City Council End of Year Round Up; Kingsbridge Armory Approved; Midtown Zoning Disapproved

New York City: Largest Ice Sport Center Approved in the Bronx.

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On December 10, 2013, the City Council voted 48-1 to turn the Kingsbridge Armory, currently a vacant landmark, into an ice sports center. The $275 million development project by KNIC Partners, LLC will feature nine ice rinks and approximately 64,300 sq. ft. of related program space, including a wellness and off-ice training center, curling rinks, and locker and equipment storage. The … <Read More>


Emergency Demolition May Be Necessary for City-Owned Individual Landmark

Landmarks urged DOB and DCAS to look at all possible alternatives before resorting to demolition. On December 17, 2013, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing for the application for an advisory report to demolish the individually landmarked Public School 31, located at 425 Grand Concourse in the Bronx. The Collegiate Gothic-style building was designed by C.B.J. Snyder and is currently owned by the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, which assumed possession of the … <Read More>


Preserving the Past While Looking to the Future: LPC Executive Director Kate Daly on Community Outreach and Partnership, and her Career and Goals at Landmarks

 

Kate Daly, the Landmarks Preservation Commission’s Executive Director oversees all of the agency’s operations, including its budget and personnel. She plays an important role in shepherding properties through the landmarking process, from the initial stages through designation. She is pivotal in the outreach process to communities and property owners, meeting with and educating people about the responsibilities and benefits of landmarking.

Daly came to Landmarks in 2002 after completing her graduate degree in historic … <Read More>


Council Approved East Fordham Road Rezoning

Central Bronx area rezoned is adjacent to the Bronx Zoo, the Bronx Botanical Garden, and Fordham University. The Council approved the Bronx Planning office’s proposed zoning map amendments affecting a 12 block area in the Central Bronx. The new zoning established height limits, protects neighborhood character, and reinforces existing commercial character. A major goal of the rezoning is to stimulate revitalization of the area through private investment, the construction of affordable housing and to create … <Read More>


The Aftermath of Shelby County v. Holder: Will Voting Rights Be Diminished?

The United States Supreme Court’s June 25, 2013 decision, Shelby County v. Holder, struck down Section 4 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, eliminating a “preclearance” coverage formula that had subjected numerous jurisdictions with checkered voting rights histories to the U.S. Department of Justice’s oversight.  Although the decision allows Congress to create a new coverage formula, in today’s political climate that appears unlikely.   While the preclearance system was often associated with deep Southern states … <Read More>


HDC Identifies Six Preservation Priorities for 2013

Advocacy group selects areas in Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn and Staten Island as meriting preservation attention in 2013. The Historic Districts Council announced its “Six to Celebrate” list of preservation priorities on January 3, 2013. The areas identified by HDC consist of the Bronx Parks System, Manhattan’s East Village/Lower East Side and Tribeca neighborhoods, Brooklyn’s Greenpoint and Sunset Park neighborhoods, and Harrison Street in Staten Island.

The six areas were chosen from applications … <Read More>