E-BULLETIN OF THE HISTORIC DISTRICTS COUNCIL

June 2008, LPC Wrap up

LPC Round-UP

HDC’s Public Review Committee reviewed 41 Certificate of Appropriateness applications in June and testified on 25 of them. Also, back at LPC were some revised proposals and hearings for new landmarks.

June 3rd
St. Vincent’s and Rudin turned around their new plan for the residential development east of 7th Avenue and a hardship case for the O’Toole building in only a matter of weeks. Special thanks goes out to HDC board member David Goldfarb for reviewing the hardship application and working on testimony with the Committee. HDC also spoke in separate testimony on design changes needed in the new development and the four hospital buildings to be retained. The Commissioners withheld their comments at the end of the very long day of public testimony, and Public Hearing on the proposal is scheduled for July 15th. Click here to read HDC’s testimony on the proposal.

June 17th
The most publicized application of the day (and probably the first HDC-related item to be reported on E! news online) was for legalization of a rooftop addition built in non-compliance to its CofA at 377 Greenwich Street (Robert DeNiro’s new hotel). Typically for legalizations, HDC does not speak in favor of them if they are something we like (we don’t condone illegal work) or it is just so obviously horrific that we trust the commission enough to handle it on their own (and save a few precious minutes of hearing time). In this case, the differences in the penthouse were slightly detrimental, and fearing a celebrity love fest, HDC spoke. We turned out to be the only opponent and the only preservation group present. While the Commissioners did go a little easier than we might have wanted, they did tell the applicants to work on the slope of the roof to decrease the bulk.

HDC’s testimony against alterations to the landmark interior of the Cunard Building at 25 Broadway are included in this report because the commissioners were obviously listening to what we had to say. Stephen Byrnes said the words we love to hear, “I agree with HDC,” regarding the fact the space is not meant to be lit evenly and flatly, as did Roberta Gratz and a few others. Our comment on the moving of the ticket desks, something the presenters brushed over, also got the Commissioners to agree against that part of the proposal. The application was sent back for further work and on the lighting. (And again, HDC was the only preservation group to testify).

980 Madison was back, almost a year and a half after Sir Norman Foster’s proposed twin, oval, glass towers were turned down by the Commission. After a presentation from the applicant at the offices of Kramer Levin, an additional study at Public Review, and a presentation from the lawyer for New Yorkers for Responsible Development (a group opposing the project), HDC’s Public Review Committee was split. Friends of the Upper East Side Historic Districts gave testimony rather similar to ours, while MAS and the Conservancy seemed more favorable suggesting a few design detail changes. The Commissioners did not comment on the project. To read our testimony, click here.

June 24th
Plans to develop the Domino Sugar Factory came back before the LPC. Despite commissioners’ initial comments that the addition should only be two stories tall, the “revised” plan featured an addition, half of which was three stories, the other half four. From what we could see (and what they were saying) it did look slightly more industrial (not like a spaceship that happened to land on the factory), but we’re not buying their comment that if the Domino Sugar Company had continued, this is what they would have done to the building (the creation and preservation of false history.) Rather than bay windows, they put angled balconies where the chutes were, and they are putting the (non-designated) sign back on top of the building. The Commissioners all praised the retention of the Domino sign (why didn’t they landmark it in the first place?); Bob Tierney called the project a “brilliant adaptive reuse,” and Roberta Gratz deemed it “awesome.” Pablo Vengochea noted the history of “violent” accretions and interventions on this building, a comment that seems to sanction continued abuse of the landmark. Only Margery Pearlmutter voted against the proposal, questioning why the landmarked building was being asked to support the entire finances of the whole development project. She called the chute balconies “suburbanized,” the storefronts too “shopping mall-ish,” and could not approve of the change of hundreds of windows without seeing a sample of the profile.

The Douglaston Historic District Extension had a public hearing, and HDC testified in favor of its designation. The vocal opposition of two brothers, who helped keep this area out of the original district, has continued, so much so that the Community Board had voted against supporting landmarking. There were accusations of bullying and intimidation, elitism and snobbery (sounds like a presidential election). By my count, 23 speakers testified in favor, including Councilmember Tony Avella, while 7 homeowners spoke in opposition. The Douglaston Little Neck Historical Society also submitted 280 postcards supporting designation.

The Dissosway Cole House on Staten Island also had a contentious hearing. Staten Island preservationists were joined by HDC, MAS and the Society for the Architecture of the City in calling for its designation despite the owner’s and Council Member Vincent Ignizio’s (51st District) opposition. The home was heard in the late 1960s but no decision was made then. The owner is now looking to sell to developers who will demolish the house to make way for a “lifestyle outlet center” (the new phrase for strip mall?). Although there was a fire in 1999, a fine restoration and surviving historic material make the house a fine example of mid-19th century architecture, and, well, we will let our testimony speak…

Favorable hearings were held that day for 275 Madison Avenue, 1 Chase Manhattan Plaza, University Village, F.W. Devoe & Company Factory Building, the George Bruce and East 125th Street Branches of the New York Public Library, and the Hubbard House. New York Botanical Garden’s Museum Building, Fountain of Life and Tulip Tree Allee, as well as St Nicholas of Myra Orthodox Church and the Consolidated Edison Company Building were calendared.

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