South Street Seaport

You know what I like about this place? It's chintzy. It's cheesy. It looks like it should be in Pensacola or somewhere else on the Gulf.

They have really bad musicians playing for tips and they serve beer and drinks in ridiculously large souvenir plastic contraptions out of little wooden shacks. You can buy all the overpriced T-shirts and knick knacks you could want. Even the "mall" part of it is woefully reminiscent of places where we vacationed in my childhood. In short it's not as sleek and shiny as the rest of Manhattan.

Right across the street, however, is a nice, upscale lifestyle-center-type shopping area with cobblestone streets, et al. Shouldn't that be enough to fill your credit cards with happiness?

Apparently not.

(AP) A new plan to redevelop Manhattan's South Street Seaport calls for a 42-story apartment and hotel tower and additional open space.

The developer, General Growth Properties, said Wednesday that its plan would evoke the Seaport's maritime heritage while providing needed amenities to continue to attract tourists and benefit the community.

The centerpiece of the new plan would be the 42-story hotel and residential tower at the foot of Pier 17. The plan also calls for replacing the three-level shopping mall that now covers most of the East River pier with a pedestrian walk, and two smaller hotels and a cluster of two-story retail buildings.

The plan must be reviewed by the city's Landmarks Preservation Commission.