Penthouse Denied for Historic Building by Carl Glassman and Barry Owens Peter Moore is going back to the drawing board, reluctantly. The Landmarks Preservation Commission last month rejected the developer-architect's bid to put a three-story penthouse atop a sprawling, derelict 50-foot-high structure in north Tribeca that he intends to convert to condos. Although not a designated landmark in its own right, the building-with entrances on Hudson, Hubert, Collister and Laight Streets-is historic. It was built as a stable for the handsome steeds of American Express when the company (then in the express delivery business) was based five blocks south on Hudson Street. American Express erected the structure (at least the section fronting Hubert, Collister and Laight Streets) in 1867. The building was expanded in 1898 to include the slim building with a mid-block façade at 157 Hudson St. At the hearing on Nov. 16, the commissioners praised Moore for his plans to restore the building, which in recent decades has been home to a string of nightclubs-Heat, B Square, Area, Shelter, and Vinyl-but took issue with the size of the proposed addition. "The building restoration is a big improvement, but my vote would have to be a partial yes and partial no," said Commissioner Stephen Byrns. Byrns called the terraced, three-level penthouse addition disproportionately "massive" and was troubled that it could be seen from Vestry Street. The commission usually disapproves additions to buildings in landmarks districts that are visible from the ground. As required by the commission, Moore constructed a mock-up of his proposed penthouse to help assess its visibility from the street. The commissioners visited the site and found that the structure could be seen from a Vestry Street parking lot. "I was okay with the rooftop addition until I got to Vestry," said Commissioner Joan Gerner. Moore argued that the vantage point will not exist when a planned new building goes up on the lot. But the commissioners didn't buy it. "We have to make a decision based on what is there now, not what could be in the future," said Gerner. Moore, who has developed 12 Tribeca buildings and eight others in the city, is not a new kid on that Hudson Street block. He has developed all three of its other buildings, including 161 Hudson Street, where he lives. But he called the former stables a "unique opportunity." What he really wanted to see on top of the building was even bolder than his submitted proposal: a glass structure that would have been proudly visible from the street. That rooftop addition, as Moore described it, would "create a dialogue between something historically interesting and something compelling and modern." The 14,000-square-foot roof, extending from Hubert Street to Laight Street, provides a chance for that, he said, with the structure remaining well below the bulk allowed by zoning regulations. That idea, a precurser to the more stealthy three-floor design rejected last month, had also been shot down by the commission. "All they did was shake their heads [and say] 'Oh, too big.' We had to throw that out and go with this plan." In October, Community Board 1's Landmarks Committee took a look at Moore's plan and found themselves deadlocked. "It's just too big," said committee member Paul Sipos, noting that the penthouse, which would run the length of the T-shaped building, would be the largest penthouse structure ever approved by the board. He and board chair Bruce Ehrmann were concerned that approval would set a precedent. Others, pleased with the "thoughtful and comprehensive" restoration plan for the four façades, found the addition acceptable. In the end, the committee did not offer an opinion on the penthouse to the Landmarks Commission. Moore will likely return to the commission with a two-story penthouse proposal, but he remained steadfast in his belief that even neighbors who would have overlooked the penthouses would have been pleased with it. "They could be looking at something that has landscaping and sculptural shape," he said, "instead of 14,000 square feet of black tar."