July 10, 2007
Statement of the Historic Districts Council before the
Landmarks Preservation Commission
Certificate of Appropriateness Hearing
The Historic Districts Council is the advocate for New York City’s
designated historic districts and neighborhoods meriting preservation.
Its Public Review Committee monitors proposed changes within historic
districts and changes to individual landmarks and has reviewed
the following applications that were before the Commission.
Hearing Date: 7/10/2007
LPC Docket Number: 077872
Brooklyn, Block: 243, Lot: 13
147-149 Montague Street - Brooklyn Heights Historic District
An Anglo-Italianate style rowhouse built in 1850-1860. Application
is to install a new storefront and signage.
HDC Testimony
HDC congratulates the applicant for a proposed storefront that
is a great improvement over the present. With a few more details,
we feel it will be an asset to the streetscape of Montague Street.
The wood bulkhead nicely gives the store window a base, but the
door should be clearly defined with a wood frame to give the whole
storefront a more solid feeling. Mullions would also help break
up the plate of glass, as would a transom. We would also like
to suggest that the applicant retain the bay window. While the
window may not be the typical type this business is used to in
its chain storefronts, it is a historic feature of the building,
visible in the tax photo, and adds much charm to the structure.
LPC Determination: Approved w/mods
Hearing Date: 7/10/2007
LPC Docket Number: 074392
Manhattan, Block: 231, Lot: 7501
443 Broadway - SoHo-Cast Iron Historic District
An Italianate style store and loft building designed by Griffith
Thomas and built in 1860. Application is to install a flagpole
and banner.
HDC Testimony
HDC is opposed to banners in the SoHo-Cast Iron Historic District.
While photos are presented of other stretch banners along Broadway
in the district, we assume they are grandfathered or illegal.
Rules were created for staff-level approval of more historically
sensitive bracket signs on exactly this type of building, and
the Commission regularly rejects new banners due to their inappropriateness.
This building has undergone an incredible restoration; it seems
a shame to ruin it with a 6-foot high stretch banner. We ask that
the Commission reject this application for a banner too and that
a more fitting blade sign be designed instead.
LPC Determination: Denied
Hearing Date: 7/10/2007
LPC Docket Number: 074488
Manhattan, Block: 718, Lot: 1
175 9th Avenue - Chelsea Historic District
An ensemble of English Collegiate Gothic style buildings built
largely between 1993 and 1902, designed primarily by Charles Coolidge
Haight. Application is to demolish an existing building and construct
two new buildings.
HDC Testimony
The General Theological Seminary is the heart of the Chelsea Historic
District. New construction must fit in with a very carefully planned,
cohesive 19th-century campus. While we are not against new construction,
HDC does feel that details in massing, material and style must
be addressed before this proposal could be considered appropriate.
While HDC does not object to the demolition of the 1960 Sherill
Hall on 9th Avenue, we feel the building proposed to replace it
is no better at relating to adjacent historic structures. The
problems can be summed up with a few words – too much glass.
From its 5-story brick base with large strips of glass to its
all-glass penthouse, the building lacks the visual solidity shared
by all the buildings in the Seminary complex. What brick is present
in the base feels like a thin curtain around a glass core. Lacking
depth and articulation, no historic details are used that might
tie it to its surroundings. Even less articulation is found in
the all-glass penthouse, leaving little relation to the rest of
the building let alone the historic seminary. What details there
are, such as the overhanging second floor and the two corner elements
of yet more glass, only draw attention to its height and unsympathetic
design. The result is a building that feels and looks rather industrial,
not residential as its main use will be or institutional like
the other buildings around it.
The 9th Avenue building could look to the proposed 20th Street
building for how to be a sympathetic neighbor to historic buildings.
Its massing and details such as the scale and depth of the windows,
amount of brick, and use of brownstone details mirrors those of
surrounding buildings. The schist sidewall though takes this a
step too far. The use of schist in an attempt to almost literally
mirror the neighboring historic West Building, makes the structure
feel incomplete. Another problem arises with the plan to attach
the old and the new buildings with a three-story tall glass atrium.
The oldest building in the complex, the West Building is one of
the earliest Gothic Revival structures in the country and does
not need any sort of annex. We object to the loss of historic
fabric that will come with joining the two buildings. There is
no practical reason for the attachment to be three stories, and
it will not offer a clear view through to the close with at least
two thick panes of glass and the shadows of the two buildings
it connects. We are also concerned about the northwest corner
of the proposed building with its two-story projection of glass.
It will face the close, an open space accessible to the public
and will be fully visible from 20th Street. Sadly, the only other
part of the seminary it might relate to will be the glass of the
new 9th Avenue building.
The answer to some of these design issues may be found in the
entry to the close. As designed by Charles Collidge Haight, the
main entrance to the Seminary, like most institutions and grand
buildings, has been from the avenue, in this case 9th Avenue,
not the side street. By placing an entrance on the new 9th Avenue
building (and moving the residential entrance to the side street
or losing a small storefront), an appropriate entry to the close
with the Chapel of the Good Shepherd at its physical and spiritual
core would be created. In addition the new building, no matter
what its overall design, would be more closely tied to the history
of the site. This entrance would also remove the need for the
glass atrium on 20th Street, allowing the historic West Building
to remain untouched.
The Designation Report for the Chelsea Historic District dedicates
much space to the General Theological Seminary. Charles Coolidge
Haight’s harmonious design is praised for its careful attention
to massing, material and subtle detail. The report sums up the
campus by saying, “The end result is reposeful and remarkably
successful as an architectural ensemble” While no one expects
a new building that directly copies these historic structures,
what we should expect are buildings that are sympathetic to the
overall massing, materials and style of the complex in order to
become contributing parts of this remarkable ensemble.
LPC Determination: Incomplete
Hearing Date: 7/10/2007
LPC Docket Number: 076750
Manhattan, Block: 720, Lot: 6
483 West 22nd Street - Chelsea Historic District
An Anglo-Italianate style rowhouse built in 1856. Application
is to construct a rooftop addition and install a railing.
HDC Testimony
HDC does not feel this proposed rooftop addition is appropriate
for a mid-19th-century rowhouse in the Chelsea Historic District.
While there are other RTAs on the block, as shown in the presentation,
they are either not visible or were built pre-designation. The
proposed will be very visible from 10th Avenue, and its visibility
is only increased with its unusual shape and design, particularly
the overhang. In addition, the design does not appear to be very
practical; the amount of usable space gained does not seem to
warrant the amount of construction. We urge the applicant to work
with staff to create an addition that will be smaller, less noticeable,
and less visibly jarring.
LPC Determination: Incomplete
Hearing Date: 7/10/2007
LPC Docket Number: 072466
Brooklyn, Block: 1981, Lot: 61
430 Grand Avenue - Clinton Hill Historic District
One of a pair of frame houses built in the 1860s. Application
is to legalize alterations completed in non-compliance with a
Commission approval to reconstruct the facades.
HDC Testimony
HDC feels that this application for legalization should be denied,
and the work should be completed as was originally approved. This
projecting bay is very visible due to the open side yard, and
its design impacts the appearance of the home. The incorrect detailing
and scale creates a rather awkward top to the bay. The upper level
should be more accurately recreated so that it reads as a roof
element, not a wall element as it presently does. As with any
legalization, the Commission must ask itself if the present condition
would have been approved as an application. In this case, the
proposed was not, and the original approved design should be completed.
LPC Determination: Incomplete
Hearing Date: 7/10/2007
LPC Docket Number: 071407
Manhattan, Block: 846, Lot: 22
863 Broadway - Ladies' Mile Historic District
An Italianate style building built in 1842 and altered in 1885
to accommodate a storefront at the 1st floor. Application is to
construct a rooftop addiiton and to install a storefront.
HDC Testimony
HDC would like to see the reconstruction of 863 Broadway, necessitated
by an unfortunate accident which led to its collapse, used to
create a more historic appearance for the building. Along this
vein, we object to the proposed rooftop addition as it would be
very bulky and visible. Regarding the proposed storefront, we
appreciate that it would copy the handsome existing one, but feel
that much more can be done. The cast iron pier of the original
storefront, a rare surviving commercial design by C.B.J. Snyder,
existing on the left side is proposed to be recovered. Not only
should this piece be uncovered and become part of the design,
probing should be done to find the extent of the original storefront.
The recovery of the cast iron storefront would be the silver lining
to the dark cloud that has recently hovered above 863 Broadway.
LPC Determination: Incomplete
Return to Recent Testimony
