Skidmore Owings & Merrill’s Marilyn J. Taylor on Design in the City

Marilyn J. Taylor is from a small town in Iowa “with a population of 1,432.” Perhaps it is her Midwestern roots that allow her to remain upbeat and positive as two of her current planning projects—Columbia University’s campus expansion in West Harlem and Solow’s redevelopment of the Con Edison site in Murray Hill—plod their way through the City’s land use review process amidst political controversy.

Taylor is partner to Skidmore Owings & Merrill’s Urban Design … <Read More>


Council considers tax exemption for green roofs

Resolution would call on Albany to create green roof tax incentive. The City Council’s Finance Committee heard public testimony on November 29, 2007 on a resolution that would request the State Legislature to amend the New York State Real Property Tax Law and establish a tax exemption incentive for property-owners to equip their buildings with green roofs.

The resolution, sponsored by Council Member Oliver G. Koppell, seeks to encourage the use of green roofs in … <Read More>


DOT’s Schaller on Making Congestion Pricing a Reality

Bruce Schaller, DOT’s Deputy Commissioner for Planning and Sustainability, stands on the front-lines in the battle over the City’s congestion pricing plan. Hand-picked by Mayor Bloomberg a month after the City announced its intention to charge vehicles entering or leaving Manhattan below 86th Street, Mr. Schaller must present and implement a plan that satisfies City, state, and federal officials.

As a transportation consultant, he analyzed the impact of East River bridge tolls for the Straphanger … <Read More>


Demolition of Brooklyn warehouse authorized

Purchase Building in Fulton Ferry Historic District, Brooklyn, to be demolished to make way for new Brooklyn Bridge Park.

Commission decides that Brooklyn Bridge sightline merits destruction of a building within a historic district. Landmarks held a hearing on February 21, 2006 on an application to demolish the Purchase Building, located at 11-85 Water Street in Brooklyn’s Fulton Ferry Historic District. The applicant, Brooklyn Bridge Development Corporation, was created to manage the development of Brooklyn … <Read More>