E-BULLETIN OF THE HISTORIC DISTRICTS COUNCIL
March 2008, Volume 5 Number 3
Register Now! HDC’s Annual Preservation Conference,
“Preservation 2030,” is Here!
The first of this year’s free Pre-Conference Lectures was a big success! If you weren’t able to attend, be sure to register now for the remaining conference events while there’s still time. From the Opening Night Reception to the Sunday walking tours of historic areas throughout New York City, this is one set of events you don’t want to miss!
Our 14th Annual Preservation Conference, Preservation
2030, uses the Mayor’s PlaNYC as a foundation for discussions
focusing on preservation and its relation to a broad framework of urban issues,
as well as how those issues relate to New York’s many diverse neighborhoods. Last
year’s Conference
linked preservation to new, progressive
trends in sustainable design, and this year’s lineup will likewise address new
ideas and resources for community preservation. We hope that you will join us
this year as we move the conversation forward, examining preservation and its
importance to the future of our city.
March 6:
Pre-Conference Panel: A History of Population Increases in New York City
According to PlaNYC 2030, New York City’s population is
expected to grow by one million people within the next 25 years. However
significant, this is not the first population boom our city will have endured.
From the Colonial era to the post-World War II expansion in urban areas, New
York is no stranger to growing populations. This lecture will examine how the
city was able to accommodate these sudden influxes of new residents and the
lasting effects of the city’s reactions. Featured guests include noted
architectural historian and New York Sun columnist Francis
Morrone and Dr. Jeffrey Kroessler, author
of New York, Year by Year.
Join us Thursday, March 6th, 6:30pm, in the
Parish Hall at St. Marks Church
in-the-Bowery, 131
East 10th Street at 2nd Avenue. This program is free to the public. For reservations,
please call (212) 614-9107 or email kmorith@hdc.org.
March 7: Opening Night Reception
Join us for a cocktail reception in the
rotunda of recently-restored Federal Hall, the
renowned site in Lower Manhattan where George Washington took
the oath of office as
the first president of the United States. The original 18th century edifice was
the location of New York City’s first City Hall and later functioned as the
first federal Capitol Building; it was
demolished in 1812. The current structure, erected in 1842 as the first federal
Custom House, was designed by Town
& Davis and remains one of New York City’s
most striking institutional examples of the Greek
Revival architectural style. It is located
within the newly-listed Wall Street National Register Historic District and
today functions as a national monument commemorating its noteworthy
predecessor.
Friday, March 7, 6:00pm, at Federal Hall, 26 Wall
Street at Broad Street.
Reservations are required for this event. Please call (212) 614-9107 or visit
our Web site.
March 8: “Preservation 2030” Conference
Panels
This year’s Conference Panels will bring
together a distinguished group of preservationists, planners, artists,
architects, educators and developers from New York City’s five boroughs and
beyond will to present their views in a series of three panel
discussions: “Surviving the Building Boom: Urban Neighborhoods of the
Future,” “Building It Out: Suburban Neighborhoods of the Future” and “Tools of
the Trade: Preservation Practices for the Next Generation” Rohit Aggarwala, director of the Mayor’s Office of Long-term
Planning and Sustainability, will provide the keynote
address, which will be followed by a response panel featuring several
preservation experts.
Saturday, March 8, 8:30am-6:15pm, in the
Swayduck Auditorium at The New
School, 65 Fifth
Avenue between
13th and 14th Streets. For reservations, please call (212) 614-9107 or visit
our Web site.
March 9: Walking Tours
The final day of HDC’s Preservation Conference features six walking
tours of neighborhoods throughout New
York City, including:
v
Is there a Future for Old Flushing?
Flushing,
Queens
v
From Hill to Eternity: Richmond Hill, Queens
v
Greenpoint and Williamsburg: After the Plan
v
Not Exactly Your Grandma’s Lower
East Side
v
Connecting the City: The High Bridge
v
The Wild Wild West Side: Manhattan Along the Hudson
Sunday, March 9. Space is limited, so reserve
early. Meeting times and locations will be provided upon registration. For
reservations, please visit our Web site or call (212) 614-9107.
For regularly updated
event listings, check out http://hdcvoice.blogspot.com/
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Monday Morning Coffee Talks
As part of our Neighborhood
Partners Program, HDC has established the Monday
Morning Coffee Talks, a free monthly discussion series that examines
some of the most common questions asked by community preservationists. Join us
on the first Monday of every month as we sit down with professional
practitioners and community activists to discuss the tactics, techniques and
strategies for preserving our historic buildings and neighborhoods. Bring your
questions and prepare to engage in this informal setting with some of the city’s
most respected preservation advocates. And of course, coffee will be served.
For our March event, join
Ann-Isabel Friedman, director of the Sacred Sites Program
at The New York Landmarks Conservancy, as she discusses development pressure
and other threats to historic New York City religious properties and the
preservation tools the Sacred Sites Program promotes, from shared use models to
financial assistance for restoration. Because the accelerating loss of older
religious buildings – often the most architecturally distinguished buildings on
any given city block – will diminish the character of every neighborhood, Ms.
Friedman will also discuss the Conservancy’s ongoing call for the establishment
of a Mayoral/City Council Commission to address the problem and the
Conservancy’s efforts to survey historic churches and synagogues throughout the
city. She will also discuss the perspectives and opinions often held by
religious authorities on the subject of preservation.
The March Coffee Talk is
being held this Monday, March 3rd at 8:30am at the Neighborhood Preservation Center. Call
(212) 614-9107 or email lbelfer@hdc.org to
register, or for more information about the Neighborhood Partners Program.
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AIA Citywide Zoning Text Amendments Withdrawn
On February 19, the New York
Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) officially
withdrew its proposal
for a series of zoning text amendments. These amendments sought to “regularize”
development throughout the city, and maximize buildable floor area. HDC, joined
by dozens of community groups, opposed these amendments, feeling that one-size-fits-all,
blanket zoning measures do not fit the rich variety of New York City’s
neighborhoods (click
here
for more details).
We are very pleased that the AIA
has withdrawn its proposal at this time. If the proposal moves forward and
amendments to the Zoning Resolution are again sought on a citywide basis, we
encourage both the AIA and the City Planning Commission to approach the city’s
diverse communities and neighborhoods as partners, inviting them to help shape
the amendments this time around. Thank you everyone who raised their voice,
contacted their elected representatives and spoke out about their concerns.
This would not have happened without you.
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St. Savior’s Being Demolished!
A demolition permit was
issued earlier this week for St. Savior’s Church in Maspeth, Queens, and demolition work has begun.
The 1847 former Episcopal Church, designed by Richard Upjohn, was repeatedly
declined for consideration by the Landmarks Preservation Commission despite
years of strong support and advocacy in favor of designation from the local
community and HDC. There are now efforts to move a portion of the building to
the All Faiths Cemetery in Middle Village.
The LPC’s decision to not
consider this significant building is extremely disappointing.
Although the agency
believed that the loss of historic fabric was extensive (a claim disputed in a
report by a professional building conservator), the church form of the building, built in Richard Upjohn’s
distinctive country style, was still obvious and undeniably significant. This
was definitely a building that should have had its “day in court” and instead
will probably end up in a landfill. This is a loss that diminishes us all. To
read more about the fight to save St. Savior’s, click
here.
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Updates at the Landmarks Preservation
Commission
Glass boxes seemed to be
the theme for February at the Landmarks Preservation Commission. Click here to read all about proposed changes to the Domino
Sugar Factory, Battery Maritime Building as well as news about upcoming
hearings and designations!
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The Advocate for New York City’s Historic
Neighborhoods
232 East 11th Street New York NY 10003
tel: 212-614-9107 fax: 212-614-9127 email: hdc@hdc.org