency.”In addition, all buildings incorporate high-performance glass; high-efficiency lighting, air conditioning and laundry equipment; drought-resistant roof planting, and high-efficiency irrigation, as well as recycled-content materials. All five buildings feature recycling bins for all of the standard recyclables, as well as a drop-off area in the cellars for batteries and tech wastes.Costas Kondylis & Partners LLP designed four of the five buildings. The design features a limestone façade, a departure from the glass architecture that characterizes many new residential high-rise buildings. SLCE has designed 801 Amsterdam Avenue with a modern aesthetic. Columbus Square offers studios, one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom units. Residences, which range in size from 400 to over 2,000 square feet, offer nine-foot ceilings, white oak wood floors, a structured media center, CaesarStone countertops, custom closet shelving, stainless steel appliances, and washers and dryers. Monthly rents are expected to average about $60 per square foot.Interiors and public spaces were designed by Montreal-based Andres Escobar & Associates and Brooklyn-based Cl-oth.“When we originally conceived it, we thought the market would want high-level finishes, so we went about it at the same level” as if it had been a condominium, says Rosenberg, adding that the level of finishes is “up there with condo projects achieving over $1,500 per square foot.”In addition to the landscaped roof decks, all of the buildings include fitness centers and on-site parking. The largest building, 808 Columbus Avenue, features a swimming pool, and many of the buildings include lounges and children’s playrooms.The community, which is within close proximity to Central Park and several subway lines, will include such retail as Whole Foods, Michaels, Modell’s Sporting Goods, Borders, Crumbs Bakery, Chase and Bank of America.