Celebrating former Landmarks Preservation Commission Chair Gene A. Norman

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Gene A. Norman testifying in 1984 to protect the NYC Landmarks Law.

Credit: Albany Press, 1984.

In 1988, Gene presided over a 16-hour marathon public hearing at the Fourth 

Universalist Society, which led to the 1990 designation of over 2,000 buildings 

in the Upper West Side/Central Park West Historic District.

Please join

LANDMARK WEST!

for a very special evening

to celebrate former

Landmarks Preservation Commission Chair

Gene A. Norman

 

the *25th Anniversary of the

Upper West Side/Central Park West

Historic District

and the 30th Anniversary of

LANDMARK WEST!

Monday, December 14, 2015

6:00 to 8:00 pm

 

Landmark on the Park

Fourth Universalist Society

76th Street and Central Park West

For ticket prices and online reservations, 

please visit Eventbrite

LANDMARK WEST! 45 WEST 67 STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10023

LANDMARKWEST@LANDMARKWEST.ORG     (212) 496-8110

Concerns about Intro. 775 shared with Council Members

Landmark West!, Historic Districts Council, Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, and Friends of the Upper East Side Historic Districts wrote to Council Members to express serious concerns about Intro. 775. We share the desire for a swift, predictable and transparent landmark designation process and have given much consideration to how the current process could be improved to accomplish those goals. However, the bill as currently written would achieve the exact opposite. It would discourage the consideration of complicated or controversial sites and encourage obstruction rather than designation. 

Click here to read our full letter.

Write to members of the City Council Land Use Committee today to express your concerns about the significant ways in which this legislation would weaken the Landmarks Law (and please cc. landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org)! Our colleagues at the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation have set up a handy electronic form letter, available here.

Illegal Rooftop Addition still standing after three years of the demolition decision!

By Jennifer Perez

With the proposed rooftop addition at The Evelyn (101 West 78th Street) being the talk at LW! recently, I've been inspired to do a little rooftop addition research myself, and I came upon the case of 12-14 West 68th Street. As you may have seen from earlier posts from March 17, 2010 and May 4, 2010, this case involves an illegal rooftop addition that was constructed by the owners of the building. 14 West 68th St. is a Queen Anne-style house that was built in 1895 with a studio building (12 West 68th St.) attached to it: built in 1925. This illegal addition was discovered by a resident living in West 67th Street who wondered if the addition was ever approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC). After public hearings and meetings, the LPC declared that the new addition was built on this landmark illegally. It seemed as though the original owners knew they lived in a historic district (the Upper West Side- Central Park West H.D. designated in 1990) but believed the addition was approved when they received the permit from the Department of Buildings (DOB). "How can a building owner get an addition past the Landmarks Preservation Commission? Easy: just don't tell them!" as Curbed NY once stated.
       

After constructing the addition, the property was sold to a new owner. The new owner proposed modifications that were to feature windows replicating those found on the studios building's lower floors, new brick, and masonry matching the studio. A parapet was to be also removed and reduce the illegal addition height by seven feet. The LPC denied the legalization as declared that the illegal addition must be taken down.
However, this illegal addition is still standing today, three years after the LPC determined that it should be demolished. The addition is still standing strong and tall without a fright. Many are demanding that the decision of the demolition of the illegal addition should be enforced. We need to have our landmarks protected and the rules enforced!   

Designate the West End's Historic District Extensions NOW

 

A picture is worth a thousand words.

 

 Question: How could this out-of-context building get built?

 

Answer: These 4 rowhouses were not designated NYC Landmarks when the then-owner of 2 Riverside Drive built on this site. The moral of the story? Please do not take your neighborhood for granted. 2 Riverside Drive is proof of what can happen. It is urgent that you tell the LPC to "Vote yes now on Manhattan's West End Historic District Extensions." The Riverside/West End Historic District Extension II and the West End Collegiate Extension--vital to Manhattan's Upper West Side Historic Districts--have been HEARD by the LPC but NOT designated.

 

Sign this petition to LPC Chair Tierney and ask for the designation NOW of these Historic District (HD) extensions. Please sign soon--sign now--then send on to a friend to sign. The LPC deserves to hear from you.

 

Approximately 194 new landmarks were added to the 2700 existing landmarked buildings when the Riverside/West End HD Extension I was designated on June 26, 2012. Take a moment to join us in relishing the pure pleasure of a job well done. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis wrote her own letter to the LPC, dated April 30, 1987 in support of designating the Riverside/West End HD. Mrs. Onassis wrote, "Your designation of [the Riverside-West End HD] will provide future generations of New Yorkers the opportunity to enjoy the beauty of this remarkably intact piece of our past, just as we enjoy it today."  Please sign the petition and if you wish, write your own letter and email a copy to LANDMARK WEST!

Designation is just the first step. Help us be the vigilant stewards our neighborhood still needs and deserves. Big or small, your contribution matters. Give online or call LW! at 212-496-8110 to make a financial pledge.
 

Photo above from LW!'s, My Preservation Journal, part of Keeping the Past for the Future Youth Education Program taught by Director of Education Debi Germann, M.S. Ed from the Bank Street College of Education and certified classroom teacher.

From the LW! Archives...1987 Letter from Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Supporting the Original Riverside/West End Historic District

In 1985, when LANDMARK WEST! was founded to advocate for more widespread protection of our neighborhood's architectural heritage, the Upper West Side only had 337 designated landmarks.

With the recent Riverside-West End HD Extension I designation, approximately 194 new landmarks have been added to the West Side's noble roster.Take a moment to join us in relishing the pure pleasure of a job well done. Our smiles get even wider when we look back at this prescient letter from Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis to the LPC, dated April 30, 1987.

She wrote: “Your designation of [the Riverside-West End HD] will provide future generations of New Yorkers the opportunity to enjoy the beauty of this remarkably intact piece of our past, just as we enjoy it today.”

The district was officially designated two years later, on December 19th, 1989. Don’t take your neighborhood for granted--extensions II & III have been heard but NOT designated. Email LPC Chair Tierney at comments@lpc.nyc.gov and tell him, “I support the designation of the Riverside-West End Extensions II & III.” Sign your name--email it soon--today, if possible. Send a copy to landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org.

Advocacy How-To: Writing to your elected officials

Informing your elected officials of the issues that matter to you--to your neighborhood--is critical.  Whether you send an email, mail a letter or pick up the phone and speak to a member of staff, your neighborhood needs you to take action! Consider this post your one-stop shop for contacting your elected officials.

STEP ONE: Determine who are your elected officials.
It's easy to learn who is your City Council member, State Assembly member and so on; just click here and type in your address. 

STEP TWO: Get inspired!
Visit the LW! YouTube Channel to watch video from the first public hearing of the Landmarks Preservation Commission for a refresher on each representatives' comments about the proposed West End Avenue historic district extension. Still need a little help getting started? Here's a sample letter.
 
STEP THREE: Draft a succinct message that shares your concerns 
and requests their support.
If the above-linked sample letter is helpful, terrific!  If you'd prefer to send in something more individualized, that's equally great.  We recommend first offering thanks for support your elected officials have offered to important community issues in the past.  West End Avenue, for example, received early support from Upper West Side elected officials in whose districts landmarking would occur, thanks to the West End Preservation Society (WEPS). Then, request their continued commitment at the public hearing on October 3rd.

STEP FOUR (option 1): Send your email!
One email is all it takes!  Copy-paste the addresses below and share your request for support with all of the West Side's elected representatives at once:

     Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer: bp@manhattanbp.org
     City Council Member Gale Brewer: gbrewer@council.nyc.gov
     City Council Member Inez Dickens: idickens@council.nyc.gov
     City Council Member Melissa Mark-Viverito: mviverito@council.nyc.gov
     State Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal: rosentl@assembly.state.ny.us
     State Assembly Member Daniel O'Donnell: oneilln@assembly.state.ny.us
     State Senator Thomas K. Duane: duane@nysenate.gov
     State Senator Adriano Espaillat: espailla@nysenate.gov
     State Senator Bill Perkins: perkins@senate.state.ny.us
     Congressman Jerrold Nadler: form email-only available; click here
     Congressman Charles Rangel: form email-only available; click here
     And be sure add landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org in the "cc" line!

STEP FOUR (option 2): Send your letter!
Prefer to send a letter in hardcopy?  Links to each official's contact page is below:

     Congressmen Jerrold Nadler and Charles Rangel

     Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer

     State Senators Thomas K. Duane, Adriano Espaillat and Bill Perkins.

     State Assembly Members Linda Rosenthal and Daniel O'Donnell

     City Council Members Gale Brewer, Inez Dickens and Melissa Mark-Viverito.
 
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! Your support is essential to ensuring that our neighborhood's priorities are shared by our elected officials.  Thank you for taking the time to reach out to them.

In Two Weeks, Important Hearing for West End Avenue Extension

On June 26th, 2012, by unanimous vote of the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), the Riverside-West End Historic District Extension I has been designated! This was the first step in a multi-agency process to secure the landmark designation that West End Avenue and its row house-lined midblocks have long deserved. The next step is review by the City Planning Commission. The LPC's designation is forwarded to City Planning which will consider, as the LPC website states: "the effects of the designation as it relates to zoning, projected public improvements, and any other city plans for the development or improvement of the area involved. For historic districts, the City Planning Commission must hold a public hearing prior to issuing their report." This public hearing is open to all; please attend and offer a public statement or lend your "silent support" of this important community effort!        WHAT:  Public hearing of the City Planning Commission to consider                     the Riverside-West End Historic District Extension I                     (W. 79th - 87th Sts. - click here for the boundary map)       WHEN:  Wednesday, August 22nd; Time To Be Determined                     Stay tuned to LW! emails for approximate time as the date approaches;                     you may also consult the City Planning website, here.     WHERE:  City Planning Commission; Amanda Burden, Chair                     22 Reade Street -- Bring photo ID                     (Click here for directions)          WHO:  You, your neighbors, all who support neighborhood preservation!                      Help us spread the word; let us know of others in your building or                      on your block who are interested in learning more about this ongoing                      issue. Attending the public meeting is incredibly valuable; if you're                      unable to attend, please register your support in writing (here's how).

Resources at Risk: Merchant's House Museum endangered

Preservation Advocacy Beyond the Upper West Side
GUEST BLOG by LW! intern Jason Crowley

Next Tuesday, July 24th, the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) will hold a public hearing regarding a proposed 9-story building at 27 East 4th Street, located in the NoHo Historic District. This proposal raises great concern for our preservation colleagues committed to the preservation of the adjacent Merchant's House Museum (built in 1832).

The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (GVSHP) and the Historic Districts Council (HDC) have written to the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), Department of Buildings (DOB), and the Parks Department (which owns the Merchant's House) urging them to work together to ensure that no construction takes place next door unless measures are put in place ensuring that the Merchant's House will not be damaged or undermined.

Learn more here, then be sure to

Sign the Petition!

Even though this is far and away from the typical boundaries for LANDMARK WEST!, the Merchant's House Museum is New York's only 19th-century family home preserved inside and out and is a city-owned property. Significant tax dollars have been put towards the restoration and preservation of the site, so all New Yorkers have a vested interest in its protection.

The Landmarks Preservation Commission will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, July 24th (exact time to be determined; stay tuned to the LPC agenda, or contact the Merchant's House Museum). LW! will be there supporting this city-wide concern (here's our statement).

Track this project via the GVSHP Landmarks Applications database.

TONIGHT, Community Meeting to Dicuss Threats to Landmarks; NEXT WEEK, Important Vote on West End Avenue

One week from today -- on Tuesday, June 26th -- the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) will convene to cast their first vote concerning historic district extensions proposed for the West End Avenue neighborhood. This public meeting is open to all; if your schedule allows, please attend and lend your "silent support" of this important community effort!

              WHAT:  Public meeting of the Landmarks Preservation Commission to
                           Vote on the proposed Riverside-West End Historic District Extension I
                           (W. 79th - 87th Sts. - click here for the proposed boundary map 

             WHEN:   Tuesday, June 26th, 2012 / Time To Be Determined 
                            The LPC usually issues its agenda with approximate times three
                            days in advance of the public meeting. Stay tuned for updates! 

            WHERE:  Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC)
                            1 Centre Street, 9th Floor -- Bring photo ID
                            (Click here for directions) 

                WHO:  You, your neighbors, all who support neighborhood preservation!                             Help us spread the word; let us know of others in your building or
                            on your block who are interested in learning more about this 
                            ongoing issue. Attending the public meeting is incredibly valuable,
                            but it is important to note that no public testimony will be taken.

Earlier this month, LW! looked back on the events -- starting as far back as 2010, though momentum for this issue has surely been growing since much earlier -- leading up to the first in a series of what will ultimately be three LPC votes. Click here to revisit that email. Can't make the June 26th public meeting? Write to the LPC and your local elected officials to re-enforce your support of the West End Avenue extensions and to thank them for their strong support to date.

** Before the Vote, Community Meeting to
 support the Landmarks Law**

As LW! and our colleagues in preservation have reported, landmarking -- not just on West End Avenue but throughout all five boroughs -- has recently been under attack. The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) is at the helm of a coalition that would have New Yorkers believe that landmark designation is "over-reaching" and will effectively freeze the city in amber. This "look but don't touch" mentality could not be further from the truth: the number of landmark-protected buildings on the Upper West Side and beyond continues to grow because people want preservation. Individual Landmarks and buildings within historic districts offer substantial opportunities for economic development, the revitalization of neighborhoods, the stabilization of property values, and the enhancement of the tourism industry.

JOIN WITH US TONIGHT as we participate in a community meeting, hosted by the Historic Districts Council, to discuss this attack on landmarks and how each of us can lend our support.

TONIGHT (Tuesday, June 19th) at 6PM

General Society for Mechanics & Tradesmen*

20 West 44th Street

RSVP to hdc@hdc.org

Stay tuned for updates via email, and visit http://hdc.org/historic-district-15/help-save-the-landmarks-law to learn more.

*The General Society for Mechanics & Tradesmen (also known as the Mechanic's Institute) was the subject of an October 2011 guest blog by LW! graduate intern Kate Gilmore. Learn more about this fascinating organization and handsome Lamb & Rich-designed architecture.

Say It Loud: "People Want Preservation"!

Our landmarks -- and our Landmarks Law -- need us!City Council announces public hearing for bills proposing RADICAL CHANGES to the Landmarks Law! Preservation advocates received the following hearing notification late last week:

 ***

 

I am writing to inform you about a joint hearing that the City Council’s Committee on Housing & Buildings and Committee on Land Use will be holding next week, Wednesday, May 2, 2012 at 10:00 AM at 250 Broadway, 14th Floor.

The hearing will cover a number of bills regarding the Landmarks Preservation Commission and landmarked buildings.  The official agenda with links to the bills being heard is available by clicking here.  The agenda will be updated and bill numbers will be assigned once they are introduced at the Council’s Stated Meeting on Monday, April 30, so please check back on the hearing webpage on Monday afternoon for an updated agenda.

-Councilmember Brad Lander

 456 5th Avenue, 3rd Floor * Brooklyn, NY 11215 * 718-499-1090

***

As Friends of the Upper East Side wrote, calling their friends and supporters to action, "while the Landmarks Preservation Commission certainly needs reform, important policy changes should not be made in haste." Come to the hearing on Wednesday and let the City Council know that a handful of days' notice is not enough!!  More, below, from our colleagues and partners in preservation, the Historic Districts Council, on exactly how you can take action ...

   
Come to the hearing and testify in favor of preservation. 

1. Even if the LPC hasn’t responded to your request for evaluation  (or especially if they haven’t), demonstrating to the Council members that ordinary New Yorkers want to preserve their communities and are crying out for help is a powerful statement. We need to show the Council that PEOPLE WANT PRESERVATION!
2. If you have had work done on a landmarked property – please come in to talk about it. The Council members really don’t have any experience with actually working with LPC and will be taking everything the development industry says as gospel.
3. If you are a preservation/design professional – showing up and explaining to the Council that Landmarking actually provides real value and jobs is a key thing.  The narrative which they will be hearing is “landmarking costs money”  and we need to shift that to “landmarking creates jobs”.
4. Even if you do not want to testify, showing up with your posters/buttons/postcards/etc. is a powerful statement to the Council members. 

Contact your elected officials 

1. Use the deadline of May 2nd to send in your Requests to LPC – and make sure to copy them to your elected official.  If LPC has not responded to your request, send in a reminder and copy your representative.  Show your Council member that people in their district want action from the agency.

To learn more about this emergent issue, contact LW! or our colleagues mentioned above, HDC and Friends of the Upper East Side.

Join the Committee; Protect the Neighborhood!

The Tavern on the Green, in Central Park, soon to be restored
and modified with a glass pavilion.  An example of a recent preservation issue focused on
by our C of A Committee (learn more below!).

In landmarks preservation, designation is just the beginning!  Learn more about "on the ground" landmark stewardship and how YOU can participate in neighborhood preservation!

OPEN HOUSE: Get to know (and consider joining!)

the LW! Certificate of Appropriateness Committee

Wednesday, April 18, 2012 at 6 p.m.

Macaulay Honors College (35 West 67th Street)

Join us -- admission is FREE; wine and light snacks will be served 
CheeseSticks generously provided by John Wm. Macy's CheeseSticks  
Click here to RSVP or email us at landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org

Even the staunchest of preservationists knows that in vibrant communities, changes in the built environment are inevitable.  Landmarks are not frozen in time, and they depend on our constant stewardship for appropriate and sensitive maintenance and growth.

When owners of landmark buildings and sites wish to make changes, they need to apply to the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) for what's called a Certificate of Appropriateness (C of A).  LW's C of A Committee is an all-volunteer group that works with building owners and their architects, contractors and consultants to advise on design and protect the integrity of our constantly evolving neighborhood.  We welcome our friends and neighbors, architects, designers, historians, attorneys, real estate professionals ... anyone and everyone excited to volunteer their skills and expertise to the stewardship of the Upper West Side.

JOIN US on April 18th, meet current Committee members and others in the community who share your interest in neighborhood preservation! 

240 Columbus Avenue (then Victor's Cafe) at the time of its inclusion
in the Upper West Side/Central Park West Historic District in 1990.

These meetings culminate in testimony -- directly inspired by the input from our Committee members -- before the LPC, the Public Design Commission, and other public agencies and forums.  We "win" some, we "lose" some, but we always succeed in raising awareness about the history of our West Side neighborhood.   

A recent preservation issue -- and success story! -- has been 240 Columbus Avenue (formerly Victor's Cafe), at West 71st Street.  Thanks to collaborative efforts with the family of Victor del Corral, founder of the pioneering West Side restaurant, Victor's Cafe, a noteworthy bas relief mural on the 71st Street facade was saved from demolition.  This important layer of West Side history -- when Columbus Avenue and 71st Street was a destination for Cuban expatriates in New York City -- can be experienced and appreciated by future generations.  A new restaurant, Cafe Tallulah, is expected to open this Summer.  Click here to read more about our C of A Committee's work on this project.

Another recent issue of our Committee has been the Tavern on the Green in Central Park (pictured at the top of this post).  As we testified before the LPC:

"With this transition, LANDMARK WEST! is pleased to see the building's restoration needs being addressed.  Over dozens of years, the footprint of the Tavern on the Green gradually increased to accommodate larger private parties and seat more guests. Slowly but surely, the historic Jacob Wrey Mould-designed core was swallowed up by expanded kitchen facilities to the West and South, along with additional dining areas encased in greenhouse-like glass on the South and, famously, to the East in the form of the Crystal Room. With the removal of these egregious additions, the Tavern on the Green can once again breathe. And, perhaps more importantly, the public can fully experience and appreciate its architectural beauty in the landscape."  Read more here.

The proposal was ultimately approved by the LPC and the Public Design Commission, and the glass box will soon rise in the U-shaped courtyard of the Tavern.  Click here to read more about our work on this project.

JOIN US on Wednesday, April 18th, at 6PM for our first ever C of A Open House! The C of A Open House will be an opportunity for friends and neighbors to learn more about design review process and its essential role at LANDMARK WEST!.

Reliving "The Battle for Bryant Park"

Last week, the Historic Districts Council hosted its Annual Conference.  This year's theme was "The Great Outside", asking preservationists and architectural enthusiasts to consider the open space around our much-loved brick-and-mortar treasures.

LW! was there, tracking all the conference action via Twitter (#GreatOutsideConf -- our thumbs are still aching from all the documentation via iPhone!).  

The "The Great Outside" conference themes live on, in upcoming programming from our friends at HDC ... 

From the LW! archives, an R.O. Blechman-designed invitation
to honor Anthony M. Tung in 1988

 

The Battle of Bryant Park, 25 Years On

A Discussion with Anthony Tung

Thursday, March 8, 6:00pm 

Neighborhood Preservation Center

232 East 11th Street. Free!

Reservations required; please call (212) 614-9107 or contact hdc@hdc.org

Co-sponsored with the New York Preservation Archive Project 
and the Neighborhood Preservation Center 

On January 8, 1987, The New York Times reported: "A four-year-old plan to build a restaurant behind the New York Public Library has been dealt a surprising setback, with the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission warning that it would consider 'absolutely untenable' any structure that would make it difficult to view the library’s west facade." The author of the motion was Commissioner Anthony Tung.

Five days later, on Sunday, in "A Landmark of Misfeasance" the Times editorial board called for the replacement of every member of the Commission.

By Monday, Tony Tung had been sacked. But it took 18 turbulent months for the mayor to finally unseat him.

Marking the 25-year anniversary of this battle, which energized the entire preservation community, Anthony Tung will join Anthony C. Wood and Jeffrey Kroessler to re-examine the controversy of 25 years ago.  The discussion will examine how this episode affected the independence of the Landmarks Preservation Commission and relations between the preservation community and the commission, as well as the implications for the present.

Anthony Max Tung lectures internationally on historic preservation and has taught historic preservation at MIT and Columbia. He is the author of Preserving the World’s Great Cities: The Destruction and Renewal of the Historic Metropolis.

Anthony C. Wood is the founder of the New York Preservation Archives Project, Chair Emeritus of the Historic Districts Council, member of the Citizens Emergency Committee to Preserve Preservation, and advisor to preservationists across the city and state. He is the author of Preserving New York: Winning the Right to Protect a City’s Landmarks.

Jeffrey A. Kroessler is a longtime board member of HDC and member of the Citizens Emergency Committee to Preserve Preservation. He is the author of New York, Year by Year and The Greater New York Sports Chronology. He is an associate professor in the library at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

Special thanks to Arlene Simon and LANDMARK WEST! for the invitation to the 1988 party honoring Anthony Tung  – at St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery (art by R.O. Blechman)

LW! Blog Reader Weighs In: "An excellent piece of Upper West Side heritage"

We sounded the call; Bonny K. answered!

Below, a neighbor's letter to the Landmarks Preservation Commission, echoing our call for the LPC to deny the application by a new restaurateur to demolish an existing mural that speaks to our neighborhood's layered history:

Dear Chair Robert Tierney and Landmarks Preservation Commission,

I wish to comment on the application to remove the mural at 71st and Columbus which is on the former site of Victor's Cafe.

I agree with the Landmark West request to keep the mural intact for all of the reasons they mentioned, plus a few more.

I love this mural and have enjoyed it and the flowers that were until recently planted in front of it. Looking at the pastoral scene of the cows eating the flowers while the young boy watched over them has been a lovely reason to walk by this corner for many years ...

Photo courtesy of Bonny K.

Most of what makes the Upper West Side so interesting is being dismantled piece by piece. The mural is not an eyesore at all (as Mr. Hunt states) but a lovely piece of art which many of the locals I've talked to love.

If Mr. Hunt and his partners want a hip night club ... he should have picked a site that already matched his style instead of dismantling this mural. The neighborhood has been better off with an empty storefront than a new neighbor who doesn't understand the neighborhood!

I understand that we can't preserve every artwork from the past but this strikes me as an excellent piece of the Upper West Side heritage.

Please join me in fighting the removal of this mural.

Thank you for expressing your concerns, Bonny.  And for sharing them with LW! and our blog readers!  We hope to post more personal testimonials -- just like this one! -- over the coming days.  Stay tuned for updates, and don't hesitate to add your own voice to this important discussion!

A Letter to Landmarks: Preserve the mural at former Victor's Cafe

Your neighborhood needs you!

As reported in our recent blog post, a new restaurant operator has applied to the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) to demolish the sculpted mural at 240 Columbus Avenue (formerly home to Victor's Cafe). This cultural artifact -- a reminder of the area's once-thriving Cuban population -- tells the important story of our neighborhood's layered history.

Victor del Corral, owner of Victor's Cafe (left) with
sculptor Arturo Martin (right), via NYTimes.

After learning about this issue in our most recent email, a concerned neighbor decided to register his support with the LPC, submitting the following via email (with a "cc" to LW!):

Please preserve the mural of the soon-ish to be opened Café Tallulah. As a long-time Upper West Side resident not only do I have fond memories of Victor's, but I believe the mural is part of the neighborhood's architectural heritage and a reminder of a moment in Upper West Side history, when Victor's Cafe was a popular destination for countless New Yorkers. 

                   ~ Sam S. 

The LPC has not yet voted.  Before it does, the 11-member Commission needs to know that we, the community, value the Victor's Cafe mural as a historical marker.  Follow Sam's lead; send in your email today!

Emails to the LPC can be directed to the attention of Chair Robert Tierney at comments@lpc.nyc.gov.  Tell the Chair what you think of the mural, share an anecdote about the heyday of Cuban culture at Victor's, or echo the comments we made in our testimony (available here).  Please be sure to "cc" LW! at landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org. 

You can also learn about the mural via recent articles by the New York Times' City Room blog and DNA Info's Leslie Albrecht.

The LPC did not vote on the proposal last Tuesday for two reasons: (1) there was not a quorum of six Commissioners present, the required minimum number to permit a vote, and (2) the Commissioners in attendance directed the applicant and the LPC staff to dig deeper into the history of the mural.  

LW! is on the case, too!  Stay tuned for more updates.