The Municipal Art Society of New York, along with six civic organizations, today filed a brief with the New York Supreme Court as amici curiae, or friends of the court, to assist the court in resolving the issues presented in Protect the Village Historic District, et. al, v. New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, et. al.

The case arises from the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission’s (LPC) determination that St. Vincent’s met the judicial test for hardship and could proceed with the demolition of its Edward and Theresa O’Toole Building, on Seventh Avenue between 12th and 13th streets. The Commission reached its preliminary determination in October of 2008, and issued its Final Notice to Proceed in May of 2009.

Joining MAS in filing the brief are the New York Landmarks Conservancy, The National Trust for Historic Preservation, The Preservation League of New York State, The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, The Brooklyn Heights Association and Friends of the Upper East Side Historic Districts.

In filing the brief, MAS and other amici have taken the uncommon step of supporting neither party to the litigation.  The primary function of the submission is to assist the court in reaching its determination by outlining the proper judicial test for hardship relief, as well as the regulatory takings analysis on which that test is premised. Continue Reading>>

In honor of Earth Day, MAS has released a study that details a suggested framework for analyzing climate change, and enables New York State to evaluate and address the potential climate change impact of different actions in land-use, energy and industrial transportation, and other issues. In order to fight climate change, it is critical that we reduce green house gases (GHG). Just last week, the Environmental Protection Agency formally declared six green house gasses to be pollutants that endanger public health and welfare. 

The MAS study concludes that the state has the ability to require far-reaching environmental review that can substantially advance efforts to reduce GHG. Meaningful environmental review can greatly assist governmental agencies and the public in understanding the climate change consequences of an action, while helping to address the resulting impacts. 

“Climate change is a global challenge and New Yorkers have the responsibility to aggressively reduce GHG emissions and prepare for the changes in air temperature, sea level, and precipitation, and the massive implications of those changes, to human and natural environments,” said Vin Cipolla, President of the Municipal Art Society. “New York is making great strides to reduce the state’s GHG emissions, but more solutions can and should be pursued to drastically reduce its contribution to global climate change.”  Continue Reading>>

The New York City Council will hold a public hearing next Monday, January 26, at 1:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall on Intro. 623 which proposes to allow advertising on sidewalk construction sheds for a yet to be determined permit fee. The Municipal Art Society will testify against this ill-conceived plan. [Read MAS press release here.] Download our testimony, here.

Outdoor advertising and sidewalk construction sheds blight our city’s streetscape. The City wisely seeks to regulate outdoor advertising with strict zoning regulations and imposes design guidelines for sidewalk construction sheds, but the City Council now wants to combine these two eyesores with a permit that would allow outdoor advertising companies to advertise on sidewalk sheds in manufacturing and commercial zoning districts. Read coverage of this issue in Metro NY, January 27, 2009. Continue Reading>>

The Municipal Art Society hosted its third Continuing Legal Education (CLE) course of the fall earlier today. Commercial Uses of Parkland: The Law Governing New York’s Open Spaces, was moderated by Michael Gruen, Esq. and co-sponsored by the Environmental Law Section and Historic Preservation and Parks Committee of the New York State Bar Association, focused on issues surrounding the use and alienation of parks in New York City and State. Panelists highlighted the significant case law, doctrine, and policy concerns that shape and determine New York parks and commercial uses within them.

MAS is delighted to announce that its final CLE program of the year – Clean Vehicles in New York: The Past & Future of Alternative Fuels for City Fleets - will be held next Thursday, December 11.  To learn more about this exciting course focused on a current issue, click here, and to register, click here.

The impact of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) is being felt throughout the country as municipalities must reconsider their planning for, and zoning of, religious institutions under the threat of RLUIPA litigation. The Act’s contentious origins aside, RLUIPA is now a well established law with tremendous implications and MAS has organized a continuing legal education (CLE) program to discuss the federal statute’s constitutionality and its influence on local governments next Wednesday, October 23.

The program will introduce the statute, reviewing its constitutional grounds and operative language, and then take a closer look at the impact of the statute generally and locally. Continue Reading>>

In an ironic twist, Glacéau Vitaminwater’s new ad campaign that boasts about obeying the law – “Legally, we are prohibited from making exaggerated claims about the potency of the ingredients in this bottle,” says the label on an oversized, silhouetted reproduction of its dragonfruit drink, is actually illegal due to its placement on New York City lampposts reports (The New York Times). MAS has been fighting illegal advertising for years through its illegal signage campaign.

In other news, The New York Times reports that Mayor Bloomberg is proposing to put wind turbines on New York City shorelines and bridges to diversify the City’s energy resources. In open space issues, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle follows democratic hopeful for the 25th State Senate District, Daniel Squadron, who is presenting a new vision for Brooklyn Bridge Park . Continue Reading>>

On March 25, the New York State Court of Appeals unanimously ruled that an East Village developer could not build a 19 story dormitory without a commitment from an educational institution. The decision dealt a major blow to unscrupulous developers and signaled a major step forward in the protection of a New York City-designated landmark school building.

MAS filed an amicus brief in support of the Department of Building’s requirement that a developer show a connection with an educational institution sufficient to persuade it that the building, when built, really would be a dormitory. In 2001, developer Gregg Singer proposed a tower on the site of P.S. 64, a landmark school building on E. 9th St. and Ave. B designed by the city’s most prolific school architect, C.B.J. Snyder, and constructed in 1904. From the late 1970s until it was sold by the city in 1998, the East Village community utilized the unique design of P.S. 64 for a community facility and arts space known as Charas/El Bohio. Continue Reading>>

An article in today’s Brownstoner reports that a new law seeking to extend the influence of 197-a plans to give them actual legislative weight is likely to be introduced before the City Council this summer. According to Brownstoner, the legislation, to be introduced by Queens Council Member Tony Avella, is a direct by-product of the long-standing MAS Campaign for Community-Based Planning.

MAS Planning Center Director Eve Baron said, “This is our vision for the future of the neighborhood based on need and aspiration.” Council Member Avella agreed saying, “This’ll be a way to have planning happen from the bottom up, rather than the top down.”

To read the article in full, click here.

Click on the play icon on the image at left to watch video. In mid-November 2007, MAS hosted a Continuing Legal Education (CLE) panel discussion on law policy and urban retail diversity, titled Mom and Pop Among the Chains, which investigated the legal mechanisms available that could be used to help maintain diversity – large and small retailers, national chains, and mom and pop shops – in the city’s retail that has witnessed a noticeable growth in national chain stores in certain areas.

The program touched on a wide range of issues, some of which were also raised at a Jane Jacobs and the Future of New York panel discussion, titled “The Oversuccessful City: Neighborhood Character in the Face of Change”, a short video of which can be viewed here.

For more on the changing nature of retail in New York, click here.

While MAS’ lawsuit was ultimately unsuccessful in its attempt to require a Section 106 review that would examine the advisability of paving over the historic working graving dock, MAS urges you to Send a letter to IKEA and ask them to be a good corporate neighbor. They should share the history of this important site by providing boat tours and space to exhibit the history of the shipyards. Ask them to not sever the piers from the shore and provide landing rights for ships and barges. And make sure they live up to their obligations to hire local residents to work in the store and as contractors, and to provide a ferry dock with universal landing, at which many different designs of ferries and boats can dock.

IKEA’s mailing address is:
IKEA Customer Relations
9930 Franklin Square Drive
Baltimore, MD 21236

A Civil War-era graving dock, along with associated high-wage jobs, are threatened on Brooklyn’s waterfront if current plans for an Ikea store proceed. But alternative plans commissioned by the Municipal Art Society show that the new development can coexist with the historic structures and the working waterfront. (Click here to learn more about a related MAS lawsuit.)

This story was originally published on November 21, 2006. Click here to read it.