Testimony heard on proposed rule regarding installation of Wi-Fi kiosks with digital advertising display

Proposed rule change would change text governing installation of public pay phones in landmarked area to allow for installation of Public Design Commission-approved public communications structures with digital advertising. On March 3, 2016, the Landmarks Preservation Commission held a hearing on a proposed amendment to agency rules governing the installation phone booths. The proposed rule changes would update the agency rules pertaining to public pay phones. The updated rules responds to the de Blasio administration’s … <Read More>


Clock Tower LPC Certificate Annulled By Court

Justice found Landmarks had authority mandate public access to interior landmark, and require that historic clock’s operation remain mechanical. The Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the interior of the former New York Life Insurance Company Building, at 346 Broadway as an interior landmark in 1987.  The designated space includes the “Clocktower Suite” inside a tower at the top of the building. A spiral staircase and machinery room for the four clock faces on the tower, … <Read More>


Block-Sized City-Beautiful Powerhouse Landmarked after 38 Years

Massive West Side powerhouse, designed by Stanford White, continue to operate as steam-generating plant. On December 5, 2017, Landmarks voted to designate the former Interborough Rapid Transit Powerhouse, at 850 Twelfth Avenue, an individual City landmark.  The structure, which occupies an entire block along the West Side Highway, dates to 1905 and was designed by McKim, Mead and White’s Stanford White. The monumental generating station was built to power the Interborough Rapid Transit subway system, … <Read More>


Court Rules Permit to Disconnect Historic Clock was Irrationally Issued

Landmarks permit that would have seen designated interior converted to inaccessible private residence, and historic clock mechanism disconnected, is ruled to have been issued irrationally and influenced by erroneous legal counsel. The Landmark Preservation Commission designed spaces in the former New York Life Insurance Building, located at 346 Broadway, constructed in 1894 to 1898, as an interior City landmark in 1987. The designation included the 13th floor clock tower, which held the four glass clock … <Read More>


New Development to Surround Interior Landmarked Flushing Theater

Long-gestating plan for new residential and retail development will require the removal and offsite restoration of salvageable features of interior landmark. On May 16, 2017, Landmarks considered an application to re-authorize a certificate of appropriateness for work to the RKO Keith’s Flushing Theater, an interior City landmark. The Churrigueresque former theater, designed by Thomas Lamb, stands at 135-29 Northern Boulevard in Flushing, Queens. The surrounding structure, which is not landmarked, will be demolished, with … <Read More>


Thirty of 95 backlogged items prioritized for 2016 designation votes

Some items will be removed from calendar due to political reality that designations will not be ratified by Council; others are found to be adequately protected so as to not require prioritization; others to lack significance that would merit immediate designation. On February 23, 2016, Landmarks made determinations on the disposition of 95 items added to Landmarks’ calendar before 2010, but never subjected to a vote on designation. In 2015 the commission had announced … <Read More>