New district would encompass more than 300 buildings in an area that was home to successive waves of immigrant groups. On June 26, 2012, Landmarks heard extensive testimony on the proposed designation of the East Village/Lower East Side Historic District. The proposed district would encompass approximately 330 buildings located primarily along Second Avenue between St. Marks Place and East 2nd Street and adjacent side streets. A portion of the district would extend along East 6th and East 7th Streets, reaching Avenue A.

The area is largely characterized by multi-family 19th century tenement buildings that housed various immigrant groups newly arrived to the country. The area became home to German and Irish immigrants as wealthier New Yorkers moved uptown, and in time became known as Kleindeutschland (Little Germany). Later, the area became home to Jewish and Eastern European immigrants, and Second Avenue became a focal point for lower Manhattan’s Jewish community, gaining the title of the “Yiddish Rialto.” After World War II, the neighborhood came to be dominated by Latin American immigrants. Realtors began calling the neighborhood the “East Village” shortly after the removal of the elevated Third Avenue subway line in 1955. The area has a rich legacy in the arts, and in social activism. Landmarks calendared the district on June 28, 2011.

(more…)

Hobbled by a bad back and recently returned from vacation, the Landmarks Preservation Commission’s General Counsel Mark Silberman sat down with CityLand to talk about his role at the Commission and Landmarks’ role in the City. He brings a perspective on the broader role of historic preservation nationally and in our culture.

A young environmentalist. Raised in Illinois and a graduate of the University of California at Santa Cruz, Silberman began his career in government and advocacy as a lobbyist in Washington for environmental groups, including Friends of the Earth, an offshoot of the Sierra Club and the first grassroots international environmental organization. Silberman worked on amending the Safe Drinking Water Act to protect groundwater, pesticide reform, and hazardous waste issues.

Silberman decided he could be more effective with a law degree. He attended Hofstra University’s law school, choosing this institution largely for the opportunity to work with environmental lawyer and former Parks Commissioner William Ginsberg. After graduation, Silberman worked at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP’s recently created environmental law group, where, he estimates, he spent around 30 percent of his time working on pro bono cases. Among those cases, Silberman worked with two colleagues representing the Natural Resources Defense Council and the West Harlem Environmental Action Coalition over the operation of the North River Wastewater Treatment Plant in Harlem, eventually winning a million dollar settlement with the City. (more…)

A Big Thank You to Everyone Who Helped Support

The Center for New York City Law

During 2021

It is with deepest gratitude that New York Law School and the Center for New York City Law thank all of you who have supported us through this on-line Covid year. Your financial support helped make possible the Center’s CityLaw Breakfasts series, as well as our publications CityLaw and CityLand, our on-line research library CityAdmin, and our Continuing Legal Education programs. We are grateful beyond measure for your financial support. Thank you.

The Marc Haas Foundation

Greenberg Traurig, LLP

Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc.

Steven Aresty Foundation

Charina Endowment Fund

Francis Greenburger

The Jewish Communal Fund

 

Angela Albertus

Penelope E. Andrews

Larian Angelo

Lauren R. Angelo ’08

Anonymous

Ken Auletta

Andrew Bateh

Jennifer Benepe

Andrea Berger

Darren S. Bloch ’04

Chuck Brass

Jeffrey Braun

Molly Brennan

Robert M. Brill, Esq.

Ray Bromley

Michael Burten

Albert K. Butzel

Alfred C Cerullo III

Diana Chapin

Kendall Christiansen

Steve M. Cohen ’13

David Condliffe

Jane R. Crotty

Elissa Cushman

Clinton N. Daggan, ’09

John L. Damon

Mark Diller

Linh Do

Deneen Donnley

Judith Fields Jurney ’79

Antonio Figueroa

Jeffrey Friedlander

Bethany Friedman

Noah Genel

Jennifer Gilroy Ruiz

Ramon Gilsanz

Mark Ginsberg

Steven Glassman

Jason Goldberg

Emily Goldman

Y. Gail Goode

Lorna Goodman

Adam P. Gordon ’11

Paul Gottsegen

Christabel Gough

Bryan Grimaldi

Robert Guitelman

Myrna Hall

David Hammer

Janet Handal

Wayne Hawley

Marjorie Henning

Samuel Hornick

Lawrence S. Huntington ’64

Petal M. Hwang ’13

Hon. Debra James

Lawrence Kahn

Brian Kaszuba ’04 and Molly Kaszuba

Roman Katz ’11

Jessica H. Kavoulakis ’01

Seth Kaye

Paul J. Korngold

James A. Krauskopf

Edward LaGrassa

Peter Lampen

Robin Lampert

Fay Leoussis

Leslie N. Leutwiler ’16

Lele Levay

Brenda Levin

Steven B. Levine

Lynette Lewis

Jack T. Linn

Brian E. Logan

Ronnie Lowenstein

Evelyn I. Mason ’86

Sharon McCarthy

Mary McCorry

Mark McIntyre

Carol Meenan

Hilary Meltzer

Dorothy Meyer

Frances Milberg

Joanna Mintzer-Ferrell and Donald Ferrell

Robert Moore

Alison Morpurgo

Thomas Thaddeus Newell

Glenn Newman

Dr. Lisette Nieves

James R. O’Neill

Michael D. Patrick

Hannah Pennington

Robert Plautz

Steven M. Polan

Christopher Pondish and Susan Pondish

Grace Powers

Dale and Craig Raisig

Ian Rasmussen

Michael Rebell

Lucius Riccio

Ronald E. Richter

Kurt W. Rieke ’91

David Rohde

Eric Rundbaken

Pasqualino Russo

Hon. Joan R. Salzman

Prof. Ross Sandler and Mrs. Alice Sandler

Lee and Diane Sandler

Jenny Sandler

Josie Sandler

Larry Sapadin

Gary D. Schuller ’78

Katie Schwab

Keith Schwam

Bart Schwartz

Gerald Scupp

Brendan Sexton

Robert Shansky

Frank Sinatra

Asha S. Smith ’07

Steven Smollens

Gerard Soffian

Polly Spain

Susan Stamler

Roschel Holland H. Stearns

Paul and Chandler Tagliabue

Andrew Tagliabue

John R. Tatulli ’04

Patricia-Anne Taylor Carsel ’87

Sheila Tendy

Erika Thomas

Philip Tugendrajch

Johnny T. Vasser Jr. ’11

Louis Venech

Roxanne Warren

Leonard Wasserman

Roberta Weisbrod

Carl Weisbrod

Joanna Weiss

Demia Wilburn

Anthony Wood

John Wotowicz

Barak Wrobel

Joni Yoswein

Derek Zimmerman ’03 (more…)

The new development proposes services for both residents and the greater East New York community. On October 16, 2019, the City Planning Commission voted to approve a land use application to develop four mixed-use buildings in East New York, Brooklyn. The lot is bounded by Sutter Avenue to the north, Blake Avenue to the south, Snediker Avenue to the west, and Hinsdale Street to the east. To facilitate the new 387,100 square feet development, the applicants would demolish the existing three-story homeless shelter at 515 Blake Avenue. The project will redevelop the shelter and bring affordable housing, community facilities, and retail. The Department of Housing Preservation and Development, HELP USA, a national non-profit focused on providing shelters, Department of Homeless Services, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, and Curtis + Ginsberg Architects are the applicant team.

(more…)

The building will be entirely affordable and environmentally efficient. On October 31, 2018, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing on an application to construct a mixed-use, mixed income building at 4697 Third Avenue in the Belmont section of the Bronx. The Department of Housing Preservation (HPD) brought the application to designate 4697 Third Avenue as an Urban Development Action Area, requiring the ULURP process. The applicant team consists of the developer Bronx Pro Group and Curtis + Ginsberg Architects. 4697 Third Avenue is currently a vacant lot between East 188^th Street and Cyrus Place. (more…)