A commercial lot on West 29th Street in Chelsea is slated to become a 35-story residential tower with 78 apartments, according to newly filed permits. The site sits between Seventh and Eighth Avenues, one block north of the 28th Street subway station served by the 1 train.
According to New York YIMBY, the permits list developer Lipa Engel as the owner behind the application, with the proposed building rising 353 feet and yielding 44,039 square feet of residential space. The outlet reports the 78 units are likely to be rentals, based on an average unit size of 564 square feet, and that the building is designed with a concrete-based structure, a cellar, and a 30-foot-long rear yard. Lester Katz is listed as the architect of record, and demolition permits for the existing four-story building on the site were filed last month.
Property records reviewed by PropertyShark show the development parcel measures 2,419 square feet and is currently occupied by a four-story, 9,212-square-foot commercial structure built in 1920.
A Filing and the Midtown South Rezoning
The new building application for 212 West 29th Street was listed among city filings dated October 12–16, 2026, under job filing number M01473076-I1. PincusCo reported the project. The filing lists a 56,071-square-foot structure and describes a 35-story development with 78 apartments.
The New York City Council approved the Midtown South Mixed-Use Plan, a rezoning covering roughly 42 blocks loosely bounded by Chelsea, the Garment District, and NoMad that lifted decades-old manufacturing restrictions to allow high-density residential construction, according to Cozen O'Connor. The rezoning expanded residential development rights in the district under new high-density designations.
Developer's Growing Manhattan Footprint
Engel has been active elsewhere in Manhattan as well: the developer is planning a 21-story, 54-unit residential building at 47 East 30th Street in Manhattan, as reported by The Real Deal.
Katz, the architect of record, was listed among New York City's top ten most active residential architects in 2024 by The Real Deal, according to Archinect. No estimated completion date has been announced for the West 29th Street project.
