You have not heard from us for a couple of months about the building project. Although plans are still very much in flux, we felt it was time for an update. Please read this entire column very carefully, and please register to attend the June 18 Local 802 membership meeting on Zoom where you can ask questions in real time to the officers.

To recap the history of this project, we were forced to undertake a massive renovation of our building on West 48^th Street. Not only were all the systems in the building (including all the mechanical, electrical and plumbing) at the end of their life and failing, but we were facing substantial annual fines for our excessive carbon footprint per Local Law 97 beginning in 2029.

Unfortunately, the project has encountered a lot of bad luck. First, we lost our architect to a car accident. After his partner took over his duties, it took us several months to realize he was not up to the job or delivering on any of his duties. We fired him a year ago, which set us back a good six months. Still, we were able to begin demolition last September with the expectation we would be finished and moving back in this past March. Then our project manager suddenly died in November and we were forced to shut everything down shortly after when we realized that he had also not delivered on key elements of his job. Namely, he had not achieved agreements with the building trades unions to cover our project.

Since then, we have replaced our entire team with an owner’s representative with strong ties to the NYC Labor community who is working to get us back on track. This has proved difficult as, without agreements in place from the unions, the budget for the project has doubled. We are scaling back on the scope of work in order to find a budget and a timeline we can afford and that might allow us to continue to remain as owners of the building for years to come. This goal continues to be elusive. We are exploring many options and scenarios in order to choose a path that will not jeopardize the financial health of our union and that will provide a usable finished product in which the union can do its work.

The fact is that our original budget of $6 million to $7 million was going to be a stretch for us to afford. At twice that price, we cannot sustain the debt we’d have to take on to finish. We are pursuing a scenario in which we minimally finish the building with replacement systems, allowing us to move back in and rent floors 4, 5 and 6. Should this not be feasible, alternative options include entering into an equity partnership with development companies (essentially selling part of the building), or selling the building outright. We are also understanding that commercial real estate is at an all-time low in NYC now and the building is worth half to a third what it was 10 years ago.

In spite of all of these handicaps, we are committed to finding a way forward. Our lease at 25 West 45th Street was recently extended to March 2026, so we won’t be homeless while we figure this all out. None of this is good news, but it is where we are.

For a “live” update on the building project, including a Q&A with officers, please attend our June 18 membership meeting on Zoom. Register now!