Owners claim financial hardship. The full Council approved Landmarks’ designation of two Staten Island homes over the protest of the current owners. Landmarks had unanimously approved the designation of the 1850-built DeHart House in Tottenville at its May 16th meeting and later voted on June 13th to make the Mark W. Allen house, a 1920s Craftmans style bungalow in West New Brighton, an individual landmark. 3 CityLand 78 (June 15, 2006); 3 CityLand 96 (July 15, 2006).

Both owners opposed designation of their homes at the August 14th hearing before the City Council’s Subcommittee on Landmarks, Siting & Maritime Uses.

The owner of the Mark W. Allen House, Marie Busiello, alleged that her house was singled out for designation because Council Member Michael McMahon’s chief of staff lived next door and designation would stop her plan to sell the lot to a developer. (read more…)

Owner claims house not unique and had been altered. On April 18, 2006, Landmarks held a hearing on the proposed designation of the Mark W. Allen house in Staten Island. The house exemplifies craftsman-style architecture, an indigenous American style that originated in California and became popular throughout the United States following World War I. The Allen house, one of very few craftsman bungalows built in Staten Island, is typified by its overhanging eaves, asymmetrical roof planes, and stone work. The house was built in 1920-21, for Mark W. Allen, a prominent Staten Island politician. Allen was known as the father of the Goethals Bridge and the Outer Bridge Crossover for his instrumental part in their development. Allen also served in the State Senate, as president of the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce, and unsuccessfully ran for Staten Island Borough President.

Proponents of designation included Council Member Michael McMahon, who called the bungalow “historically and architecturally significant,” and spoke of it serving as “a bridge to Staten Island’s pastoral past.” McMahon asked Landmarks to “act now to preserve the house for future generations of New Yorkers.” Community resident Michael Morrell, who also urged swift designation, spoke of Allen’s impact on the history of Staten Island’s North Shore, and called the house a “centerpiece of the neighborhood.” (read more…)