Ongoing construction for a new Whole Foods and Five Below discount store is putting the tenants of Trump Palace on the Upper East Side at risk, its condo board said in a lawsuit. Demolition work caused flooding in the ritzy building’s basement, electrical room and garage, and drilling led to gas leaks that left its over 400 residents without working stoves and clothes dryers, according to the Manhattan Supreme Court filing. Adding insult to injury, construction workers last week damaged the tower’s “impossible to replace” granite façade when they unlawfully drilled signs into it, according to the litigation.
When the building’s manager tried to talk to the foreman about the signage, he was told to “get the f–k out,” the building’s board said in the legal papers. The work has been done with “reckless disregard” for residents and caused “substantial and ongoing damage” to the luxury high-rise, the board charges. It is demanding work, including jack-hammering and drilling, stop while the investigation and efforts to restore gas is underway.
The suit also seeks at least $500,000 each from Whole Foods, Five Below and Regency Centers, the owner of the commercial unit below the condo. The stores were slated to open in September. Lawyers for the stores did not immediately respond to questions from The Post.
The 55-story tower on East 69th Street is touted as the tallest building in the neighborhood and offers full-floor penthouse apartments for as much as $6.9 million, along with a separate wing of town home-style units on East 68th Street. The building was designed by Frank Williams and constructed in 1990.
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