
Rendering of Proposed Lenox Terrace Development Image Credit: City Planning
Public appears at public hearing in strong opposition of the proposed redevelopment of Lenox Terrace. On December 18, 2019, the City Planning Commission heard an application by the Olnick Organization to re-zone and re-develop Lenox Terrace. Lenox Terrace is an existing residential development on a twelve acre superblock in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan. The block is situated between 135th Street to the north, 132nd Street to the south, 5th Avenue to the east and Malcom X Boulevard to the west. Presenting for the applicants were Ethan Goodman and Elizabeth Bennet of Fox Rothschild LLP and Christopher K. Grabé from Davis Brody Bond.
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David J. Burney
David J. Burney, Commissioner of the Department of Design and Construction, manages more than $6 billion of the City’s public works program. DDC maintains a relatively low profile, but its work on infrastructure and municipal facilities for the City’s frontline agencies currently includes roughly 170 design projects and 235 construction projects. DDC projects throughout the City range from the installation of sidewalk pedestrian ramps to the construction of new firehouses and libraries. Notable projects include the expansion of the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, the reconstruction of Columbus Circle, and the FDNY Training Facility on Randall’s Island. From his office in Long Island City, Burney spoke with CityLand about the agency and its role.
The first architect to lead DDC, Burney studied at the University of London’s Bartlett School of Architecture. He moved to New York City in 1982 and worked at a private architecture firm, Davis Brody and Associates (now Aedas), on projects such as the Rose Building at Lincoln Center and Zeckendorf Towers on Union Square. Burney entered the public sector in 1990 as Director of Design and Capital Improvement for the New York City Housing Authority, where he was responsible for setting design standards for its capital program. Burney remained at NYCHA until 2004, when Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg appointed him to head DDC as Commissioner. (read more…)