City Planning Holds Hearing on One Vanderbilt Proposal

Representatives from the project developers, Grand Central Terminal, and private citizens argued the proposal.  On February 4, 2015 the City Planning Commission held a public hearing on the proposed One Vanderbilt skyscraper project.  The proposed building would be 1,450 feet high and take up a block bounded by Madison Avenue to the west, Vanderbilt Avenue to the east, 42nd Street to the south, and 43rd Street to the north.  The project would also include transit … <Read More>


Tortoise-shaped roof addition to former Tammany Hall proves controversial

Applicants argued that addition would echo the domes of classical architecture, pay homage to the Lenape who once occupied Manhattan. On November 25, 2014, the Landmarks Preservation Commission considered an application to construct an addition to a building that housed the Tammany political machine at 44 Union Square East, an individual City landmark. The building was the third Tammany Hall constructed, and the only one extant. Designated in 2013, the neo-Georgian 1929 … <Read More>


CityLand Recognizes New York City’s Labor History

Labor Day commemorates the history of the labor movement and the social and economic gains of workers in the United States.   New York City has been a location for many significant milestones of labor history.  We here at CityLand document the changes in New York City land use, but we would be remiss to ignore that behind every land use change is the hard labor of American workers, from demolition to construction and all points … <Read More>


Tear Down the Chrysler Building?

Save our skyline. If not, tear down the Chrysler building and demolish the Empire State Building. If action isn’t taken these stars of the New York City skyline will be permanently eclipsed. If the public can’t see them, why preserve them? Even the preservation resistant Real Estate Board of New York would likely gasp at the notion of demolishing these two iconic New York landmarks. “The view of the New York skyline is nationally and … <Read More>


Wide Support Expressed for Designation of Former Tammany Hall [Update: City Council Land Use Committee Voted Unanimously for Designation]

Speakers largely emphasized the role of Tammany in New York City’s social and political history. On June 25, 2013, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing on the potential designation of the former Tammany Hall, at 100 East 17th Street off of Union Square, as an individual City landmark. Landmarks calendared the building on May 14, 2013. The building was Tammany’s second headquarters, replacing a meeting hall on 14th Street. Built at the height … <Read More>


Sam Schwartz: Managing Traffic Through “Fair Pricing”

This week there has been a renewed interest in Sam Schwartz’s revised congestion pricing plan which is being pushed by a group called Move NY.  Read CityLaw’s great profile on Mr. Schwartz that details his plan.  This was originally published on April 18, 2013.

Sam Schwartz is the president and CEO of Sam Schwartz Engineering, a firm that specializes in transportation planning and engineering. Schwartz’s new congestion pricing proposal, “Move New York,” … <Read More>