Eleven Buildings Individually Landmarked as part of the Greater East Midtown Initiative

Hearing were held on twelve buildings over two meetings, with vary degrees of opposition— Citicorp Center Complex will be voted on separately at a later date. On November 22, 2016, Landmarks voted to designate eleven buildings in the Midtown area as individual City landmarks. Public testimony on the buildings was considered at two meetings on July 19 and September 13 of 2016. Landmarks undertook the surveying of the area as part of a mayoral program … <Read More>


Second Hearing Held on Late-19th Century Flushing Church

Landmarking of Bowne Street Community Church, originally the Protestant Reformed Dutch Church of Flushing, opposed by church representatives at second hearing due to misidentification of landmarked lot. On November 15, 2016, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a second hearing on the Bowne Street Community Church at 143-11 Roosevelt Avenue in Flushing, Queens. The church was added to Landmarks calendar in 2003, and first heard as part of the Commission’s Backlog Initiative in October 2015. At … <Read More>


Neo-classical Bank Building, Later Serving as a Courthouse and Church, Designated an Individual Landmark

Designation was opposed by Church that is the building’s current owner, while supported by local Council Member. On August 9, 2016, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to designate the Williamsburgh Trust Company Building, at 177 South 5th Street in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, as an individual City landmark. The Neo-classical building was originally constructed as a bank for the Williamsburgh Trust Company in 1906. It features two classical porticos and a sculptural relief over … <Read More>


At Final Backlog Hearing, Testimony Considered on Manhattan Items

The proposed designation of the former Yuengling Brewery Site in East Harlem proved contentious, dividing preservationists and those who wished to see site developed.  On November 12, 2015 the Landmarks Preservation Commission held the final of four special hearings organized to address the backlog of items added to the Commission’s calendar before 2001, but never brought to a vote on designation.  The final hearing consisted of items in Manhattan, occupying Community Boards six through twelve.  … <Read More>


Union Square Park, Bergdorf Goodman, IRT Powerhouse Among Items Considered at Third Special Hearing

Wide support voiced for designation of monumental Stanford White-designed powerhouse and iconic Classicist department store, despite owner opposition. On November 5, 2015, Landmarks held the third of four special hearings to address the backlog of items calendared prior to 2010, but never brought to a vote on designation. Previous hearings were held on October 8 and 22, 2015. The November hearing was the first devoted to items in Manhattan.


Special hearing on Backlogged Items Devoted to Staten Island Properties

Items at issue included a former retirement community for sailors, a Colonial-era stone farmhouse, a lighthouse, and the Vanderbilt family mausoleum. On October 22, 2015, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held the second of four special hearings to address the backlog of items calendared before 2012 but never brought to a vote on designation. The hearing consisted of three batches, of seven to eleven items each, all located in Staten Island. Twenty-six items in total were … <Read More>