March 3, 2009

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: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 094535
Manhattan, Block: 530, Lot: 132
57 Great Jones Street - NoHo Historic District
An altered Romanesque Revival style stable building built c.1860-1868. Application is to install new storefront infill and later a barrier-free access ramp.

HDC Testimony
HDC feels this application, that only furthers the blankness of this facade, is a missed opportunity. Without requesting a full restoration, we would like to point out that moving the entrance to the side as proposed creates a chance to fill in the central pier once more. Moving the building even this one step closer to its historic appearance is a worthwhile one, and we ask the applicant to consider doing so. We also ask if repainting is necessary or if it is possible to strip the paint from this brick facade. If the brick can be stripped, it would certainly be preferable to adding yet another layer of paint.

LPC Determination: Approved

Hearing Date: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 092534
Manhattan, Block: 610, Lot: 16
115-125 7th Avenue South - Greenwich Village Historic District
A building designed by the Liebman Melting Partnership and built in 1990-1994. Application is to alter the facades and construct a rooftop addition.

HDC Testimony
HDC has a number of objections to this application. Although the existing building is a fairly recent one to the district, its design was approved by the Commission and considered appropriate in its design, materials and scale. The effects of any proposed alterations or additions on this appropriateness should be carefully considered.

As it is now, the building resembles a mid-century commerical building, fitting in rather well with similar buildings along 7th Avenue South. Adding a red brick fa?ade and stone lintels would fancy up the building in a sort of "post-modern, neo-Georgian" style. The proposed addition is 4 inches taller than the exisiting structure (not counting the bulkhead) and completely changes the nature of the building. The large brick wall it would create that one would see looking West on 10th Street is not a welcomed addition to the district. By no means does it meet the typical standard for roof-top additions of minimal visibility.

In general this proposal would take a well-proportioned, commercial feeling building to a structure that is too shiny and glitzy for this historic stretch of 7th Avenue South.

LPC Determination: Incomplete

Hearing Date: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 095976
Manhattan, Block: 1208, Lot: 15
49 West 94th Street - Upper West Side/Central Park West Historic District
A Renaissance/Romanesque Revival style rowhouse designed by Charles M. Youngs and built in 1890-1891. Application is to legalize altering the areaway and painting the fa?ade and windows in non-compliance with PMW 07-7301.

HDC Testimony
HDC is opposed to this legalization. The clunky planter is not integrated piece of the areaway, and we question whether the other planters used as examples were LPC approved or grandfathered. The painting of the structure makes the building stand out too much, not necessarily a good thing when it comes to landmarked rowhouses. In short these alterations are not appropriate and most likely would not have been approved had they been proposed. We ask the Commission to reject this application for legalization.

LPC Determination: Approved w/mods

Hearing Date: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 096824
Manhattan, Block: Various, Lot: Various
Wall Street and Broad Street - Individual Landmark Historic District
The street pattern of 17th century New Amsterdam and Colonial New York. Application is to amend Binding Commission Reports 04-5342 and 08-8272 for a master plan governing the future installation of security devices and streetscape improvements on Wall Street, Exchange Place, New Street and Broad Street.

HDC Testimony
While HDC is happy to see historic interpretation this very historic area, we find the design of these bollards to be incongruous with the surroundings. In an area of buildings (many of them individual landmarks) with straight forward, classicaly inspired design, we feel a more rectilinear, stone bollard would be more appropriate.

LPC Determination: Approved

Hearing Date: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 095617
Manhattan, Block: 149, Lot: 2
77 Chambers Street - TriBeCa South Historic District
A building originally built in 1847, altered in the Italianate style by Samuel A. Warner in 1857, and again in 1926. Application is to replace storefront infill.

HDC Testimony
Although an improvement over the existing storefront, HDC finds this proposal rather flat and lacking in detail. The doors and hardware in particular are rather stock, and the mini fixed awning is an odd choice. If the awning is just for color or branding, some red in the sign band or possibly even elsewhere in the storefront could be more appropriate.

LPC Determination: Approved

Hearing Date: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 095916
Manhattan, Block: 214, Lot: 3,4
401-403 Greenwich Street - TriBeCa West Historic District
A building designed by Gertler and Wente and built in 2003-2004, and a mid-twentieth century commercial style building designed by Moore and Landsiedel and built in 1947. Application is to demolish both buildings and construct a new building.

HDC Testimony
HDC finds the placement of this new building unfortunate as the proposed is one of the more interesting and more appropriate applications for new construction that we have seen. It would be a shame to lose 403 Greenwich Street a small commerical building designed by Moore & Landsiedel, a firm whose work is found in the Greenwich Village, Hamilton Heights/Sugar Hill, and proposed Audubon Heights historic districts. Although diminutive in size, the interesting details described in the designation report such as the stepped parapet and the decorative panels above the windows make it a handsome example of mid-century commercial design. Further it seems wasteful to demolish the contextual, well designed building constructed only five years ago at 401.

On an empty lot, HDC would be happy to voice approval for the proposed building’s traditional design with a modern twist, but that is not the case here. Its construction would cause the loss of an interesting historic building in an area where such small-scale structures are becoming increasingly rare.

LPC Determination: Incomplete

Hearing Date: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 096646
Manhattan, Block: 228, Lot: 30
27 Wooster Street - SoHo-Cast Iron Historic District
A vacant lot. Application is to amend CofA 06-8018 for the construction of a new building.

HDC Testimony
As with the original application, HDC finds this building to be lacking in detail. Particularly in the new proposal, there is a lack of articulation of the structural make-up, a feature that would make the building far more contextual in this district. The design seems more fitting as an office building in midtown, not a residential building amidst former industrial and commerical buildings in the SoHo-Cast Iron Historic District.

LPC Determination: Incomplete

Hearing Date: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 096614
Manhattan, Block: 511, Lot: 16
600-602 Broadway - SoHo-Cast Iron Historic District
A store building designed by Samuel A. Warner and built in 1883-1884. Application is to paint the building, install a painted wall sign and reclad an elevator shaft.

HDC Testimony
HDC finds the brick cladding of the elevator shaft a welcomed improvement to this structure. The sign is nice, more subdued than exisiting, but it lacks the border traditionally adhered to in the painted wall signs "guide lines." Without such a border, the entire wall seems to become the sign. With this one small change to this proposal, HDC could find the project appropriate.

LPC Determination: Approved w/mods

Hearing Date: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 095852
Manhattan, Block: 857, Lot: 1,6
233 Fifth Avenue - Madison Square North Historic District
And 1 East 27th Street, a converted dwelling built c. 1850, altered as a clubhouse with an addition by R.H. Robertson in 1890-1891. Application is to install storefront infill, signage and lighting and a new fire escape.

HDC Testimony
In general HDC approves of the new storefront infill, but we ask that more of a bulkhead be retained. The lighting appears to be appropriate, but there was not enough explanation or detail presented to make a decision. Finally the signage appears to be unchanged despite the application description.

LPC Determination: Approved

Hearing Date: 3/3/2009
LPC Docket Number: 095761
Manhattan, Block: 644, Lot: 38
833 Washington Street - Gansevoort Market Historic District
A Utilitarian style market building originally built in 1880 and altered in 1940. Applciation is to install roll-down security gates, doors and install signage.

HDC Testimony
While we understand that roll-down gates can be appropriate in this "gritty" historic district, considering that no gate exists now, and there are no others on this large building, HDC does not find it appropriate to add them now. Interior roll-down gates should be installed instead. We also find the lacquered orange doors out of place. Signage and window dressing can readily and appropriately mark the business, but such glossy doors are neither needed nor appropriate for the Gansevoort Market District.

LPC Determination: Incomplete

 

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