Artists asked federal court to prevent Parks’ expressive-matter vending rules from taking effect. The Department of Parks and Recreation promulgated rules restricting where art and book vendors could sell their wares, also known as “expressive matter.” Among other things, the rules limited the locations where expressive matter display stands could be placed in Battery Park, Union Square, the High Line, and parts of Central Park. Shortly after the rules were published, two groups of artists … <Read More>
Attorney Michael T. Sillerman Discusses Current Issues in Land Use
Land use attorney Michael T. Sillerman is often teased by his co-workers that he won’t work on a project unless there is a Pritzker Architecture Prize winner onboard. Although Sillerman doesn’t think that’s entirely true, he admits that his favorite part of being a land use attorney is how it overlaps with his love of architecture. As co-chair of Kramer Levin’s land use department, Sillerman typically spends as much time talking to architects and city … <Read More>
Columbia’s plan OK’d: High Court reversed App. Div.
Court of Appeals reversed First Department’s strongly worded opinion. In 2001, Columbia University contacted the City’s Economic Development Corporation in an effort to redevelop West Harlem as part of a campus expansion. Not long after, EDC issued a West Harlem Master Plan that stated that West Harlem could be redeveloped through rezoning. EDC, after it issued the master plan, hired a private firm to examine the neighborhood conditions of West Harlem. The study concluded that … <Read More>
Council Member Leroy Comrie Discusses His Role as Land Use Committee Chair
Council Member Leroy Comrie, Chair of the City Council’s Land Use Committee and representative of Queens’ 27th District, is not afraid to raise his voice or make his opinion known. For the most part, however, Comrie is known as a quiet, thoughtful, and fair-minded civic leader.
Comrie was born in Jersey City, but he was raised in the same southeast Queens community he now represents. His parents, Jamaican immigrants, helped spark Comrie’s interests in politics … <Read More>
Three-story addition approved for Village building
Landmarks rejected owner’s initial request to build five-story addition to 1990s structure. On June 1, 2010, Landmarks approved a revised proposal to construct a three-story addition on top of a three-story structure built on a triangular lot at 115 Seventh Avenue South in the Greenwich Village Historic District. The existing building, referred to as a “modern commercial building” by Landmarks, was completed in 1994 and is occupied by Gourmet Garage and a New York Sports … <Read More>
Replica of illegally removed balcony approved
Condo board demolished eleventh-floor balcony during facade restoration without Landmarks’ approval. On June 15, 2010, Landmarks approved a proposal to reconstruct an illegally demolished balcony on a twelve-story condominium at 105 West 72nd Street in the Upper West Side/Central Park West Historic District. The condominium board removed the eleventh-floor balcony of the building in 1992 without Landmarks’ approval. In 2004, Landmarks denied the board’s application to legalize the demolition. Four years later, the board filed … <Read More>