CPC Chair Marisa Lago speaks during the August 3rd Review Session, the CPC’s first meeting in months. Image Credit: CPC

The full ULURP process will resume on September 14th. On August 3, 2020, the City Planning Commission resumed hearings for the first time since March 16th. Hearings had been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic after Mayor Bill de Blasio signed an executive order halting the ULURP process which allowed the City Planning Commission to cancel its meetings. While other agencies started resuming public hearings virtually in June and July, the City Planning Commission has been a notable holdout until now. For CityLand’s prior coverage of the COVID-19 impact on the ULURP process, click here.  (more…)

Harriet and Thomas Truesdell House Image Credit: LPC

LPC seeks to honor Brooklyn’s abolitionist history with Downtown Brooklyn landmark. On June 30, 2020, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to calendar the designation of the Harriet and Thomas Truesdell House located at 227 Duffield Street in Brooklyn. The property is situated in Downtown Brooklyn, between Willoughby Street and Fulton Street. The designation is sought to preserve the historical significance the Truesdells played into the pre-civil war abolitionist movement, having lived in their 227 Duffield home for more than a decade.

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Public School 48 in Jamaica, Queens/Image Credit: LPC

The public school building’s design and details set it apart from other school buildings built during the early 20th century. On June 9, 2020, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to calendar Public School 48 in Jamaica, Queens for designation as an individual landmark. Public School 48, located at 155-02 108th Avenue, is an Art Deco style three-story public school building designed by Walter C. Martin. 

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Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue at the time of designation./Image Credit: LPC

The former landmarked synagogue was home to the country’s oldest Russian Orthodox Jewish congregation. On May 19, 2020, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to calendar a decision to rescind the individual landmark designation of a vacant lot, located at 60 Norfolk Street, Manhattan. The lot was formerly the site of the Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue, which was fully demolished in 2019 after a fire destroyed most of the building.

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Hamilton Grange at its current location./Image Credit: LPC

The Federal-style mansion is also a national historic landmark. On May 19, 2020, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to calendar a decision to amend the individual landmark designation for the Hamilton Grange mansion located in Hamilton Heights, Manhattan. Hamilton Grange is a two-story frame mansion that belonged to Alexander Hamilton. The mansion was located at 287 Convent Avenue at the time of its designation but it was moved to 414 West 141st Street in 2008. The amendment would rescind the designation for the former site and designate the current site.

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