Rezonings in Bed-Stuy and Harlem Begin Review Process

City Planning Commission certified 140-block Bed-Stuy North Rezoning and 90-block West Harlem Rezoning: included in the Brooklyn proposal is a text amendment that would also apply Citywide and to areas of the Bronx. At City Planning Commission’s review session on May 7, 2012, the Commission certified the Department of City Planning’s contextual rezoning proposal for the northern half of Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood. The Bedford-Stuyvesant North Rezoning plan would impact a 140-block area generally bounded … <Read More>


New Grand Concourse Historic District approved

1150 Grand Concourse. Image: Courtesy of LPC.

New district encompasses 78 properties and includes examples of Art Deco and Moderne architecture. On October 25, 2011, Landmarks voted unanimously to create the Grand Concourse Historic District. The district includes 78 buildings along or near the Grand Concourse between 153rd and 167th Streets.

The four-mile long “Grand Boulevard and Concourse,” designed by French engineer and Bronx resident Louis Risse, was completed in 1909 and connected Manhattan … <Read More>


Behind New York City Development, Land Use Attorney Jesse Masyr

Jesse Masyr

Attorney Jesse Masyr brings unique expertise from the public sector to help developers navigate the City’s public review process. CityLand spoke with Masyr at his Midtown office about his career in land use law.

Masyr, who grew up in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, attended Tulane School of Law in New Orleans. Masyr majored in American history as an undergraduate at Harpur College (now SUNY Binghamton) and was fascinated by the antebellum period. Masyr figured that … <Read More>


Grand Concourse Historic District considered

Elected officials,residents,and preservationists supported Landmarks protection for proposed district’s 73 properties. On June 22, 2010, Landmarks heard testimony on the designation of the Bronx’s Grand Concourse Historic District. The district would encompass 73 properties along the Grand Concourse between 153rd and 167th Streets and portions of Walton and Gerard Avenues. The “Grand Boulevard and Concourse” was designed by French engineer Louis Reiss and completed in 1909 to connect Manhattan residents to the Bronx. The area … <Read More>


Grand Concourse Historic District proposed

Buildings lining the “Grand Boulevard and Concourse”represent a variety of architectural styles, including Art Deco and Moderne structures. On December 15, 2009, Landmarks moved to calendar 73 properties along the Bronx’s Grand Concourse, the first step toward designating the proposed Grand Concourse Historic District. The proposed district would include a section of the Grand Concourse between East 167th and East 153rd Streets and properties along Walton Avenue, west of Franz Sigel and Joyce Kilmer Parks. … <Read More>


Landmarks considers 1911 printing plant

Owners of former engraving plant welcome landmark designation. Landmarks heard testimony on the possible designation of the American Bank Note Company Printing Plant on January 15, 2008. The architects of the plant, Kirby Petit & Green, also designed the American Bank Note Company’s Manhattan offices on Broad Street, which the City designated as a landmark in 1997.

The plant’s design emphasizes security as well as aesthetics, with only one entrance along the over 1,500 feet … <Read More>