Search Results for: City of New York

Bowery SRO not a hurdle to designation

Whitehouse Hotel. Photo: Kristin Daggan.

Council votes to include Bowery SRO in NoHo historic district extension. On September 4, 2008, the City Council voted to approve the proposed NoHo historic district extension and ended the debate over whether the Whitehouse Hotel should be included within the district. The approval adds 56 more buildings, all between Lafayette Street and Bowery, to the district. Landmarks voted to designate the area in May after hearing testimony from residents … <Read More>

Morris Adjmi on Landmarks, Historic Districts, and Sustainable Architecture

Morris Adjmi knew from an early age that architecture would be his calling. At age five, he designed his first masterpiece: a pyramid of coffee tables and chairs covered with blankets. Just as his mother arrived for the unveiling, the pyramid fell to the floor and injured young Morris, striking him above the eye. Despite the initial setback, he was hooked. A native of New Orleans, he found an abundance of architecture, especially in the … <Read More>

St. John the Divine project withstands EIS lawsuit

Court dismissed action because new environmental review would not restore scenic views. The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine leased part of its 11-acre campus to a developer, who built an 18-story residential building on West 110th Street at the corner of Cathedral Parkway and Morningside Drive. When local residents opposed the project, the developer agreed to make an honest effort to ensure that the building would qualify as an “80/20 building” under which … <Read More>

Park access to Gowanus Bay waterfront restored

Fence along esplanade in Red Hook ordered to be removed. Photo: NYC Law Department.

Private owner built a fence along the Henry Street Basin. The Gowanus Industrial Park consists of 46 acres of land on the edge of the Henry Street Basin in Red Hook, as well as land under the Basin. The industrial park is adjacent to Red Hook Park, which, in addition to ball fields and a pool, has an esplanade with trees … <Read More>

Audit cites EDC for major violations of E. River lease

Comptroller asserts that insufficient oversight could cost City $6.1 million. A June 2008 audit by City Comptroller William C. Thompson concluded that New York Skyports, Inc. violated its lease agreement for a two-acre City-owned East River site, creating a potential cost of $6.1 million to the City.

Originally executed with the Gulf Oil Corp in 1959, the lease allowed the construction of a parking garage over the East River and the additional use of the … <Read More>

West Chelsea District designated as proposed

West Chelsea Historic District. Image: LPC.

Former industrial neighborhood receives landmark protection. On July 15, 2008, Landmarks voted unanimously to designate seven blocks in West Chelsea as a historic district. The new historic district lies between the West Side Highway and Tenth Avenue, and is roughly bounded by West 28th and West 25th Streets.

An industrial area for most of its history, West Chelsea was a manufacturing center in the mid-19th Century, with sawmills, ironworks, … <Read More>