An application by Lafayette 126 for an on‑premises catering (C7) use at 419 Lafayette Street elicited questions about certificates of occupancy, transient corporate links on public-facing materials, and the building’s suitability for assembly use.

Committee members said a sound audit had been submitted and reportedly passed, but multiple outstanding issues remained: the temporary certificate of occupancy had expired; the current DOB use group is listed as manufacturing; the applicant had not yet presented a clear pathway to change the use group to permit a catering operation; and elevator capacity and safe arrival/egress for assemblies were not addressed in the submission.

The applicant acknowledged the outstanding items and said an architect was working on permitting and that corporate ties shown on public websites would be cleaned up. The committee asked the applicant to provide specific documentation showing how the 7th‑floor and rooftop spaces would lawfully be used for catering and to demonstrate how public-assembly limits and vertical circulation would be managed.

The committee signaled it would deny or withhold support for the application until a full set of DOB documentation, use‑group change pathway and public‑assembly approvals were provided. The applicant agreed to follow up and requested that CB2 copy the applicant’s counsel on all follow-up correspondence.