NEWS: Strollers versus Cobblestones in Tribeca
From the New York Post
http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/block_on_the_rocks_regionalnews_jennifer_fermino.htm
BLOCK ON THE ‘ROCKS’
By JENNIFER FERMINO
July 25, 2006 — A downtown fight over the landmarked streets of TriBeCa has pitted stroller-pushing moms against hardened preservationists.
Residents of 44 Laight St. – a converted factory where condo lofts go for $5 million a pop – say they’re tired of traipsing along the jagged cobblestones outside their building.
They complain that it’s hard to navigate the bumpy street, which doesn’t even have a designated sidewalk.
Come winter, it’s impossible to shovel snow around the old stones, many of which are cracked and jagged.
In fact, that block, between Hudson and Varick Streets, is in such bad shape, one insurer refused to underwrite the building, said the managing agent, Paul Brensilber.
“It’s a safety hazard,” he said.
So, the building’s brass petitioned the Landmarks Committee of Community Board 1 on June 20 to have part of the historic street paved over with more Manolo Blahnik-friendly concrete.
Most of the street’s antique cobblestones would remain, but the managers wanted to rip up the ones directly in front of the building and create a level sidewalk.
They even agreed to pay for the paving.
But that was an offer the community board, in its June 20 meeting, promptly rejected. “We were not treated with respect,” said Brensilber. “They had made up their mind in advance.”
Not surprising, since many board members are veterans of the 1980s and ’90s battles to preserve the neighborhood’s historic character.
“Anyone that has a sense of how the historic process works would know that cobblestones are a hot-button issue,” said Bruce Ehrmann, vice-chair of the Landmarks Committee.
He explained, “The landmarking of TriBeCa was a hard-fought and hard-won designation.”
Roger Byrom, the committee’s chair, was a little more succinct.
“If you don’t like cobblestones in TriBeCa, live on the Upper West Side,” he sniffed.
Byrom said he was “stunned” when the committee was asked to remove the precious – in his eyes, at least – stones.
“We’ve never heard of anyone trying to replace them,” he said.
He admitted that the street could probably use a little sprucing up.
“It should be fixed with cobblestones,” he said. “But guess what? That’s not the cheapest option.”
The city’s Department of Transportation, which is responsible for all road repairs, said Con Edison is repairing some of the damage to the street that was caused by the utility’s recent drilling there.