There is a small 500-square-inch triangular mosaic set on the sidewalk at the southwest corner of Christopher Street and Seventh Avenue, in front of the entrance to the Village Cigars store. The triangle reads “Property of the Hess Estate Which Has Never Been Dedicated For Public Purpose.” The land was previously a large property of David Hess. There used to be a five-story building called the Voorhis apartment.
In 1910, the city had to construct a new subway line and wide streets. For that, they demolished nearly 300 buildings in the area. Voorhis apartment was among those buildings that were demolished for the project. After the building was demolished, David Hess was in the possession of a tiny parcel of land which was a triangle. The size of the triangle measures 65-cm on the base and 70-cm on both sides. The city officials did not notice this earlier. Later on, when they realized the mistake, they sent a notice to Hess to handover the property. However, Mr. Hess resisted to take it. In order to make it clear, in 1922, he titled the tiny property with yellow and black.
In 1938, the property was sold to Village Cigars store nearby for only $1000. It is still known as the smallest plot in the New York City.
