Certificate of Appropriateness Testimony
LPC-23-02712
427 East 140th Street – Mott Haven East Historic District
CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS
A Romanesque Revival/Renaissance Revival style rowhouse designed by Walter H.C. Hornum and built in 1897-1900. Application is to construct rear yard and rooftop additions, construct a connecting building on a portion of the lot, and excavate a portion of the rear yard.
Architect: Eric Safyan
HDC is glad the applicant is proposing to fill the gap in this row, and we feel this proposal could be successful, but we note the very strong AABAAB rhythm to this row of brownstones. Any new addition to this row should follow that rhythm. Accordingly, the new building on this empty lot should be scaled with the A units, not the B units, as proposed. In order to be scaled appropriately, the new building should be three stories, not four.
Further, we feel that the arrangement of the windows on the proposed new building requires further study, but will likely be resolved if the building itself is reduced by a story. The rear addition, while modest, is inappropriate because the rears on this row are uniform, and should remain so.
Action: No Action
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LPC-23-07009
Joyce Kilmer Park – Grand Concourse Historic District
BINDING REPORT
A park, established C. 1926. Application is to install a freestanding restroom enclosure prototype and a mechanical cabinet and alter paving.
HDC understands that this restroom is a pre-designed object. We note, however, that it could be painted, and we feel that a coat of Parks Department Green would make it more appropriate to its surroundings. In terms of siting, we feel this is an appropriate place for the unit, but we feel the applicant should further minimize the visibility of the RPZ Unit.
Action: Unanimously approved
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LPC-23-01128
407 Stuyvesant Avenue – Bedford-Stuyvesant/Expanded Stuyvesant Heights Historic District
CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS
A Romanesque Revival style rowhouse designed by R. Sweet and built in 1892. Application is to construct a rear yard addition.
Architect: Denise Lee
HDC generally supports this proposal and finds the massing of the addition to be appropriate. We think, however, the architect should continue to study the proposed fenestration and articulation.
Action: Unanimously Approved
LPC-23-03563
280 Garfield Place – Park Slope Historic District
CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS
A rowhouse built in 1910. Application is to remove bay windows and construct a rear yard addition.
Architect: Etelamaki Architecture
HDC finds the redesign of the existing two-story rear addition appropriate and sensitive. We appreciate the reuse of the existing stained glass in the new bay window. That said, we object to the third-story rear yard addition, and feel that such an addition might be better suited to the roof.
Action: Unanimously approved with the modification that they retain the bay window on the rear facade.
LPC-23-05435
439 8th Street – Park Slope Historic District Extension
CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS
A neo-Grec style rowhouse designed by Jefferson F. Wood and built c. 1884. Application is to construct a rear yard addition.
While the massing of this proposed rear addition is appropriate, the addition’s facade is inappropriate, because the hierarchy of the windows is not related to the rest of the building.
Action: Unanimously approved
LPC-22-11703
60 Greene Street – SoHo-Cast Iron Historic District
CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS
A Renaissance Revival style warehouse designed by Henry Fernbach and built in 1871. Application is to install storefront infill.
Architect: Neumann and Rudy
HDC finds this infill appropriate, but given the beauty of the original doors, we recommend that the applicant retain the doors after they are removed and store them for possible future restoration.
Action: No Action
LPC-23-05155
188 Spring Street – Sullivan-Thompson Historic District
CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS
An altered Federal style rowhouse built c. 1824. Application is to alter the front façade, construct rear yard and rooftop additions, and excavate the cellar.
Architect: Crown Architecture and Consulting
This is a Federal-style row house that dates to 1824. Though the building was altered at the turn of the 20th Century, the building’s historic features are largely intact, including, prominently, a horse-walk which the applicants propose removing. We believe that the horse walk is historically significant fabric, and should be maintained.
HDC also finds the rear facade to be too commercial looking and wholly inappropriate for this building. It must be reduced in height so that the original massing of the building is more legible, and the third-floor double casement windows and attic dormer can be retained.
Finally, we will note that the applicant proposes excavating the cellar of this building, which we find wholly inappropriate. Doing excavation on an 1824 building as fragile as this one could be catastrophic.
Action: No Action
LPC-23-06004
43 West 74th Street – Upper West Side/Central Park West Historic District
MISCELLANEOUS – AMENDMENT
A Renaissance Revival style rowhouse design by Max Hensel and built in 1889-90. Application is to amend Certificate of Appropriateness 22-01235 to expand the scope of work to construct a rooftop addition and alter a masonry opening.
Architect: Agencie Architecture and Engineering
HDC finds this rooftop addition largely appropriate with the exception of the bulkhead, which is too highly visible. In terms of the rear facade, the proposed multi-pane windows are inappropriate in this case. The simpler, previously approved rear facade treatment is preferable.
Action: Unanimously Approved
LPC-23-07790
167 East 73rd Street – 167 East 73rd Street Building – Individual Landmark
CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS
A Beaux Arts style carriage house designed by George L. Amoroux and built in 1903-4. Application is to install flagpoles and signage.
Architect: Jattuso
The precedent images in this proposal show the appropriate siting for flags. They should be installed between the windows, as they are in the reference images.
Action: Unanimously Approved
