Landlords Can Only Afford the Scaffolding, Not the Repair
By George Capsis On his first trip to America, Greek journalist John Capsis asked his cousin George what all those black patches were on every […]
Jane Street Garden Remains Resilient as Ever
The Jane Street Garden was established in 1973 on the vacant and privately-owned, burned-out lot at Jane Street and 8th Avenue. The initiative was spearheaded […]
Can 14th Street Save New York?
By Paul Steely White On any weekday, the Canarsie Tunnel, connecting Brooklyn and Manhattan beneath the East River, hosts 250,000 L Train passengers. Corrosion and […]
Exploring Land and Freedom in New York at the Jefferson Market Library
By Pamela C. Nogales The class entitled “Radical Demands for Land and Freedom in New York (1829-1848),” and led by Pamela C. Nogales, will focus […]
Landmark Preservation Commission’s Meatpacking Betrayal Could Threaten Historical Districts Across the City
By Martica Sawin In 2003, when there were still enough carcasses hanging along Gansevoort Street to justify the name “Meatpacking District,” the Landmarks Preservation Commission […]
December May Bring City Council Approval of St. John’s/Pier 40 Deal—Or Not
The following is a defense of the plan to build a 1,500-apartment complex opposite Pier 40. Prefacing it are George Capsis’ comments. I do not […]
Big Changes are Coming to Houston Street
The blocks of Houston Street east and west of Broadway are jam-packed with construction activity. The NYU Coles Gymnasium is being displaced for an NYU […]
Governor Cuomo Vetoes Key Zoning Bill
By Andreea Ioana Pantor Historically, development projects spearheaded by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), on MTA-owned property, have been exempt from local zoning ordinances if […]
Hudson River Park TDR: Where is the Plan?
By Barry Benepe “Save the pier,” pleaded a group urging the City Council to save Pier 40 with its hulking four-story 3500-space parking garage enclosing […]
St. Vincent’s Triangle Gets a New Memorial
By Brian J. Pape The West Village’s St. Vincent’s Triangle Park will soon welcome a new AIDS memorial on the site where a hospital facility […]
Preserve the Village Historic District
Preserve the Village Historic District (PVHD) was the organization formed in 2007 by three attorneys—Phil Schaeffer, Tom Molner, and Gary Tomei—to act as the legal […]
Lawsuit Filed to Save Gansevoort Street
On October 7th, a lawsuit was filed by Save Gansevoort, a local group of Meatpacking District residents who have fought for years to preserve the […]
Planning for Added Hospital Floors: A Cautionary Tale
Hey, we can always build more floors… Mount Sinai spokespersons offered dotted lines above the proposed 14th Street 70-bed hospital to indicate that they were […]
Who Decides to Preserve Our Landmarks?
By George Capsis The West Village has the largest collection of historical buildings in Manhattan. However, exploding real estate prices tempt monied buyers to circumvent […]
Horses and Speakeasies
By Brian J. Pape, AIA The famous Chumley’s has slowly crawled back to business after nine years in limbo, a phoenix rising from the rubble […]
Paris is For Walking
By Barry Benepe Paris is a wonder. Parisians and their guests can enjoy exceptional delight in walking along extensive networks of traffic-free arterials in the […]