DISTRICT LINES news and views of the historic districts council winter 2002, volume XVI, number 3 p1 ~ 2002—The Year in Preservation p2 ~ The President’s Column p2 ~ The Year in HDC p6 ~ The City as Palimpsest p7 ~ City Proposes Fees for Landmark Permits p2 ~ New Books about Old New York 2002—The Year in Preservation Preservation in New York City has not had a good year. There have been suc- cesses, to be sure, most of them the victo- ries of neighborhood advocates who have soldiered on in some cases for decades. But the successes have been outweighed by losses. Some of the disappointments are due to the city’s budget crisis, which has scrapped almost any chance for the Landmarks Preservation Commission to gain needed staff. The budget is responsi- ble also for the threat of landmark permit fees arising like a malignant phoenix (see article on page 7). More commonly however—and more preventable—the year’s losses are due to miscarriages of municipal land-use regulation. But first the good news: In Manhat- tan, Harlem’s Hamilton Heights/Sugar Hill neighborhood has, by dint of intense com- munity involvement and partnership with the LPC, increased the number of desig- nated landmark properties almost three- One of the year’s biggest losses was the designated landmark Amster Yard, on 49th Street between 2nd and fold, from 206 to 586 (see map, page 4). 3rd Avenues. The 1860s courtyard buildings shown here around the time of designation in 1966 no longer When the Hamilton Heights Historic exist. They were demolished, the trees and plantings were uprooted, and the townhouses facing 49th Street District was designated in 1974, less than were torn down except for a one-brick-thick facade. See box, page 5. five blocks of 19th century rowhouses and low-rise apartment buildings were pro- tected. Now fifteen blocks of apartment the original district. If it would only see SAVE THE DATE buildings, row houses, carriage houses, boundary avenues in other districts in the and churches are designated. With HDC’s same light! for HDC's Ninth Annual Preservation co-sponsorship, the neighborhood In Midtown Manhattan, for example, Conference received a grant from the Preservation although the Murray Hill Neighborhood "Preserving the Suburban Metropolis" League of New York State and the New Association succeeded in its 30-year cam- York State Council on the Arts to apply paign to gain historic status for parts of its A day of preservation panels about the for listing on the State and National Regis- rowhouse neighborhood, the district was "other" New York ter of Historic Places and received it. This gerrymandered to exclude the higher-rise allows tax incentives for appropriate reha- avenue blocks, leaving the new district Saturday, March 8, 2003 bilitation of commercial properties vulnerable along the edges. Similarly in In a laudable action after much com- Tribeca, the LPC designated a small The New-York Historical Society munity urging, the LPC designated the extension to the Tribeca South Historic 2 West 77th Street at Central Park West majority of Edgecombe Avenue in Hamil- District through the midblocks of Cham- ton Heights and expanded the boundaries bers, Warren, and Murray Streets exclud- Call HDC at 212 614-9107 for details of the 1974 designation to better protect continued on p. 4 Historic Districts Council District Lines ~ Winter 2002 ~ page 2 appointees chosen by the mayor absolutely must speak the language of THE PRESIDENT’S COLUMN preservation and have a thorough under- standing of the landmarks law and the commission’s role in upholding it. Impor- The Historic Districts Council was tant in the best of times, expertise in the proud to honor former City Council mem- top echelon is essential when money is so ber Ken Fisher as the 2002 Landmarks tight. Experience and intelligence can help Lion. Celebrated at Federal Hall National to some degree to make up for the eco- Memorial in Lower Manhattan, the event nomic shortfalls now faced by our city, but helped focus attention on the economic this is no time for on-the-job training at revival of downtown, our city’s oldest the Landmarks Preservation Commission. neighborhood. Ken eloquently addressed –Hal Bromm, President several concerns shared by HDC, among them the future of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. The Year in HDC This concern was also expressed by Michael Bloomberg while he was cam- Over the past year, the Historic Dis- paigning for mayor. At an August 2001 tricts Council continued and even Meris D. photo: candidates’ breakfast co-sponsored by increased its educational and community Joe Lombardi’s Octagon House, a candy-colored con- HDC, Mr. Bloomberg spoke convinc- outreach programs. In March 2002, we fection in Irvington, NY. ingly of his concern for the city’s land- hosted our 8th Annual Preservation Con- marks law and the commission that is ference at the New School in Greenwich charged with upholding it. He said there Village. Entitled “Preserving the Modern were “a whole bunch of agencies that Metropolis,” it focused on the architectural By drawing on examples in New York we’ve cut back–Landmarks is certainly legacy of the 20th century in New York and England, speakers in the morning one of them–where we’ve been penny City. In three sessions, it featured well panel discussed the intricacies of using wise and pound foolish.” Candidate known architects, historians and preserva- Modern design in historic communities. Bloomberg went on to say, “Landmarks is tion practitioners such as Hugh Hardy, Tom Anthony M. Tung, architect and former like your top management and organiza- Mellins, Rolf Olhausen, Françoise Bollack, LPC commissioner, gave an impressive tion, that’s where you really want to Jeffrey Kroessler, and Landmarks Preserva- keynote lecture with fascinating slides spend your money. If you’ve got great tion Commission chair Sherida Paulsen. and visuals collected during his tour of 22 people and structure at the top, it filters all the way down.” He also said “I think you have to have somebody running Landmarks who has the respect of the constituency they serve.” DISTRICT HDC agrees, and urges the mayor to fill the ten expired seats on the commis- LINES sion with dedicated, knowledgeable indi- news and views of the viduals who are professionally conversant historic districts council with historic preservation. Any new editor ~ Penelope Bareau layout and production ~ Ross Horowitz editorial consultant ~ Jack Taylor contributors ~ Simeon Bankoff, Penelope Bare Hal Bromm, Eve Kahn, Jeffrey Kroessler the historic districts council is the citywide non-profit advocate for new york’s designated histroic districts, and for neighborhoods worthy of preservation. the council is dedicated photo: © P. Decker © P. photo: photo: © P. Decker © P. photo: to preserving the integrity of new Hal Bromm and presenters Kate Burns Ottavino and york city’s landmarks law and to HDC Director Franny Eberhart with the Joan K. Davidson present Ken Fisher with his Lion furthering the preservation ethic. redoubtable Margot Gayle, 1993 Landmarks Lion. award, a 19th-century engraving of City Hall Park 1993 was a good year for Lions. Historic Districts Council District Lines ~ Winter 2002 ~ page 3 offer similar programs throughout 2003 in all five boroughs. On the publishing front, one new proj- ect is the New Boundaries Initiative, the first phase of which will be a white paper on the discrepancy between historic neigh- borhoods and designated historic districts. And over the summer, HDC revised our classic “Creating an Historic District” in order to account for changes in procedure at the LPC and to incorporate new resources available to the public. The new edition will be available in spring 2003. Lest we be dull from too much work, we had parties. In June, Joseph Pell Lom- bardi, a preservation architect and HDC photo: © P. Decker © P. photo: adviser, invited us to his astonishing Octa- HDC Adviser Joseph Pell Lombardi, who owns and restored the Octagon House, and HDC Director gon House in Irvington NY for a lawn Susan Tunick on the grounds of the Octagon House by the gazebo. party. His house is a fabulous 19th century confection which he has spent the past 20 years restoring and which he opened to us for tours. In September the annual Grass- cities throughout the world to research evening panels to Friends of HDC to roots Awards & Preservation Party took his recent book, “Preserving the World’s discuss specific aspects of preservation. place at Bargemusic underneath the Great Cities.” During the afternoon, Speakers included current officials from Brooklyn Bridge. The award winners speakers discussed Modern masterpieces the City Planning Commission and the were: Evelyn and Everett Ortner; the and communities in New York City: for LPC, former public officials, and neigh- Murray Hill Neighborhood Association.; every Ford Foundation and Seagram borhood advocates who discussed con- Save Gansevoort Market; the Jackson building that is protected under the Land- textual zoning and historic districts, the Heights Beautification Group; and Linda marks Law there are buildings such as 2 designation process and enforcing the Jones of Staten Island. Our Friend from Columbus Circle and neighborhoods such Landmarks Law. Standing-room audi- the Media Award went to The City Sec- as Parkway Village that remain at risk. ences were intrigued to learn how the tion of The New York Times; and our Friend The day was rounded out by a lunchtime Landmarks Law and Zoning Resolution in High Places Award was given to Coun- lecture on the Lower East Side by archi- are enforced by the people who have cilmember Dennis Gallagher from Rich- tectural historian Joyce Mendelsohn. been and are currently responsible for mond Hill.