Historic Districts Council Newsstand

News from Mike Miscione: Manhattan Borough Historian

mmiscione@manhattanbp.org

boroughhistorian@manhattanbp.org

FIVE BOROUGH HISTORIANS PROFILED ON WNYC RADIO

Recently, WNYC Radio profiled all five Borough Historians. Follow the links below to listen to the interviews. At the bottom of each page are links to supplementary stories. A big thank you goes to producer Kathleen Horan for making us all look and sound so good.

Queens (Jack Eichenbaum)

http://beta.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2010/jul/19/passion-all-things-queens/  

Brooklyn (Ron Schweiger)

http://beta.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2010/jul/26/collecting-history-brooklyn/  

Bronx (Lloyd Ultan)

http://beta.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2010/aug/02/bronx-borough-historian/  

Staten Island (Thomas Matteo)

http://beta.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2010/aug/09/studying-staten-island/  

Manhattan (Michael Miscione)

http://beta.wnyc.org/articles/wnyc-news/2010/aug/16/manhattan-borough-historian/  

BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND!

EXPLORE THE OLD BROOKLYN WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM BY BICYCLE (OCTOBER 2)

I’ve been asked by NYCH2O to reprise a popular historical bike tour I led a few years back. We’ll rediscover the now-defunct water supply system that served the once-independent City of Brooklyn. The system, built in the 19th century, brought fresh water from Queens and Long Island into the city. It was largely abandoned after Brooklyn was consolidated into New York City in 1898, and its components — pipes, reservoirs, pumping stations, wells, etc. — were dismantled, built over or repurposed. But some remnants and ruins still exist, and can be seen if you know where to look.

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Meet-up: 11:00a

Cost: $10.00

Full details and registration: http://brooklynwaterworks.eventbrite.com/  

OPENHOUSENEWYORK SEEKS VOLUNTEERS FOR OHNY WEEKEND 2010

Every year openhousenewyork (OHNY) Weekend celebrates New York City’s historical built environment by providing free access to hundreds of significant buildings and sites, many of which are off-limits to the public the rest of the year. OHNY also offers educational tours and talks related to the city’s history, design, planning and preservation.

But OHNY can’t do it alone. They rely on enthusiastic and capable volunteers to help staff their hundreds of sites and programs in all five boroughs. I encourage you – as well as your friends, family, colleagues and/or students — to join me as I lend them a hand this year. (This year OHNY Weekend is on October 9 & 10, 2010.)

To volunteer, see: http://www.ohny.org/volunteers/volunteer.cfm  

For more information about openhousenewyork, please visit ohny.org .

CATCH “BEFORE THEY WERE PARKS” EXHIBIT BEFORE IT CLOSES

Jonathan Kuhn and his colleagues oversee the art and antiquities of the NYC Parks Department. They do a splendid and largely unsung job promoting the history of the city and its parkland, so I want to throw them a little plug.

Earlier this summer they put together a terrific show at the Arsenal Gallery titled “Before They Were Parks.” If you have not already seen it, I encourage you to check it out before it closes on September 9 (soon!). The exhibition uses vintage and contemporary photographs to recount the transformation of 36 city parks, from their pre-park states into today’s forms. Also in the exhibition is an 18th-century gravestone unearthed last fall in Washington Square Park and an artist’s model for Frederick Douglass Circle.

Read an article about it here: http://www.thevillager.com/villager_375/exhibitshows.html  

“Before They Were Parks” will run through September 9 at the Arsenal Gallery, located just inside Central Park at East 64 St. and Fifth Ave., on the third floor of the Arsenal Building, weekdays 9:00a to 5:00p. Admission is free. The gallery is closed on holidays.

Thursday • September 30 • 6:30 PM

Lindsay’s Forgotten Preservation Legacy:

Air Rights and the Strengthening of the Landmarks Law

The Lindsay administration activated and extended the Wagner-era landmarks law, using a variety of strategies to protect historic buildings and districts, including Grand Central Terminal, the South Street Seaport, and the Theater District. How important was the tool of air rights transfers in this program, and how did air rights factor into the pivotal Penn Central Co. vs. New York City Supreme Court decision? How well have air rights held up as a preservation tool? These and other questions will be considered by former City Planning Commission Chairman Donald Elliott; Chief Assistant Corporation Counsel Leonard Koerner; Frank Sciame of F.J. Sciame Construction; and former Office of Lower Manhattan Development Director Richard Weinstein. The conversation will be moderated by former Landmarks Commission Chair and former President of the Municipal Art Society, Kent Barwick, with closing remarks by Robert Tierney, Chair, Landmarks Preservation Commission.

Co-sponsored by the Landmarks Preservation Commission, the Historic Districts Council, the New York Landmarks Conservancy, and the South Street Seaport Museum.

 RESERVATIONS REQUIRED

$6 tickets when you mention the Historic Districts Council!

To reserve your discounted ticket, please call 917.492.3395 or e-mail programs@mcny.org .

Presented in conjunction with the exhibition

America’s Mayor: John V. Lindsay and the Reinvention of New York

Through October 3

America’s Mayor: John V. Lindsay and the Reinvention of New York examines the controversial tenure (1966-1973) and dramatic times of New York’s 103rd mayor. The exhibition presents John V. Lindsay’s efforts to lead a city that was undergoing radical changes and that was at the center of the upheavals of the 1960s and 1970s; it highlights Mayor Lindsay’s ambitious initiatives to redefine New York City’s government, economy, culture, and urban design. Through his outspoken championship of city life, commitment to civil rights, and opposition to the Vietnam War, Lindsay emerged as a national figure in a troubled and exhilarating era. The exhibition also explores the costs of his approach, including growing criticism from disaffected voters and an increasingly out of control city budget.

Regular Program Ticket Prices

$12 Non-Members

$8 Seniors and Students

$6 Museum Members

 *A two dollar surcharge applies for unreserved, walk-in participants.

For reservations and information please call 917.492.3395

Museum of the City of New York

1220 Fifth Avenue

New York, NY 10029

212.534.1672

www.mcny.org

Directions

By subway: #6 Lexington Avenue train to 103rd St., then walk three blocks west.

#2 or #3 train to Central Park North/110th St., walk one block east to Fifth Avenue, then south to 103rd St.

By bus: M1, M3, M4, or M106 to 104th St., M2 to 101st St.

Accessibility

Headsets and neck loops available for hard of hearing visitors for programs in the Museum Auditorium. Ramp access is available at the 104th Street entrance.

Walking Tour on Sunday
Sunday promises to be a beautiful day to join our walking tour of historic Coney Island!  Don’t miss your chance!

The guided tour will cover all the historic buildings along Surf Avenue, as well as some of Coney’s existing landmarks. We will have historic pictures so you can see what the buildings once were; and a few renderings illustrating how these buildings could be creatively restored and reused.

WHERE – In front of the Shore Theater, on the corner of Surf and Stillwell Aves
WHEN – Sunday, September 5th at 11:00 am (and every Sunday thereafter through the end of Sept, rain or shine.)
FREE! (but suggested donation of $10 appreciated)

We will take a stroll down Surf Avenue and discuss Coney Island’s surviving historic buildings. Unfortunately, several of these buildings are threatened with imminent demolition.  These include Henderson’s Music Hall, where Harpo Marx first performed with his brothers Groucho and Gummo, and the Grashorn Building, Coney Island’s oldest structure.

This will be a great opportunity to find out more about the corridor that we hope will remain the historic core of a spectacular 21st-century Coney Island that honors the area’s heritage.

All comers get a free Save Coney Island button and a copy of our brand new Save Coney Island map!  (a special thanks to everyone who donated and made the printing of this trial run possible!!)

Hope you can join us!

Tragically, there currently exists a situation in the Fulton Ferry Landing Historic District which highlights the very real need for more education and awareness of how to care for historic buildings. For several years, community residents have been watching as the three Greek Revival buildings built between 1836-1839 at 11-15 Old Fulton Street have grown decrepit through neglect and deferred maintenance. This spring, alerted to the now-crisis-level problem, the Landmarks Preservation Commission and the Department of Buildings inspected the buildings and instructed the negligent owner to begin curative actions.

Unfortunately, months passed without action and the buildings’ condition worsened. Currently, the buildings are under threat of an already-issued emergency demolition order as workers are finally beginning stabilization work. There is serious question if these landmark buildings, which were built almost 50 years before the neighboring Brooklyn Bridge, can be stabilized and saved. Local officials have rallied around the community’s concerns and LPC and DOB are keeping a very watchful eye on the properties but it’s a tragedy that the situation has gotten to this point. Hopefully, these historic buildings can be saved. Regardless, it is obvious that there needs to be a public discussion about how the City and concerned New Yorkers can work together to better prevent our protected historic buildings from crumbling in front of us.

HOW YOU CAN HELP: Please contact CM Steve Levin slevin@council.nyc.gov; Assembly member Joan Millman millmanj@assembly.state.ny.us; and State Senator Daniel Squadron squadron@senate.state.ny.us and urge them to continue to support the City’s efforts to fix this problem and save these historic buildings.

Attention all architects! This is your chance to learn more about shoring and stabilization of historic buildings directly from experts in the field and earn continuing education credits for your participation!

Tuesday September 28, 2010

9:00am-1:00pm

Institute of Classical Architecture and Classical America

20 West 44^th Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues

New York, NY

4 CE/HSW Credits!

$125/per person

$100/per person – Special offer for Friends of HDC & Professional Partners!

In recent years, with an increase in construction and demolition across the city, New York has witnessed several unfortunate losses of historic structures due to improper stabilization and shoring. Understanding the unique circumstances surrounding the structural make-up of historic buildings and how to properly undertake shoring for these buildings is crucial to their continued preservation.

Join the Historic Districts Council for this special seminar examining shoring methods and case studies from work on historic buildings. Techniques are improving all the time and architects should understand many of these techniques to have a fuller knowledge of preserving and restoring buildings.

This program will feature presentations from several industry experts, including Brad Kiefer, Senior Associate, Goldstein Associates Consulting Engineers and Nat Oppenheimer, Principal, Robert Silman Associates. Special guest Tim Lynch, P.E., Executive Director of the Forensic Engineering Unit at the New York City Department of Buildings will give a short presentation on how the Department of Buildings oversees shoring and structural work.

 To register for this event, click here or call (212)614-9107.

The third installment of the Queens Heritage Quest series appears in today’s New York Daily News. This installment includes three stories and a photo gallery.

Please click the links below for the stories:
Calls for a Queens TV/movie trail
Potential “Seinfeld” tour of Queens
Borough Hall supports Ghost Sign Trail
Photo Gallery: Queens TV/movie Trail

For background on the series:
Queens Heritage Quest

The Staten Island Museum invites you to attend:

The History of Staten Island: Walk Tottenville! Saturday, September 4^th, 11:00 a.m. $15/$10 members. A fact filled outing featuring Staten Island’s southern most community. Business and industry, important personalities, architecture, educational endeavors, maritime activities, historic preservation, religious institutions, and more will be featured. Discover this special area and learn why it is near and dear to the hearts of community residents. Hosted by Historian and Preservationist Tina Kaasmann-Dunn of the Tottenville Historical Society. Meet at 24 Brighton Street off Amboy Road. To register call 718/483-7123.

*****************

Also join us for:

 Picture Perfect Walking Tours, Tuesday, September 14^th, 7:00 p.m. $10/$8 members. Take a “sit-down” tour of Kreischerville (Charleston), Prince’s Bay, Port Richmond and Tottenville as viewed through a slide presentation of postcards, photos, maps, and documents from the Staten Island Museum’s History Archives and Library. Many of these images have never been seen before! Presented by Curator of History Patricia M. Salmon. Program held at the Staten Island Museum’s History Archives & Library, Building H, Snug Harbor Cultural Center, 1000 Richmond Terrace. To register  call 718/483-7123.

Monday, September 13: Reading, Understanding and Presenting Architectural Drawings with Laura Heim, architect and president of the American Institute of Architects, Queens Chapter

8:30am, Neighborhood Preservation Center, 232 East 11^th Street, Manhattan 

Proposing alterations and new construction in historic neighborhoods is a complex process which has to account for a variety of concerns. To reach the best possible outcome, it is important that that the proposal has all the necessary information and is clearly presented to and understood by everyone involved. Laura Heim, architect, and president of the American Institute of Architects, Queens Chapter, will present examples of several approved architectural projects. She will discuss the proper ways in which to present proposals at the Landmarks Preservation Commission and to local community boards, as well as what to look for when reviewing these projects as a non-architect. This presentation will be of interest to both professionals and interested members of the public.

 Credits:

1 CE/HSW Credit (Towards NYS Architects Licensing)

Credit should be self-reported to AIA

 This event is FREE to the public. Reservations are required, as space is limited. For more information, please contact Frampton Tolbert at (212) 614-9107 or ftolbert@hdc.org.

About the Presenter: Laura Heim AIA, LEED AP, has 25 years of experience in architecture and historic preservation as both practitioner and teacher. Her firm is dedicated to creating architecture which is sensitive to the circumstance of site while skillfully resolving complex program issues. Before establishing her own firm, Laura Heim Architect PLLC, Ms. Heim worked for various firms in New York and was the Project Manager / Architect for the LIRR Atlantic Terminal Pavilion in Brooklyn, NY, and Lead Designer and Project Architect for the new Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project in Northern Virginia. In the area of historic preservation and adaptive reuse, she was the Project Manager / Architect for the renovation and restoration of the New York State Capitol Assembly Spaces, including the extensively stenciled Gothic Revival Assembly Parlor, which received an AIA NY State Award of Merit in Design in 2003.

Ms. Heim received her Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Virginia where she received the Alpha Rho Chi Medal for Leadership and the Shannon Prize for highest academic standing. She received her Master of Architecture from Columbia University in 1984 where she was awarded the American Institute of Architects Medal for Design/Academic Excellence and a William Kinne Traveling Fellowship for postgraduate studies in Scandinavia. Ms. Heim has taught architectural design and history at the University of Virginia, University of Florida, Catholic University, SUNY Stony Brook, Pratt Institute and NYIT. Currently, she serves as the president of the Queens chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

The Neighborhood Partners Program is sponsored, in part, by Deutsche Bank, Lily Auchincloss Foundation, Assembly Members Jonathan L. Bing, Deborah J. Glick, Richard N. Gottfried and Daniel J. O’Donnell, and State Senators Thomas K. Duane, Liz Krueger & Diane J. Savino.

Coney Op-Ed in the Wall Street Journal
Coney Island historian Michael Immerso published an op-ed last Thursday.  In it, he explains the significance of New York State’s determination of eligibility awarded to the Coney Island Historic District and discusses the importance of preserving and reusing Coney Island’s historic structures in order to redevelop the area as a historic amusement destination. 
You can read the full op-ed here.

Walking Tour on Sunday (w/ Charles Denson!)
Don’t miss the chance to join us in our walking tour of historic Coney Island!  We are offering our free walking tours every Sunday through the end of September. 

*** This Sunday we will be joined by Coney Island historian and life-long resident Charles Denson, author of “Coney Island: Lost and Found”. *** 

The guided tour will cover all the historic buildings along Surf Avenue, as well as some of Coney’s existing landmarks. We will have historic pictures so you can see what the buildings once were; and a few renderings illustrating how these buildings could be creatively restored and reused.

WHERE – In front of the Shore Theater, on the corner of Surf and Stillwell Aves
WHEN – Sunday, August 29th at 11:00 am (and every Sunday thereafter through the end of Sept, rain or shine.)
FREE! (but suggested donation of $10 appreciated)

All comers get a free Save Coney Island button and a copy of our brand new Save Coney Island map!  (a special thanks to everyone who donated and made the printing of this trial run possible!!)

As always, thanks for your support!

Save Coney Island

Contact Governor Paterson!

Urge him to “Sign Senate Bill S. 7556″

In June, the New York State Senate and Assembly passed legislation designed to bolster NYS Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit projects by bringing new private investment to these efforts.
 
This legislation, which would allow banks and insurance companies to apply New York State Rehabilitation Tax Credits against their New York State franchise tax liabilities was transmitted to Governor Paterson for consideration last week. 
 
The Preservation League is asking developers, financiers, municipal officials, architects and other professionals supporting the rehabilitation of historic buildings in New York State to contact the Governor to urge him to sign this bill into law.
 
S.7556 / A.10839 would allow banks and insurance companies to apply the recently expanded NYS rehabilitation tax credit program for commercial projects against their state franchise tax liability. Currently, these companies can only apply the credit against their general corporate income tax liability, meaning banks and insurance companies based outside of New York State have limited incentive to invest in NYS rehabilitation projects.
 
Banks and insurance companies – active users of the federal rehabilitation tax credit – could more effectively use the New York State Rehabilitation Credit program, and potentially bring new investment dollars to bear on redevelopment projects in New York State if the Governor signs this legislation.  
 
Please reach out to the Governor by Monday August 30th to make the case for signing this legislation. Letters in support should be addressed to:
 
Governor David A. Paterson
State Capitol
Albany, NY 12224

and emailed to the Governor via his Legislative Secretary’s address, with “Please sign S.7556″ in the subject. Please bcc the League so we can supplement your advocacy efforts with our own.