Lucas writes to Daily Heights about the coveted Rap-Id-Wrap building on Bergen St.: “Walked by last night (Dec. 9) and it was gone. I never got to say goodbye. Folks on the forum noticed, too….
Before (photo © 2005 Frank Lynch):
After (from Lucas):
Guest writes: “I saw them tearing it down at about 11 am yesterday morning. I spoke with one of the demolition crew and he said they could tear the whole thing down in just a few hours. It was pretty fantastic to watch this giant machine with a claw tearing into the building as snow was falling.”
The status of the permit was called into question, but Ben writes: “hard to say if there is a permit or not. None shows up on the DOB website, but in a complaint from 12/9 a permit No. is referenced…”
Owners need a permit to do demolition last I checked. This can be obtained separate from a building permit, which they will need if they are to replace what they demolish. You can track all of this at the website http://www.nyc.gov and look under “buildings” in the agency box. All building permits are posted on this website.