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«EC()KI) A.ND GUDE
.September 28, 1912
avenue a slightly upward trend is no¬
ticeable.
For about flve blocks north and south
ot 12Sth street, the average price for
street lots is about $l,-.'00 a front foot.
Between Lenox and Seventh avenues
stores rent at about JW.mw. Between
Seventh and Eighth avenues store rent¬
als are flgured on a fnmt fool basis ot
about $900 for corners, or at the rate of
$22,500.
An example is given ot a building which
wa.s divided into two 12.6-foot stores. For
one (if these a well-known canSy store
pays $8,000, and for the other an equally
well-known drug store pays about the
same flgure, making the annual rental
$16,000 for 25 feet. This is on the south
side of the street, in the middle of the
block.
Between Lenox and Madison avenues
stores rent for about $3,500. East of Mad¬
ison avenue they drop to about $2,500, in¬
creasing again jowards Third avenue. At
of the completion of the Lexington ave¬
nue subway. In the middle of the block,
between Seventh and Eighth avenues, an
improvement is to be made at Nos. 245
to 251. The proposed eight-stor>' building
is to be erected by the lessees, Stumpf &
l.anghoff, who will occupy part ot thi.s
site. A sub-lease of the other half has
been made to Hurtig & Seaman for thea¬
tre purposes.
The most notable exception, however,
to the general commonplace character of
local construction is the new Hotel The¬
resa, which Bing & Bing are erecting un¬
der contract for the owner, G. Sidenberg.
at the northwest corner of Seventh ave¬
nue and 125th street, extending over the
block front to 124th street. It will re¬
place the old Winthrop Hotel and marks
the advent of a type of high-grade mod¬
ern hotel hitherto unknown to Harlem.
It will be twelve stories high, of flreproot
construction, and will have all the equip¬
ment of an up-to-date hotel. It is to be
ASSESSMENT DAY.
HOTEL THERESE. UNDER CONSTKUfTlOX AT SEVENTH AVENUB AND I'J.JTH STREET ON
THE SITE OF THE WINTHROP, ONE OF THE CITY'S EARLY .APARTMENT HOTELS.
the southwest corner of Third avenue and
125th street a store 20x45 is bringing $12.-
000 a year.
The modern improvements on 125th
street, from Eighth avenue eastward, are
practically a negligible quantity. The
buildings are of the taxpayer, or the
two, three and four story type, with per¬
haps a couple of six-story buildings be- •
tween Lenox and Eighth avenues and a
twelve-story warehouse at Park avenue.
Two or three important buiiding pro.iects
seemed about to be started last year as
the result of a series of leases closed at
high rentals and for long terms. But only
one of these has so far materialized. Just
a' year ago the southeast corner of Madi¬
son avenue and 125th street was leased
for the owners by Barnett & Co. to a
Syracuse syndicate for ninely-nine years
at an aggregate rental reported as $-'.-
750,000. The plot fronts 120 feet on th.
street and 130 feet on the avenue, and is
owned by Miss Lotta Crabtree, a stage
favorite of several years ago. Another
long-term lease was that ot the south¬
west corner ot Lexington avenue and
125th street, facing the proposed subway
station, to a Syracuse syndicate for nine¬
ty-nine years, at a total rental of $1,-
750 000. it adjoins the new Harlem Sav¬
ings Bank. A I'tica merchant took a
sub-lease of the stores. The n.irthwesl
corner of Fifth avenue. 110 feet on the
street bv 15U feet on the avenue, was
il-o leaded by Barnett & Co. for a long
term to a business college already occu-
pving the present building. Xo improve¬
ments of importance have so far followed
these leases, the general altitude being
„ne of unwillingness to be too far ahead
operated for both permanent and tran¬
sient guests. The lower floors will sup¬
ply stores for high-class trade. Something
like 60 per cent, of the store space has
been rented from the plans.
Walter Barnett. of Barnett & Co.. who
has for several years made a specialty ot
12Sth street property, believes that before
very long a reasonable amount ot new
construction is likely to be undertaken.
"The general tendency," said Mr. Bar¬
nett, "is toward a higher class of busi¬
ness and a demand for modern business
housing somewhat in keeping with rents
which owners demand. In the section
a'bout Lexington avenue owners are wait¬
ing for the" subway to be put in operation,
or at least to be fairly within sight, before
undertaking anything new. Between Sev¬
enth and Eighth avenues the most impor¬
tant new work for the immediate future
is the eight.story new building for StumvJf
& Langhoff and Hurtig & Seaman. Work
is soon to be started on this."
Meantime local gossip is busy with t\\o
projects which would be of great benefit
to this thoroughfare and particularly to
t'le easterly section, which furnisher
closest communication with the most pop¬
ulous sections of The Bronx.
The New York Central Railroad is saut
to be planning a new station to rep:ace
that at Park avenue. This is the busiest
station on the road between the Grand
Central Station and Yonkers. and a larger
station is said to be a necessity.
Well informed persons in the vicinity
seem also to be taking seriously a rumor
that the New York, Westchester & Bos¬
ton Railroad is planning for a station at
Third avenue and 129th street.
Books Will Be Opened Tuesday, October
First, to Show Assessed Valuations.
The City Charter provides that the an¬
nual record of the assessed valuation of
real and personal estate shall be opened
for public inspection on October 1. The
record of assessments will, therefore, be
open for public inspection next Tuesday,
and the real estate record will remain
open until November 16. November 15 will
be the last day upon which an applica¬
tion may lie made for the reduction ot a
real e.^tate assessnient. Anyone who finds
it inconvenient to visit the office of the
Department of Taxes and Assessments in
the borough in which the real property
in which he is interested is situated, may
obtain the assessed valuation by mail.
The best way to do this is to write to
the department, addressing the letter to
the office in the proper borough and inclos¬
ing a self-addressed postal card for .a re¬
ply. It is well to set down on the postal
card the section or ward, block and lot
number of the parcel of real property, as
this facilitates the work of the clerks in
the department: in any event, the descrip¬
tion of the parcel of property must be
given a.« it appeared on the preceding tax
bill.
The head of the department. President
Lawson Purdy, advises that, anyone who
desires to apply for the reduction of an
assessment of any property should make
Ihe application at as early a day as prac¬
ticable, and if he desires a personal hear¬
ing, should make a statement to that
effect upon the written application. It
is always hest to use the blank forms
of application provided by the Tax De-
paitineiit. These blank forms will be sent
111 anyone by mail it a stamped envelope
is inclosed in the letter of application. In
man.v ca.^^es it is quite unnecessary to ask
lor an oral hearing, and oral hearings
are never accorded unless a request is
made for them. ^- '
Applications for the reduction of per¬
sonal assessments may be made until the
first of December, but not including that
day. It should be borne in mind that
the Department is under no legal obliga¬
tion to give anyone personal notice of
a personal assessment. The opening of
the books is in itself legal notice of such
asse.^snient. The department endeavors to
send a personal notice to everyone as¬
sessed, hut it is wis^e for anyone who
thinks he may be assessed to examine the
record personally in the event lOf his not
receiving a notice. Applications for the
reduction of personal assessments should
be made as earl.v as practicable. In the
case of corporations, such applications
should be made, if possible, not later than
November 1, and should always be made
upon the blanks furnished by the depart¬
ment. The fact that a corporation may
not in fact be liable to a personal assess¬
ment is no defense in the event that no
application is made for the cancellation
of such assessment. All applications for
the reduction of an assessment against a
corporation must be filed in the Manhat¬
tan oflice of the department in the Hall
of Records.
Any Person assessed in a borough other
than Manhattan may apply for a reduc¬
tion or cancellation of the assessment
at the oflice of the department in the Bor¬
ough of Manhattan if it is more con¬
venient for him so to do. .Applications
for the reduction of pei'sonal assessments
must be made before two o'clock! This
rule is rendered necessary in order that
the records may be kept up from day to
day, and is rigidly enforced to avoid fa¬
voritism.
The condition of persons and property
on October 1 determines the liability to
assessment, and any person applying for
the reduction or cancellation of a personal
assessment must be prepared to testify as
to the condition of his estate on October
1. The ownership of property on that
day determines whether or not it may be
entitled to exemption, because it is owned
Iiy a religious or charitable corporation
and exclusively used for the purposes of
.such corporation.
Site for a Public Bath.
The Board of Estimate has rescinded
tlie resolution adopted May 9, 1912, au-
laorizing the acquisition, by condemna¬
tion proceedings, of property kpown as
.\'(i. 4119 West 28th street, Manhattan, for
use as a site for a public bath, under the
jurisdiction of the President of the Bor¬
ough of Manhattan, as the property will
be' acquired a private sale for a sum not
exceeding $14,250.