CPC Agrees to Legalize Overbuilt Building for Expanding Non-Profit

City Planning Commission approves legalization and expansion of Red Hook non-profit servicing the needs of the community. On February 22, 2017, the City Planning Commission voted to approve an overbuilt building located at 763 and 767 Hicks Street in Brooklyn’s Red Hook neighborhood. The site contains two one-story buildings used by the applicant, the Red Hook Initiative. The two addresses total 4,794 square feet and rise to 19 and 21 feet high. Both buildings … <Read More>


Morningside Heights-Notable for Early 20th Century Architecture Designated

District is composed of 115 buildings between West 109th and West 199th Streets. On February 21, 2017, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to designate the Morningside Heights Historic District, in Manhattan’s Morningside Heights neighborhood. Made up of 115 buildings, the district is characterized by its residential architecture, developed within a relatively short period of time in the early 20th century, for middle and upper class tenants. The district is bounded by West 109th Street … <Read More>


Basement apartment ruled legal; Condo’s “peace” sign ruled illegal

Buildings charged that owner unlawfully converted basement into additional rental apartment. In 2013 the Department of Buildings charged the owner of 345 W 70th Street, a multiple dwelling, with creating an illegal apartment in the basement. At the administrative hearing, Buildings submitted three I-cards for the building from 1916, 1938 and 1945. Before 1938, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development used I-cards to record the occupancy and arrangement of the buildings HPD had inspected. … <Read More>


Cathedral of St. John the Divine and Six Auxiliary Buildings Collectively Designated an Individual Landmark

Unfinished cathedral, the largest in the world, designated a landmark for second time. On February 21, 2017, Landmarks commissioners voted to designate the St. John the Divine Cathedral and Close an individual City landmark. The cathedral, the seat of the Episcopal Diocese of New York, is the largest church in the United States, and the largest cathedral in the world. It stands at 1047 Amsterdam Avenue, in Manhattan’s Morningside Heights neighborhood.

The Landmarks … <Read More>


Jane Street Development Approved after Refinements

Residential development, which will replace 1920s garage, incited opposition within the community. On February 14, 2017, Landmarks voted to issue a certificate of appropriateness to the developers of 11 Jane Street in the Greenwich Village Historic District. The development had been the subject of three prior meetings, and the plan was revised and refined throughout the approval process. A two-story garage building dating to 1921 currently stands on the site. The planned development will incorporate … <Read More>


Mayor Bill de Blasio Announces Deepening of Affordable Housing for Seniors, Veterans and Lowest-Income Families

The Mayor’s Administration moves to deepen affordability of housing for lowest-income families and to aid more senior citizens. On February 10, 2017, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced two new housing initiatives to help seniors, veterans and families who are suffering the most from the housing crisis. The Mayor intends to increase by 10,000 the number of apartments in Housing New York serving households earning less than $40,000 a year. Of those additional 10,000, the Mayor … <Read More>