A Proven Success: How the New York City Landmarks Law and Process Benefit the City A report prepared for the Citizens Emergency Committee to Preserve Preservation June 2014 A Proven Success: How the New York City Landmarks Law and Process Benefit the City June 20, 2014 Prepared by: Gregory G. Dietrich Principal Investigator Table of Contents 1.0 Executive Summary .......................................................................................................................... 1 2.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 6 2.1 Purpose of Study .................................................................................................................................. 6 2.2 Background ........................................................................................................................................... 6 2.3 Basis for Study ...................................................................................................................................... 9 2.4 Dates the Study Was Conducted ....................................................................................................... 9 2.5 Acknowledgments and Citation ....................................................................................................... 10 2.6 Location of Report Copies ............................................................................................................... 10 3.0 Scope and Methodology ................................................................................................................ 11 3.1 Scope .................................................................................................................................................... 11 3.2 Methodology ....................................................................................................................................... 11 4.0 Analysis ............................................................................................................................................... 12 4.1 New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission and Commissioners ............................ 12 4.1.1 Regulatory Purview ............................................................................................................................ 12 4.1.2 Criteria for Designating Properties in Historic Districts .............................................................. 16 4.2 Landmark and Historic District Designation ................................................................................. 18 4.2.1 Permit Timeframes and Costs to Property Owners ...................................................................... 18 4.2.2 New York City Landmarks Law and Urban Planning .................................................................. 22 4.2.3 Housing and Affordable Housing ................................................................................................... 34 4.2.4 Claims of Rapid Gentrification ........................................................................................................ 42 4.2.5 Sustainable Benefits of Historic Preservation ................................................................................ 44 4.2.6 Tax Revenue and Job Creation ........................................................................................................ 46 5.0 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 58 6.0 Bibliography ...................................................................................................................................... 59 List of Tables 1. Work Permit Applications Received and Actions Taken .................................................................... 18 2. NYC-LPC Staff-Level Permits Approval Statistics ............................................................................. 19 3. Percentage of Designated Properties by Community District - Manhattan ..................................... 23 4. Percentage of Designated Properties by Community District - Brooklyn ....................................... 23 5. Percentage of Designated Properties by Community District - Queens .......................................... 24 6. Percentage of Designated Properties by Community District - Bronx ............................................. 25 7. Percentage of Designated Properties by Community District – Staten Island ................................ 26 8. Percentage of Rent-Regulated Apartments in New York City for the Years 1981, 1991, and 2014 ........................................................................................................ 38 9. Federal Historic Tax Credits Fiscal 2012 and 1978-2012 Cumulative Data..................................... 47 10. Federal Historic Tax Credits Fiscal 2013 and 1978-2013 Cumulative Data..................................... 47 i List of Photographs 1. 241-243 Water Street ................................................................................................................................ 14 2. 300 West 57th Street .................................................................................................................................. 14 3. 980 Madison Avenue ................................................................................................................................ 15 4. 837 Washington Street. ............................................................................................................................ 15 5. BP Gas Station Site, 300 Lafayette Street. ............................................................................................. 17 6. 300 Lafayette Street Proposal .................................................................................................................. 17 7. 119 Columbia Heights .............................................................................................................................. 27 8. 24 Peck Slip ................................................................................................................................................ 28 9. 254 Front Street ......................................................................................................................................... 28 10. 47 East 91st Street ...................................................................................................................................... 29 11. 40 Mercer Street. ....................................................................................................................................... 29 12. 177 Ninth Avenue. .................................................................................................................................... 29 13. 122 Greenwich Avenue. ........................................................................................................................... 30 14. 34 Leonard Street ..................................................................................................................................... 30 15. 311 West Broadway .................................................................................................................................. 30 16. 30-15 Shore Road ...................................................................................................................................... 31 17. 720 Madison Avenue ................................................................................................................................ 31 18. 27 Wooster Street ...................................................................................................................................... 31 19. Prince George Hotel ................................................................................................................................. 40 20. A. Phillip Randolph Houses ..................................................................................................................... 41 21. Vinnie's Italian Art Iron Works ............................................................................................................... 48 22. Evergreene Architectural Arts, Inc. ........................................................................................................ 48 23. St. Mark Hotel ............................................................................................................................................ 50 24. The Johnson Building ............................................................................................................................... 50 25. 101 Spring Street ........................................................................................................................................ 51 26. The Gair Building ...................................................................................................................................... 51 27. Sunnyside Gardens Historic District Rowhouse "before" .................................................................. 52 28. Sunnyside Gardens Historic District Rowhouse "after" ..................................................................... 52 29. South Street Seaport Historic District Streetscape "before" ............................................................... 53 30. South Street Seaport Historic District