Corner view of proposed 21 Greenwich Rendering Image Credit: Landmarks

Commission would like to see more masonry to help building remain in context. On October 8, 2019, the Landmarks Preservation Commission heard an application for a Certificate of Appropriateness to demolish a one-story extension and construct a new five-story residential building with a rooftop addition, on a corner three-story mixed-use building. The application also seeks to restore the three-story corner building. The proposed building and addition is located at 21 Greenwich Avenue within the Greenwich Village Historic District in Manhattan.

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Map of Greenwich Village Historic District Extension II. Image Courtesy: LPC.

Greenwich Village Historic District’s second extension includes 235 properties. On June 22, 2010, Landmarks voted unanimously to designate the Greenwich Village Historic District Extension II, also referred to as the South Village Historic District by some preservationists. The extension comprises two sections and brings an additional 235 properties under Landmarks’ protection. The larger of the two sections covers eleven blocks generally bounded by West 4th and Bedford Streets, and Sixth Avenue and Seventh Avenue South, and the smaller section includes the west side of Seventh Avenue South between Leroy and Clarkson Streets.

The district contains a variety of architecture, including Federal-style rowhouses dating to the early 19th century, and a variety of tenements built before and after the Civil War. Significant structures in the extension include the flatiron-shaped Varitype Building and Our Lady of Pompeii Church. At an October 2009 public hearing, elected officials, residents, and preservationists all spoke in support. 6 CityLand 162 (Nov. 15, 2009). (more…)

Proposed Development. Image Credit: Morris Adjmi & LI/Saltzman Architects.

The two sites, which together constitute one through-block lot, will host new ten- and 13-story buildings designed by Morris Adjmi Architects. On June 22, 2016, the Landmarks Preservation Commission considered and approved an application to demolish two structures in the Ladies’ Mile Historic District, at 21West 17th Street, and 16 West 18th Street, and replace them with a 13-story and a ten-story building, respectively. The two lots face each other at the rear, and together make for one through-block parcel. The existing buildings on both lots have histories dating to the 19th century, but retain little or no historic fabric. The planned new buildings were designed by architect Morris Adjmi, who has successfully shepherded other projects in the neighborhood through Landmarks approval process. The properties are officially owned by 17-18 Management Company LLC, but the Real Deal reports they are owned and being developed by C.A. White. (more…)

Rendering of proposed building at 38-42 West 18th Street in Manhattan. Image Credit: Morris Adjmi Architects.

Morris Adjmi-designed proposal would be taller than previous approvals, but would not include any additions to existing buildings. On September 23, 2013, the Landmarks Preservation Commission considered a proposal for two existing buildings and a vacant lot at 38-42 West 18th Street in the Ladies’ Mile Historic District. Landmarks has already voted twice to approve developments at this site in recent years, once in 2001, and once in 2008, but neither project came to fruition. The current proposal, unlike the previously approved ones, would not include any additions to the existing historic structures at 40 and 42 West 18th Street, but the new through-block building would be taller than in the earlier plans. The existing buildings would be restored as part of the plan, with much of the facade materials requiring complete replacement. The new building is planned for residential use, with three stories of commercial space at the base. (more…)

Rendering of proposed buildings on 51 and 53 West 19th Street in the Ladies’ Mile Historic District. Image Credit: Smith-Miller and Hawkinson Architects.

While praising design of proposed new structure, commissioners generally agreed that demolition of contributing buildings in a historic district was inappropriate.  On April 1, 2014, the Landmarks Preservation Commission considered a proposal to demolish two adjoining buildings in the Ladies’ Mile Historic District at 51 and 53 West 19th Street, and build a 14-story residential structure at the site. Both buildings, constructed for residential use in 1854, were significantly altered in the 1920s when the buildings were converted for commercial purposes. The applicants, Property 51, LLC, purchased the currently unoccupied buildings in 2013. (more…)