Westbeth designated

Former site of AT&T’s Bell Laboratories was converted to live-work space for artists. On October 25, 2011, Landmarks designated the Bell Telephone Laboratories Complex, now known as Westbeth Artists’ Housing, in the Far West Village as an individual City landmark.

The complex comprises five buildings on the block bounded by West, Bethune, Washington and Bank Streets. The complex was built between 1861 in 1926, and stands as a rare example of 19th century industrial … <Read More>


Borough Hall Skyscraper Historic District approved

Real estate and business groups opposed creating new historic district in downtown Brooklyn. On September 13, 2011, Landmarks unanimously approved the creation of the Borough Hall Skyscraper Historic District in downtown Brooklyn. The district comprises twenty one buildings along Court Street, bounded to the north and south by Montague and Livingston Streets. The area was developed primarily in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and became Brooklyn’s commercial core. Notable buildings in the … <Read More>


Council refused to landmark Bowery rowhouse

135 Bowery. Image: CityLand

Owner of Federal-style building plans to redevelop site with sevenstory office building. On September 21, 2011, the City Council rejected Landmarks’ June 2011 designation of the Hardenbrook-Somarindyck House at 135 Bowery in Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The three-and-ahalf story Federal-style rowhouse was built circa 1817 and is owned by First American International Bank. Pursuant to the Charter the Council may modify or disapprove a landmark designation.

The bank purchased 135 Bowery … <Read More>


Bowery bank designated

Citizens Saving Bank at 58 Bowery. Image: LPC.

Beaux-Arts style building stands across from entrance to the Manhattan Bridge. On August 9, 2011, Landmarks designated the Citizens Savings Bank at 58 Bowery in Manhattan as an individual City landmark. Architect Clarence W. Brazer designed the domed, granite-clad bank in 1922. The monumental Beaux-Arts style building sits on a square lot at the corner of Canal Street, across from the Manhattan Bridge. The building rises to … <Read More>


Bedford-Stuyvesant historic district considered

New district would include 825 buildings primarily built at the turn of the 20th century. On August 2, 2011, Landmarks heard testimony on the proposed Bedford-Stuyvesant/ Expanded Stuyvesant Heights Historic District in Brooklyn. The proposed district is generally bounded by Halsey and Macon Streets to the north, Fulton Street to the south, Malcolm X Boulevard to the east, and Tompkins Avenue to the west, and would surround the 1971-designated Stuyvesant Heights Historic District. The new … <Read More>


New residential district near Brooklyn Navy Yard

Working-class 19th century buildings along Vanderbilt Avenue designated as a historic district. On July 12, 2011, Landmarks voted to designate the Wallabout Historic District in the Clinton Hill area of Brooklyn. The new district encompasses approximately 55 buildings along a stretch of Vanderbilt Avenue between Myrtle and Park Avenues near the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

The district’s name is derived from the Belgian Walloons who settled the area in the 17th century. The district is notable … <Read More>