While officials are looking – and asking – for answers after the recent rash of high-profile accidents, many of them have taken the New York City Department of Buildings to task for allowing the city’s high-rise construction sites to become unsafe.

The City Council recently held a hearing on construction safety in response to the deadly March 15 crane collapse, which killed 7 and destroyed parts of several buildings in Midtown. But several other recent high-profile accidents, some of them deadly, have led some members of council, as well as Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, to call for the resignation of the city’s buildings commissioner, Patricia Lancaster, and have much of the public worried that high-rise construction in New York City is becoming increasingly unsafe.

But construction leaders balk at the idea that a few headline-grabbing accidents – such as the December crane malfunction downtown that critically injured an architect on the new Goldman Sachs headquarters site, or the death of a concrete worker at the Trump SoHo building in January – are signs that the city has become unsafe for building.

“Whenever you have a tragic accident like [the Midtown crane collapse], it makes sense to take a step back and reassess how things are done,” said Lou Colletti, president of the Building Trades Employers’ Association in New York City. “But what you’re seeing is a few very high-profile accidents, and that’s not necessarily indicative of the overall safety of the industry in this region.”

Colletti added that, in response to the recent crane accidents, his organization is now requiring all of its member firms to re-inspect all of its crane operations. The BTEA is also hiring an “independent safety consultant” to review all safety procedures on high-rise construction sites. He estimated that of the approximately 250 cranes on New York City job sites right now, “about 200” were being operated by BTEA members.

Dick Anderson, president of the New York Building Congress, agreed that the high-profile nature of the recent accidents are causing alarm, but said it’s up to industry and city leaders to regain the public’s confidence.

“New York is not an unsafe place to build,” he said. “But I do think we now have a responsibility to look at the procedures and regulations we have in place.”

The Community Preservation Corporation has recently finalized an $8.475 million construction loan to developer Benzion Stiel to build Bridgewater Condominiums— 24 new townhouse-style condominiums in Long Island. The total cost of the project is $10.66 million.

CPC labels these homes on Ray Street in Freeport as “affordable” and each is expected to sell for $500,000 to families with an average annual income of $138,501.

“As Long Island’s real estate market continues to thrive, it is especially rewarding to be able to help the working families of Nassau County become first-time homeowners who would otherwise be priced-out of the area,” said Mary Brennan, senior vice president and regional director of CPC’s Long Island office. “Our core mission at CPC is to develop and preserve New York’s neighborhoods by providing necessary affordable housing options to its residents and we are delighted to be able to do that here in this waterfront community.”

The developer wanted to clarify, however, that the homes “are not officially affordable housing” and are primarily “affordable for the area and position on the water,” said Stiel.

Performing double duty, the general contractor for the site is also Benzion Stiel, principal of Bridgewater Condominiums, the construction company he formed to build the townhomes. Architect Russell Jordan was retained for the design of the project.
Construction began on in November 2007 and when completed in May 2009, each of the new, three-story townhomes will be a two-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom duplex apartment with a cathedral ceiling living room, laundry room, two-car garage, deck and boat slip. An additional 15 boat slips and a parking area with 11 extra spaces will be available for guests of the condominium owners.

The 43,200-sq-ft property was previously known as the Baldwin Yacht Club and was rezoned for residential use in 2003. Stiel said there were no particular challenges associated with converting a marina to condominium space. “The rezoning took a few years, and involved basically paperwork, attorneys and engineering,” he explained. “It was the same process as rezoning any property.”

The $7.4 million project broke ground in December 2007 and is slated for completion in October or November 2008.

Construction continues on a $90 million residential building, Georgica, at 305 East 85th Street in Manhattan.

Designed by New York-based architects Cetra/Ruddy, the 58 units will feature corner living rooms with floor-to-ceiling glass, and many residences will include two-, three- and four-way exposures.

“It’s a very unique site because it has frontage on Second Avenue and on 86th Street, so it’s a corner lot that is L-shaped,” said Keith Goich, principal at Cetra/Ruddy, regarding the challenges involved with the design. “Legal light and air fault for all habitual rooms was a challenge, which meant we couldn’t build anything on the 30 ft behind the building. It was a difficult site to create very good apartments and to get the most views, light and exposures.”

Interior design details will feature sculptural crystal bathroom faucets, custom bamboo and glass walls, limestone fireplace walls, herringbone wood floors and paneled glass doors in every room. The lobby will have limestone paneled walls and marble floors.

The amenities for the two-, three- and four-bedroom homes at Georgica—some with fireplaces and office spaces—will include gourmet kitchens, a children’s playroom, a fitness center and a landscaped rooftop deck with a playground.

“The area in general is a family neighborhood, but in the 80s and 90s it catered more towards starter apartments,” said Goich. “Our goals were to create larger apartments and to build a family-oriented building.”

“This residential tower will bring about a fresh and innovative alternative for those looking for new construction in this incredibly desirable and safe family-friendly neighborhood,” said Rob Kaliner, principal of The Ascend Group, the projects developers.

New York-based company 85th Street Builders LLC—which was developed specifically for Georgica—is working with The Ascend Group’s in-house construction team and began work on the 20-story, 134,000-sq-ft building in August 2007.

Construction managers confirmed the project is on schedule and will be ready for occupancy in the summer of 2009.