Opulent Piano Retail Space Considered as a Potential Interior Landmark

Owner’s representative expressed support for designation; testified that landmark would be preserved in context of planned larger development. On July 23, 2013, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing on the potential designation of the reception room and adjoining rooms and hallways of the Steinway & Sons retail space at 109 West 57th Street in Manhattan. The neo-Renaissance interior was completed in 1928 to designs by the firm of Warren & Wetmore. Warren & … <Read More>


Proposed Two-Story Addition to UWS Building Criticized by Commissioners

Applicants testified that seven-story building was originally conceived as rising to nine stories, and that a two-story addition was approved in the 1890s. The Landmarks Preservation Commission considered an application to construct a two-story plus bulkhead addition atop the Evelyn, an apartment building at 101 West 78th Street in the Upper West Side/Central Park West Historic District, on July 23, 2013.  The 1886 seven-story Renaissance Revival apartment building stands at the corner of Columbus … <Read More>


Proposal for New Seven-Story Building Stirs Controversy

Application seeks to replace one-story structure with new residential, ground-floor retail building. On July 9, 2013, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing on a proposal to demolish a building at 130 Seventh Avenue South in the Greenwich Village Historic District, and build a new seven-story building at the site. According to Landmarks’ district designation report, the existing building was constructed in 1937 after the southern extension of Seventh Avenue, to the … <Read More>


Author Ralph Ellison’s Former Riverside Apartment Complex Considered for Landmarking [UPDATE: Beaumont Designated]

See below for update.

Residents, local cultural organizations, and preservationists testified in support of designation of ornate Arts & Crafts-style apartment building; owners deny any architectural significance. On June 18, 2013, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing on the potential individual landmark designation of the Beaumont Apartments, at 730 Riverside Drive at the corner of 150th Street, in Harlem. The building was constructed in 1912-1913 to the designs of George and Edward Blum, … <Read More>


Turn-of-the-Century Carousel Considered as City Landmark [UPDATE: Carousel Designated as a “compelling artifact of an earlier era”]

See below for update.

Forest Park Carousel is one of two remaining examples of the work of German immigrant wood-carver. On June 11, 2013, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing on the potential designation of the Forest Park Carousel in Queens’ Forest Park as an individual City landmark. The original carousel at the site burned in 1966. The current carousel, built in 1903, was located and purchased from a Connecticut architect in 1971. … <Read More>


Past LPC Chairs Gathered to Share Reflections, Advice for Future

Four past Landmarks chairs gathered to discuss what makes a chair effective, how to make the landmarking process more efficient, and challenges facing the Commission. On April 25th, 2013, at the General Society of Mechanics & Tradesmen, four past chairs of the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission participated in a panel discussion titled “Past Leaders Look to The Future.” The event was co-sponsored by the Society and a number of preservationist organizations, including the New <Read More>