Testimony in Support and Opposition to Historic District Extension Heard from Community Members

Controversy focused on small section of Atlantic Avenue commercial corridor proposed for inclusion in district extension, characterized by 19th-century low-rise buildings. Landmarks held a hearing on the designation of the Boerum Hill Historic District Extension on May 8, 2018.  The extension would be composed of three direct sections adjoining the existing Boerum Hill Historic District to the north, south, and west. Approximately 288 buildings are included in the proposed extension, roughly equal in … <Read More>


CPC Approves 45-Year-Old Senior Center’s New Lease

City Planning approved new 20-year lease for a Crown Heights senior center. On September 6, 2017, the City Planning Commission approved an application from the Department for the Aging and the Department of Citywide Administrative Services to continue the use of a senior center at 196 Albany Avenue in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights neighborhood. The application sought a new 20-year lease for the center which has been operating at the site since 1972.


Two Housing Advocacy Groups Issue Report on Airbnb’s Effect on Residential Rental Rates

The report found that the pervasive use of Airbnb in New York City is likely the indirect causation of incredibly low residential vacancy rates and rising rental rates. In June of 2016, housing advocacy groups Housing Conservation Coordinators and MFY Legal Service jointly issued a study on the impact Airbnb and similar short-term rental-facilitating platforms have on the traditional housing market in New York City. While there are several companies connecting short-term rental apartments with … <Read More>


HDC Identified Targets of Preservation Focus for 2015

Among its stated priorities, preservationist organization hopes to spur designation of items on Landmarks’ calendar that have been long under consideration without being brought to a vote. On February 3 2015, the Historic District Council held an event where it released its annual “Six to Celebrate,” identifying preservation priorities for the coming year. Candidates for the list are submitted by community organizations, and evaluated by HDC for historic and architectural merit, as well … <Read More>


Astoria Cove Developers Testify Before City Council

Council Members questioned the developers on the project’s affordability and use of union labor. On October 20, 2014 the City Council Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises held a public hearing on the proposed Astoria Cove development project. The project, which would create a new mixed-use development of 1,700 apartments, commercial space, a school, a supermarket, and parks, was approved by the City Planning Commission over opposition by both Queens Community Board 1 and Queens Borough <Read More>


HDC Defends NYC Landmark Preservation

Last week CityLand published a Guest Commentary from Steven Spinola, President of REBNY.  Simeon Bankoff, Executive Director of the Historic Districts Council submitted this commentary in response. 

In his recent editorial in CityLand, Steven Spinola, the longtime President of the Real Estate Board of New York, suggested a number of ways which the Landmarks Law needs to be reformed to adhere to its “spirit.”  This is a curious statement that warrants further examination.  … <Read More>