The Municipal Art Society of New York

After nearly five years of review, the federal government has finally transferred the six-acre Admirals Row site to the City of New York, which will turn it over to the Brooklyn Navy Yard for redevelopment. The Navy Yard’s development will include a grocery store, retail and an industrial building. Their plans also include the preservation of two of the most significant historic buildings on the site, the Timber Shed and Quarters B.

MAS has been a strong advocate for the preservation of these historic buildings, and for five years has been raising serious concerns over the federal government’s failure to stabilize the buildings, and for leaving them open to the elements. Continue Reading>>

On Tuesday, the City Council Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting And Maritime Uses affirmed the Landmarks Preservation Commission’s designation of the Borough Hall Skyscraper District. MAS testified in December in support of upholding the Downtown Brooklyn historic district, which we originally proposed in conjunction with the Brooklyn Heights Association and the New York Landmarks Conservancy in 2006. MAS congratulates all of our colleagues who were involved in this important decision Continue Reading>>

There’s a strong perception that greening historic buildings is made arduous by Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) regulations. To help counter that notion, MAS and the LPC are producing a manual, “Greening New York City’s Landmarks: A Guide for Property Owners.” MAS has selected Cook+Fox and Terrapin Bright Green to develop the guide, which will provide straightforward action steps on how to improve the energy efficiency and sustainability of the city’s landmark buildings while meeting preservation standards. Continue Reading>>

In response to Governor Cuomo’s 2012 State of the State address last week, in which he announced a proposal to replace the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center with a complex in Queens, MAS President Vin Cipolla urges “What’s good for Manhattan must be good for Queens.” Vin’s op-ed on the State of the State for Metropolis follows below in its entirety.

What’s good for Manhattan must be good for Queens
For almost two decades, The Municipal Art Society of New York (MAS) has advocated for the transformation of the Farley Post Office into a new Penn Station to be called Moynihan Station. Governor Cuomo’s recent State of the State address suggests that 2012 could be the station’s moment. Continue Reading>>

MAS joined several hundred community residents last night for Community Board Two’s first official public review of NYU’s application to redevelop significant portions of their core campus in Greenwich Village. Huge attendance caused the meeting to relocate to a larger venue several blocks away; for nearly three hours, residents spoke about how the years of construction impacts, loss of public amenities and increased density will affect their neighborhood’s historic character and livability. Continue Reading>>

Have you ever wondered what that strange door in the hallway of your building was originally intended for?  Or who lived there one hundred years ago? Wouldn’t you like to know who built your favorite buildings in New York City?

Join MAS in February for Researching the History of Buildings in New York City, where participants will learn how to find the answers to these questions and much more. Discover how to access the city’s records in-person and online in this small seminar limited to 30 people. Continue Reading>>

From the inclusion of historic preservation in PlaNYC 2.0 as a result of our Preservation and Climate Change Campaign, to the terrifically successful second annual MAS Summit for New York City, where we released Fashioning the Future: NYC’s Garment District as well as the second annual MAS Survey on Livability, 2011 was a remarkable year for MAS.  Read more about the past twelve months at MAS in President Vin Cipolla’s end of year report.

On December 7, the City Council’s Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting and Maritime Uses held a public hearing on the designation of the Borough Hall Skyscraper Historic District. MAS, along with many preservation groups, including the Brooklyn Heights Association and the New York Landmarks Conservancy, testified in support of the historic district, stating:

“The City has made serious investments into the revitalization and rejuvenation of this part of Brooklyn,  from the Downtown Brooklyn rezoning to the creation of Brooklyn Bridge Park. Continue Reading>>

Last week, it was announced that the Cornell University-Technion-Israel Institute of Technology Consortium was chosen from seven applicants who this past summer responded to the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) Request for Proposals (RFP) for Applied Sciences NYC. The RFP called for a university or partnership to develop and operate an applied science campus in New York City in exchange for access to city-owned land on Roosevelt Island, as well $100 million in city capital for infrastructure upgrades. Continue Reading>>

Last week’s release of the MAS report, New York’s Next Great Waterfront Park garnered a fair amount of media attention. A synthesis of the lively and insightful discussions that took place at our July 2011 charrette, the report was prepared in conjunction with noted New York landscape architect Barbara Wilks and her firm, W Architecture and Landscape Architecture.

Read the complete report online, or to download it click here.

Check out the press about New York’s Next Great Waterfront Park below: Continue Reading>>

On December 13, AECOM, the global design, engineering and planning firm, announced that they received a $19 million contract by the Moynihan Station Development Corporation and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to complete the first phase of work to transform the Farley Post Office building into Moynihan Station – a new inter-city rail hub for New York City.

A recent article in Bloomberg News discusses the critical role that Moynihan Station will play in the expansion of the Northeast Corridor. Ridership on the Northeast Corridor has grown 30 percent from 2000 to 2011. According to Amtrak, however, the only way that additional passengers could be accommodated along the Northeast Corridor in the future is if the federal agency moves its operations in New York City from the currently overcrowded Penn Station across the street to Moynihan Station. Continue Reading>>

On December 13, 2011, MAS released the report New York’s Next Great Waterfront Park to help guide the transformation of the former Con Ed pier along the East Midtown Waterfront into a thriving public space. New York’s Next Great Waterfront Park was prepared in conjunction with MAS Planning Committee member and noted New York landscape architect Barbara Wilks and her firm W Architecture and Landscape Architecture.

Read the complete report online, or to download it click here. Continue Reading>>

 Despite being named the “Coolest City on the Planet” by GQ, Brooklyn hasn’t been an independent city for more than a century. But it has a celebrated architectural heritage that equals cities across the country, including a skyscraper district that once rivaled equaled Lower Manhattan’s.  That district, which was designated a historic district by the City’s Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), includes an exceptional concentration of late nineteenth and twentieth century commercial skyscrapers ranging from Romanesque to Gothic styles.

On Wednesday, the City Council’s Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Siting and Maritime Uses will hold a public hearing on the designation of the Borough Hall Skyscraper Historic District. MAS will be testifying in support of the historic district, and invites readers to join us at the hearing, or contact their Councilmember and urge them to uphold the LPC’s designation and the district’s boundaries. Continue Reading>>

Since 2007, Rudin Management has been working to transform the St. Vincent’s Hospital site on West 12^th Street and Seventh Avenue into a residential, commercial and healthcare complex. In 2007 and 2008, MAS was actively involved during the Landmarks Preservation Commission hearings arguing for a strong interpretation of the landmarks law in order to prevent the establishment of a precedent that would allow developers to tear down landmark buildings such as the O’Toole Building.

Over the years, the project has gone through a number of changes, including the closing of St. Vincent’s Hospital in April 2010 because of financial problems. Continue Reading>>

On Monday, the City Council approved the Brooklyn Navy Yard’s proposal for Admiral’s Row Plaza, to be developed on a six-acre parcel currently owned by the federal government. The Navy Yard’s proposal is to rezone this site to allow for the development of a grocery store, retail and an industrial building. Their plans also include the preservation of two of the most significant historic buildings on the site. On November 15 MAS testified to the City Council in support of the proposal (click here to read testimony), stating that the preservation of the historic buildings will significantly improve the urban design and place-making aspects of the Navy Yard’s proposed development. Continue Reading>>