Builders Group completes const. of 20-story bldg. at 15 East 26th St.

Builders Group has completed its involvement in the construction work on a 20-story Flatiron District building that has been converted from an office structure to mixed-use, with condominium apartments above the eighth floor and a fashionable new restaurant on the first three levels. The 97 year old building at 15 East 26th St., on the north end of Madison Square Park in the Flatiron District, now contains 65 high-end apartments, 80,000 s/f of office space, and the 15,000 s/f "SD26" Italian restaurant, which opened in September. Builders Group also constructed the SD26 restaurant. "This project posed quite a challenge because of continuing office occupancy on the floors designated for future residential conversion," said George Figliolia, president of Builders Group, the construction manager and builder. "Staggered lease expirations meant working around, under, over and through occupied floors. We found ourselves re-routing essential services temporarily because of the almost random manner in which space was being vacated." "To properly manage the process, we recommended a halt to construction while our in-house architects and engineers planned the relocation of water, electric, and ventilation risers, so that we could resume construction efficiently without disturbing the remaining office tenants. Ultimately, that course of action saved the developers both time and money, as we minimized the obstacles that were slowing the project." Builders Group employed other innovative techniques that helped compensate for the challenges posed by the continuing office occupancy and enabled the building's managing agent, Walter & Samuels, to maximize rental income during the build-out. For example: To avoid using a construction crane, which could have meant workdays lost to bad weather, the reinforcing steel for a new rooftop penthouse was hauled up a modified elevator shaft, providing an interior hoistway and oversized access path. The existing lobby was split in two, creating separate entrances for the offices and residential condos. Construction in this area was performed in phases to allow continuous, unfettered access to the elevators leading to the offices and apartments.