The City will renovate and restore 1871 building with eye toward casual restaurant. On February 21, 2012, Landmarks approved the City’s renovation plan for the landmarked Tavern on the Green restaurant on the west side of Central Park near West 65th Street. The Victorian Gothic building was built in 1871 as a sheepfold. It was converted into a restaurant in 1934. In 2009, the restaurant’s license holder filed for bankruptcy protection. The restaurant closed and its equipment and furnishings were auctioned. Tavern on the Green has remained vacant except for a temporary gift shop and public restroom. 

At the public hearing, the Parks Department’s Assistant Commissioner Elizabeth Smith explained that the plan would reconfigure the space to make it more “Parkcentric.” Smith said the City was seeking a concessionaire to operate a casual restaurant in the building. Department of Design and Construction Commissioner David Burney noted that the City in 2010 demolished the restaurant’s “Crystal Room,” a glass-enclosed dining area on the park-side of the building built in 1976, and restored the restaurant’s courtyard. Burney said the proposal would reveal the building’s original facade by removing the extraneous additions built over the years. According to Burney, the “wound” left after removing the crystal room would be filled with an all-glass, transparent box facing the terrace. The proposal also included restoring the building’s facades, windows, and dormers to their 1934 conditions. (more…)

Mayor Adams tours the former Colored School No. 4. The building was designated as the city’s newest landmark. Image Credit: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

On May 23, 2023, Mayor Eric Adams announced a $6 million investment to rehabilitate the former Colored School No. 4, the city’s newest landmark which was designated earlier that day. The school building, located at 128 West 17th Street in Chelsea, is the last remaining school building that exclusively served African American students. For CityLand’s coverage of the Landmarks vote and to learn more about the building’s history, click here.  (more…)

City-controlled operating entity will be responsible for implementing island’s recently released redevelopment master plan. On April 11, 2010, the City and State announced an agreement that would transfer to the City primary responsibility for operating Governors Island and for implementing the development goals of the Governors Island Park and Public Space Master Plan. The City and State have jointly operated the island since 2003, when the federal government transferred control of the island to the Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation, a subsidiary of the Empire State Development Corporation. The newly created Governors Island Operating Entity will now oversee the development and operation of the island. The entity’s thirteenmember board will include nine mayoral appointees, and appointees of the Governor, the 64th District State Assembly Member, the 25th District State Senator, and Manhattan Community Board 1.

The 172-acre island’s northern 92 acres were designated as the Governors Island Historic District by Landmarks in 1996 and includes the 22-acre Governors Island National Monument managed by the National Park Service. The island’s remaining 80-acre southern portion, which is closed to the public, is slated for redevelopment and features parking lots, abandoned warehouses, and former military barracks. (more…)