LW! meets new Public Advocate Bill de Blasio

UPDATE FROM THE FIELD

As reported by Cristiana P.

Yesterday, LW! and more than two dozen other organizations and individuals concerned about historic preservation and the future of our city, met newly appointed Public Advocate Bill de Blasio.

Public Advocate (PA) de Blasio relayed his interest in working with preservationists to reframe preservation as it connects to other public priorities, including affordable housing, economic development and energy efficiency.  The links, he explained, are real.  The challenge we have before us is to reinterpret the preservation cause in more universal terms.

Other topics touched upon included--but were certainly not limited to--the preservation of religious properties, the role of the PA's office as a resource for citizens meeting up with an unresponsive Landmarks Preservation Commission, and the forthcoming Charter Revision process.  Truly, just a skim off the surface!

All present agreed that regular forums with PA de Blasio are critical for affecting change.

Representatives from the following groups were in attendance: AIA Queens, Bay Ridge Conservancy, Brooklyn Heights Association, Crown Heights North Association, Douglaston & Little Neck Historical Society, Friends of the UES Historic Districts, Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, Harlem Heights-West Harlem Community Preservation Org., Harlem Preservation Foundation, Historic Districts Council, LANDMARK WEST!, Municipal Art Society, Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership, New York Landmarks Conservancy, Park Slope Civic Council, Preservation League of Staten Island, Save St. Vincent!, Sunnyside Gardens, West End Preservation Society, Women's City Club.  The forum was further enriched by architects, preservationists, lawyers, and community advocates attending as individuals.