MIDTOWN, NY — The insides of an East Midtown building undergoing demolition to make way for a nearly 200-unit tower partially collapsed on Sunday, according to officials.
Two workers from a demolition contractor called 911 about the partial collapse of 310 East 50th Street at about 2 p.m. on Sunday, according to officials.
Sections of the floors inside the vacant three-story building at had collapsed, according to a preliminary report Department of Buildings.
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Notes from the official DOB complaint reveal that the rear third floor collapsed clear through to the basement level.
The buildings department, fresh off of a much more deadly and dramatic building collapse, told Patch that the collapse was most likely caused by by a roof that lacked any waterproofing, which allowed the floors to fill with water after heavy downpours this weekend, according to the preliminary inspections.
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But in the official compliant, the DOB gave some detailed hints at the cause.
Inspectors from the emergency response team wrote that the lack of waterproofing was more specifically due to the asbestos abatement work on the roof and the “failure to institute safety measure to prevent water collection and partial collapse.”
DOB ordered the owners to submit an engineer’s report and additional safety information, in addition to a partial stop work order.
In 2022, Krown Point Capital purchased the building from Eva Baronchuck Meyerhoff for $4.8 million, according to city records.
As part of a partnership, the lot was later combined with four other adjacent lots in a plan to construct a 194 unit, 23-story building at East 50th Street and Second Avenue, headed by MAG Partners.
MAG’s founder, Mary Anne Gilmartin, told Commercial Observer last year that they had just made the cutoff for 421-a with this development, which will have 30 percent of its units reserved for low and middle income residents.
A message left with a MAG Partners employee was not returned at the time of publication.
Reggie Kronstadt, the head of Krown Capital, who is listed as the owner on the demolition permits at 310 East 50th Street, did not reply to messages.
Sources told reporters from amNewYork Metro that the contractors that day were working on removing hazardous asbestos from the flooring prior to continuing demolition.
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