FRIENDS of the HISTORIC DISTRICTS

Fall 2010 Upper East Side Historic A Tangible Tribute District Extension Designated! Donations Needed to Install District Signs We did i t! The LPC votes to Our ten-year effort to protect FRIENDS would like to recognize the protect parts of Lexington Ave. Lexington Avenue, one of conclusion of our work on the Upper City’s “last great main streets,” cul- East Side Historic District Expansion minated on March 23, 2010 with with a tangible tribute - street signs and official designation by the Landmarks historic district markers! Preservation Commission. Included in We propose that twenty brown the new and improved Upper East Side historic district street signs replace the Historic District is a delightful mix of conventional green street signs along elegant pre-war apartment buildings Lexington Avenue. We would also like and clusters of 19th century row houses, to update the maps on our historic totaling 74 buildings along Lexington district markers to reflect the expanded Avenue and the adjacent residential boundaries. Unfortunately, this com- side streets between East 63rd and East memoration does not come cheap, as 75th Streets. There are wonderful and the replacement of these signs will cost unusual examples of architecture in this us nearly $15,000! newly protected part of , such as the remarkable Parge House at Please join us in celebrating this 65th Street and a rare row of surviving monumental accomplishment by mak- stables on East 75th Street, not to ing a donation for the installation and mention the historic Lexington Avenue maintenance of these well-deserved storefronts and so much mor e! historic district signs! Contact our office for more information. FRIENDS applauds the community, n our elected officials and everyone who has lent their support on this long road to designation. Together we have saved one more corner of New York City from demolition and in- appropriate development. A special thank you goes out to Council Member Historic district street signs Daniel Garodnick, an avid and currently in place at enthusiastic supporter of this overdue Park Avenue & Map of the Upper East Side Historic District Extension, East 70th Street Courtesy of the Landmarks Preservation Commission. district extension. n Restored: Oldest Surviving Building in demolished, so their entrances could not be copied at No. 129. The 1940 tax the Upper East Side Historic District photograph was little use, because a car No. 129 East 70th Street’s Facade Restored to its 1862 Appearance sat in front of No. 129’s entrance. Even historical photographs provided little No. 129 East 70th Street is the oldest conclusive evidence. surviving building within the Upper As the first step in preparing an East Side Historic District, and owner accurate design, Brotherton and Christian K. Keesee has recently com- Lockwood found traces of the original pleted a top-to-bottom façade rest- doorway opening, which had become a oration which has returned this second-floor in the 1940 de-stooping. townhouse to its original appearance, Having those dimensions, they found including the construction of a new intact doorways—which could be stoop and front doorway in the original copied—in similar-size brownstones Italianate style. Peter Brotherton was constructed at the same time. That left the architect for the façade restora- the intriguing question of the original tion and interior improvements. stoop railings and front fence. One Charles Lockwood, author of Bricks and day, Lockwood saw that the “looped” Brown stone , the definitive history of the vertical portions of the ca. 1940 front New York townhouse, provided the fence were actually taken from the restoration services. original stoop. Thus, both the stoop Standing just west of Lexington railings and front fence could be recast Avenue, the three-story red brick in identical original patterns. The townhouse was completed in 1862 in a looped ironwork, which had been part row of five identical residences. At that No. 129 East 70th Street with its restored facade of the original stoop railings, were used time, the northward-moving edge of its original appearance, gaining a front in the new stoop railings. row house development had not door at the top of the stoop and a Completed late last year, the res- extended much past 59th Street on the service entrance underneath. Initial toration of No. 129 has not only East Side. These five brick houses stood projects included a gentle cleaning of provided its owner with a more alone amidst open fields and earlier the brick façade and re-pointing with handsome home with two entrances, it wooden suburban houses. The location a tinted mortar so that the bricks has made an important improvement was so remote that both Lexington created one visual expanse in keeping on one of the Upper East Side’s most- and Madison Avenues had not been with 1860s architectural fashions. All loved blocks. n extended that far north. exterior woodwork was repaired and The original buyers were middle- painted in muted shades in keeping class New Yorkers, who traded a longer with the Italianate era. In Gratitude trip to work downtown in return for a The most challenging—and the most reasonably priced single-family house. important—task was rebuilding the Friends of the Upper East Side After 1900, the block was largely rebuilt stoop, front doorway, and front fence. Historic Districts wishes to ack- in handsome Neo-Federal and Beaux- The four other townhouses in this nowledge the generous support of: The Arts townhouses and mansions. original five-house row had been J. M. Kaplan Fund, The Gilbert & No. 129 has an additional claim to Ildiko Butler Conservation Fund, The architectural distinction: it is the only National Trust for Historic Pre- remaining townhouse to servation’s Elizabeth and Robert Jeffe combine both the Italianate style and Preservation Fund for New York City, the short-lived Ruskinian Gothic The New York City Department of influence. The Ruskinian Gothic is Cultural Affairs, Manhattan Chamber expressed in the unusual pointed-arch of Commerce, State Senator Liz window lintels and the Gothic features Krueger, Council Member Daniel of the bay window. Garodnick and Council Member Jessica Mr. Keesee carried out the façade Lappin through the Department of restoration to return the townhouse to Restored railings at No. 129 East 70th Street Youth and Community Development. n

page 2 An Evening to Remembe r!

On Monday, September 20th, friends School, is a current Board Member of from all over the city gathered to honor FRIENDS, and a long-time resident of David W. Levinson at our Seventh Annual the Upper East Side. An admired Ambassador to the Upper East Side Award Dinner . friend and colleague, William Higgins, Principal at Higgins Quasebarth & Partners, gave a thoughtful and Lauren Peters, Delaney Harris-Finch, Melissa Baldock, Megan Kelly and Executive Director engaging introduction to our honoree. Tara Kelly Special thanks to the Benefit Com- mittee and all those who helped to make the evening such a succes s! With funds raised at the benefit, FRIENDS can continue our mission as steward of the Honoree David W. Levinson Upper East Side’s six historic districts Mr . Levinson serves as Chairman and 126 individual landmarks. n & CEO of L&L Holding Company, LLC, a privately owned real estate Seventh Annual Ambassador to the Upper East investment and development company. Side Award Dinner Approximately three million square feet of the L&L portfolio is either a des- ignated landmark or located within a historic district. Named one of the 100 Young Friends Most Powerful People in New York Real FRIENDS is geared up for another Estate by the New York Observer , Mr. Council Member Daniel Garodnick, Simone busy year of educating first through Levinson served 12 years on the Board Levinson, Honoree David W. Levinson, and fifth graders about architecture and of Trustees of the Allen Stevenson FRIENDS’ President Anne Millard New York City history. During our educational programs on the Upper East Side and in East Harlem, we take to Walking and Talking with FRIENDS the streets to discover lintels, arches, Last Spring’s Events Were a Huge Succes s! limestone, brick, historic street signs, old tenement buildings and more, in Our calendar has been filled with well as the integration of greenery and order to discover clues of the past while many exciting events over the last sev- art into sustainable public space. creating a new vision of the students’ eral months. From lectures to walking We have also explored our neigh- current surroundings. We hope to tours, we are learning more about our borhood on foot. In May, FRIENDS continue our success of the 2009- neighborhood and city with each event! hosted a walking tour in Yorkville that 2010 school year, in which we taught In March, Ms. Phifer, author of the explored the give-and-take relationship 797 students in 38 classrooms at 14 recently published book Public Art New between public and private space and different schools. York - discussed what makes New York how it has shaped our city. Armed with This fall, we’re pleased to expand our one of the most sustainable cities in the historic photographs and floorplans, collaboration with the of the country and the challenges we face as we architect and designer Katherine City of the New York, offering a move towards a greener future. Ms. Schiavone led the way as the group new bonus program at the museum Parker is an architect specializing in uncovered the history of John Jay and designed around the concepts of our planning, renovation and sustainable Carl Shurz Parks, and gazed at the Building Fun and Yorkville Immi- design and was president of the beautiful facades of the Cherokee gration programs. Art Commission of the City of Apartments, City and Suburban If you would like more information on New York from 1998 to 2003. She is Homes, and Gracie Mansion. our youth education programs, please therefore an expert on the benefits of If you missed either of these events, visit www.friends-ues.org/education or urban infrastructure, historic buildings make sure to join us this fall! n contact Sarah O’Keefe at and recent LEED-certified projects, as [email protected] n page 3 LPC Re-Designates FRIENDS Honored with Grassroots Preservation Awar d! 1st Ave Ests. On May 20th, 2010, FRIENDS Court Upholds Landmark Status for was honored at the Historic District Council’s Grassroots Preservation City & Suburban Homes Awards for our exhaustive effort to As reported in past newsletters, this expand the Upper East Side Historic case began in 2006 when the Landmarks District to include portions of Preservation Commission initiated pro- Lexington Avenue and its side streets. ceedings to re-designate 429 East 64th Fellow awardees included: Two Bridges Neighborhood Council; The Alice and Clockwise from left: Anne Millard, Erin Gray, Matthew and 430 East 65th Street. These two Coody, Sarah O’Keefe, and Seri Worden accepting the buildings were constructed between 1898 Agate Courts Historic District; The Historic Distric Council’s Grassroots Preservation Award and 1915 as part of the City and Suburban Coalition to Save West-Park Pres- Company’s First Avenue Estate, a model byterian Church; Council Member tenement complex. Rosie Mendez; Nicholas Hirshon, a Volunteers Significant for their design, as well as reporter with the New York Daily News ; their pioneering role in social housing John Antonides, the proud owner and Neede d! restorer of one the few remaining reform, the City and Suburban Homes Following our great success in ex- Dutch farmhouses in Brooklyn; and at the First Avenue and York Avenue panding the Upper East Side Historic Joyce Mendelsohn, a preservation Estates were designated in their entirety District, FRIENDS is launching a his- leader in youth education. as individual New York City landmarks toric resource survey of Yorkville. We in 1990. However, on the eve of its Friends of the Upper East Side are beginning broadly, studying a wide demise, the Board of Estimate de- Historic Districts is proud to join the swath of the Upper East Side from from designated two of the 15 buildings in ranks of such inspiring preservationists 59th to 96th Streets, Lexington Avenue the First Avenue Estate. and we must give our highest con- to the . This massive under- Sixteen years later, the Landmarks gratulations to all the awardees. A big taking requires a major group effort, so Preservation Commission corrected thanks to the Historic Districts Council we are enlisting volunteers to help with the omission and re-designated the for the honor and for putting on such a the campaign. Surveyors will first come buildings. In defiance of the pending lovely evening in the gardens of St. to the office for a quick introduction designation, the owners began to deface Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery! n and then hit the streets equipped with the buildings by stripping them clipboards, cameras and a discerning of their architectural details and Supreme Court Appellate Division eye. You can join us for just one block resurfacing the exterior with unsightly decided in favor of the City, rejecting or twent y! red stucco. Despite these alterations, the appeal. At last, with two decisions in Volunteers will record basic building the LPC persevered with the desig- favor of the City, the entire landmark information, such as address, block and nation, restoring the original bound- site is once again whole! lot, number of stories, window type, aries of this individual landmark to its Throughout this fight, FRIENDS has building material and style. Surveyors full city block. been a leading voice for the integrity of will also take digital photos of each The owners then sued the City this landmark. Special thanks to building. An interest or experience in opposing the conferral of landmark Council Member Jessica Lappin, who historic preservation, architectural status, but the court soon denied the has been forceful and unyielding in her history or related field is desirable. owner’s petition. In spite of their loss, support of this ongoing issue. n As we have quickly discovered in our the owners continued the fight and survey, Yorkville abounds with arch- filed an appeal of the decision. itectural and cultural gems - yet they Concerned that the arguments against are too quickly being replaced with landmark designation would under- contemporary architecture that is often mine the LPC’s ability to safeguard New lackluster and insensitive to the historic York City’s historic and cultural fabric. Please help us to create an heritage, including the First Avenue inventory of what is left of our Estate, FRIENDS jointly filed an neighborhood so that we can move amicus brief with the Municipal Art forward in our fight to protect it! Society. We are thrilled to report that To volunteer your help please contact The First Ave Estates after facade alteration on June 25th of this year, the New York our office. n page 4 Fall 2 01 0 Events LETTER from the PRESIDENT

McKim, Mead & White Much has changed over the last six months at FRIENDS. We are sad to A Lecture & Discussion announce that long-time Executive Director Seri Worden has moved on from FRIENDS. Over the last six years, Seri increased funding through government and private grants, resurrected this newsletter, redesigned the website and, along with the help of Sarah O’Keefe, revived our thriving elementary education program. Most recently, Seri spearheaded the first expansion of the Upper East Side Historic District since its designation in 1982, simultaneously producing a printed guidebook and an online exhibit. We will miss her and wish her the best of luck! At the same time, we are pleased to welcome Tara Kelly as our new Executive Director. Tara received her MS in Historic Preservation from Pratt Institute in 2009, and holds a BS in Linguistics from Georgetown University. Most recently, she was Project Manager of the Preservation & Climate Change initiative at the Municipal Art Society. In addition, this past year she oversaw a team of graduate students as they worked together to develop a new architectural tour of the Eldridge Street Synagogue, a National Historic Landmark on the Lower East Side. We look forward to the new and exciting projects that Tara will initiate at FRIENDS. Sincerely, Mosette Broderick, Director of the Urban Design and Architecture Studies Program and the Historical and Sustainable Architecture M.A. Program at New York University, will discuss her new book, Triumvirate: McKim, Mead & Tennis Bubble noise, and light pollution, the “pri- White: Art, Architecture, Scandal, and Class in vatizing” of the courts through in- America’s Gilded Age . Known for their Defeate d! creased playing fees, and the visual distinguished Beaux-Arts designs and destruction of the urban oasis that an allegiance to the City Beautiful Central Park Proposal Withdrawn Frederick Law Olmsted designed the movement, the firm was responsible for park to be. It goes to show that a few many of New York City’s greatest FRIENDS is pleased to announce that little groups can make a big difference landmarks: the Columbia University our voice was heard and the proposal to for the future of our cit y! campus, the Manhattan Municipal cover 26 tennis courts in Central Park If you see anything around your Building, the Brooklyn Museum, and with inflatable bubbles has been neighborhood that you think should be the much-loved Pennsylvania Station. withdrawn! FRIENDS took this brought to our attention, please do not

In addition to their public com- proposal to task at the April 15th hesitate to contact the FRIENDS office. n missions, the firm’s client list included Community Board 8 meeting, where we America’s greatest financiers and spoke out against the bubbles and urged magnates. “Triumvirate is a book about the committee to reverse an earlier America in its industrial transition; decision in support of the proposal. about money and class, about the Thankfully, the Community Board education of an unsophisticated listened and revoked their initial vote young country, and about the coming in favor of the plan. We also enlisted of artists as an accepted class in your help to sign an online petition

American society.” n and write to our city officials. These Wednesday, November 17th efforts joined the growing voice of 6:30 p.m., Reception to follow several preservation groups who St. James’ Church, Sunderland Hall opposed the plan. Site of proposed tennis bubble in Central Park near 97th St 865 Madison Avenue Thanks to our passionate supporters, $15 members, $20 non-members Central Park will be saved from air,

page 5 Call for 2010 Board of Directors FRIEN DS First President (1982-1991) of the UPPEREASTSIDE Halina Rosenthal Entries HISTORICDISTRICTS Anne L. Millard, President Tony Rosenthal, Honorary Chairman (1991-2009) Each year, Friends of the Upper East Friends of the Upper East Side Rita C. Chu, David I. Karabell, Side Historic Districts awards out- Historic Districts , founded in 1982, Annie MacRae, Gretchen Siebel standing achievements in the fields of is an independent, not-for-profit Vice Presidents preservation, architecture and advocacy membership organization dedicated to O. Kelley Anderson, Treasurer on the Upper East Side. Nominations preserving the architectural legacy, Franny Eberhart, Secretary are sought for our 2011 Annual livability, and sense of place of the Kent L. Barwick, Christina R. Davis, Awards. If you know of a project, Upper East Side. We safeguard the Andrew S. Dolkart, Lionel Goldfrank person or publication that deserves future of the Upper East Side’s six III, Erin Gray, Huyler C. Held, acclaim, please let us know! Projects historic districts and 126 individual Thomas Jayne, E. William Judson, must have been completed between landmarks and act as an advocate Rev. John A. Kamas, David L. Levinson, December 1st, 2009 and December for sound preservation policies for Mimi Levitt, Hermes Mallea, 1st, 2010. To submit an entry for award the city. FRIENDS has also been a consideration, please contact our office. leader in successful efforts to improve Joyce Matz, Alice McGown, dramatically the zoning laws govern- Frederic S. Papert,Judith Price, ing the area’s avenues and residential Robert C. Quinlan, Genie Rice, side streets. Alexandra Schlesinger, Patricia B. Selch , Andrew P. Steffan, Patricia F. Sullivan, For more information please call 212-535-2526 or visit our website at Margot Wellington www.friends-ues.org. Tara Kelly, Executive Director

Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage FRIENDS PAID of the New York, NY UPPER EAST SIDE Permit No. 1347 HISTORIC DISTRICTS

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