Proposed district among the few documented underground railroad stops in New York City. On January 13, 2009, Landmarks heard testimony on the potential designation of Lamartine Place as a historic district. Lamartine Place is comprised of 12 buildings at 333 through 359 West 29th Street, between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in Manhattan. Built in the 1840s, the Greek Revival rowhouses were commissioned by Cyrus Mason, a New York University professor. It is believed that Mason named the development for Alphonse de Lamartine, an anti-slavery French politician.

In 1851, 337 West 29th Street was purchased by James Gibbons, husband of Abigail Hooper Gibbons, a noted abolitionist and prison reformer. Abigail Gibbon’s father, Isaac Gibbons, was known as “a father of the Underground Railroad.” Other residents of Lamartine Place included Samuel Sinclair, editor of the New York Tribune, and Joseph Hodges Choate, a lawyer and diplomat. Though the houses were set on fire during the draft riots of 1863, they remained standing. And despite some alterations, the rowhouses have retained much of their original fabric. (more…)

200-year-old church receives wide support, though pastor ambivalent. On March 18, 2008, Landmarks heard testimony on the possible designation of St. Michael’s Church, Parish House, and Rectory located on West 99th Street, between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue. The church and rectory were designed by Robert W. Gibson, an architect known for his work on the West End Collegiate Church on West 77th Street. The parish house was built in a similar Romanesque Revival-style. The complex’s most striking feature is a square clock tower with two tiers of open arcades at the top. Also notable are its three stained glass Tiffany windows, which remain remarkably intact.

Reverend George W. Brandt, Jr. testified that St. Michael’s intends to build a mixed-use condominium complex on the West 100th Street corner of its property. Brandt stated that the church spent five million dollars over the last ten years to restore the church and its grounds, and that the complex was necessary to fund the church’s upkeep and programs. (more…)

Landmarks takes first step in designation of former Staten Island home of prominent engraver. On November 15, 2005, Landmarks initiated the designation process for 1 Pendleton Place, an 1860 Stick Style villa built by Charles Duggin for William S. Pendleton. Pendleton was a distinguished American engraver in the 19th Century, and cofounded the first known lithographic shop in Boston. He was prominent in Staten Island civic life, founding at least two churches and serving as president of the North Shore Ferry Company.

Another house built for Pendleton on Staten Island, 22 Pendleton Place, also designed by Duggin, has already been designated a landmark. 1 Pendleton Place is considered Duggin’s other most well-known building. The building is part of a complex owned by the Pendleton family and is located on a hillside overlooking the neighborhood of New Brighton, with views of New York and New Jersey. At the hearing, Landmarks Chairperson Robert B. Tierney urged that a designation hearing be put on the calendar as soon as possible, and was unanimously supported by the commissioners present. (more…)

Two new proposed districts would encompass 50 buildings west of Greenwich Village Historic District. Landmarks took the first step towards expanding the Greenwich Village Historic District and creating a new historic district along Weehawken and West Streets in Manhattan by voting unanimously on September 20, 2005 to hold hearings on the designations.

As proposed, the Greenwich Village Historic District Extension would add 36 buildings within the three-block area bound by Perry, Washington, Christopher and Greenwich Streets. The district extension would encompass residential, warehouse and stable structures. Landmarks voted unanimously to calendar a hearing with Chair Robert Tierney crediting Council Member Christine Quinn as being instrumental in voicing her district’s desire to expand the protection of the Greenwich Village Historic District to encompass blocks of the Far West Village. (more…)

Samuel Gompers Industrial High School building. Image Credit: LPC.

Multiple people spoke in support and highlighted the building’s art deco features and connection to the city’s industrial history. On November 15, 2022 the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a public hearing for the designation of the Samuel Gompers Industrial High School as an individual landmark. Gompers High School is located at 455 Southern Boulevard in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx.  (more…)