LANDMARK WEST! is proud to announce that LW! Board Member Lori Zabar’s much-requested master’s thesis on W. E. D. Stokes, the original developer of the Ansonia, is now available for purchase through ProQuest Dissertations & Theses. And for a limited time only, you can get this excellent resource for your library and at the same time support ongoing preservation efforts on the Upper West Side. Lori will donate to LANDMARK WEST! any proceeds she receives from ProQuest during the first year of sales. So, please, order your copy today!
To order an unbound copy of the thesis, go to www.landmarkwest.org, click on Maps & Building Data and then click on the Ansonia (Individual Landmark #15) where you will find the link to the publisher. Once you are on the ProQuest site, click on “Order a Copy” and then, click on “Dissertation Express.” The order number is 1436503. If for some reason the link to ProQuest is not accessible on your computer or you would like to know the options available in bound publication formats, then call 1-800-521-3042 to order by telephone or email info@proquest.com. Please be aware, as the thesis is printed by ProQuest on demand from a microfilmed master, some of the illustrations are fuzzy.
The following is a summary of the book:
William Earl Dodge Stokes: Developer of Residential Real Estate on Manhattan’s Upper West Side including the Ansonia Apartment-Hotel
William Earl Dodge Stokes (1852-1926), through his flamboyant career as a real estate developer, influenced the architectural form and urban design of Manhattan’s upper west side. This thesis traces Stokes’s activities, beginning in the 1880s, including the construction of dozens of single-family rowhouses, several tenements, and his magnum opus, the Ansonia Apartment-Hotel, completed in 1904, all built in the neighborhood of 72nd to 87th Streets between Broadway and Riverside Drive. During the last quarter of the 19th century, Stokes, in concert with other developers, transformed the west side from virtual countryside to sophisticated cityscape. The keystone of Stokes’s career was the sumptuous Beaux-arts Style Ansonia, publicized as the “most perfect” and largest apartment-hotel in the world. Although Stokes listed himself as “Architect-in-Chief,” the French architect Paul E. M. Duboy (1857-1907) drafted the plans. Stokes’s development of the legendary Ansonia, boasting the most up-to-date services and amenities, is described in detail.
Preserving the best of the Upper West Side's neighborhood character and architectural heritage.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Shearith Israel Postponed -- Again
Preservation Push-Back Against Condo Plan: Public Meeting on Congregation Shearith Israel Proposal Held Off Until September
Back in June -- nearly 3 months after submitting its application to develop a luxury condo building/community house at 8 West 70th Street to the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA) -- Congregation Shearith Israel seemed suddenly eager to get on Community Board 7's (CB7's) summertime calendar. A public meeting scheduled for the evening of Wednesday, June 20, was postponed at the last minute when LANDMARK WEST! directed CB7's attention to a June 15 letter from BSA itemizing 48 (48!) objections to Shearith Israel's application, leading to the inevitable conclusion that the application was incomplete.
Shearith Israel has made no discernable progress towards revising their application (BSA's letter requested a complete submission within 60 days, which translates to August 15...the clock is ticking). So, when the item appeared again on Wednesday, July 18 agenda of CB7's Land Use Committee, community members were quick to respond, reiterate our concerns about Shearith Israel's failure to submit a complete application and, again, succeed in getting a postponement -- this time until September at the earliest, dashing any hopes Shearith Israel may have held out for a quiet July or August vote. Click here to read a letter from Mark Lebow, the attorney representing community interests, to CB7 including a copy of BSA's 48 as-yet-unaddressed objections plus a memo by architectural consultant Simon Bertrang raising additional issues on the legitimacy of the application.
What goes down must come up...we'll alert you when (not if) Shearith Israel's plans finally come to the surface! Please stay tuned.
Back in June -- nearly 3 months after submitting its application to develop a luxury condo building/community house at 8 West 70th Street to the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA) -- Congregation Shearith Israel seemed suddenly eager to get on Community Board 7's (CB7's) summertime calendar. A public meeting scheduled for the evening of Wednesday, June 20, was postponed at the last minute when LANDMARK WEST! directed CB7's attention to a June 15 letter from BSA itemizing 48 (48!) objections to Shearith Israel's application, leading to the inevitable conclusion that the application was incomplete.
Shearith Israel has made no discernable progress towards revising their application (BSA's letter requested a complete submission within 60 days, which translates to August 15...the clock is ticking). So, when the item appeared again on Wednesday, July 18 agenda of CB7's Land Use Committee, community members were quick to respond, reiterate our concerns about Shearith Israel's failure to submit a complete application and, again, succeed in getting a postponement -- this time until September at the earliest, dashing any hopes Shearith Israel may have held out for a quiet July or August vote. Click here to read a letter from Mark Lebow, the attorney representing community interests, to CB7 including a copy of BSA's 48 as-yet-unaddressed objections plus a memo by architectural consultant Simon Bertrang raising additional issues on the legitimacy of the application.
What goes down must come up...we'll alert you when (not if) Shearith Israel's plans finally come to the surface! Please stay tuned.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Help Defend the Cathedral of St. John the Divine
HELP DEFEND THE CATHEDRAL OF
As the grounds of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine are cleared to make way for massive new development, the Morningside Heights Historic District Committee (our colleagues to the north of
The Landmarks Preservation Commission opted out of the process by declining to include the Cathedral close in its designation of the site as a landmark in 2003 (prompting the New York City Council to reject the designation in its entirety, leaving the whole site unprotected). But that isn't the end of the story. Just a few months ago, the New York State Office of Parks stepped up and declared that the "proposed Residential Tower would have an Adverse Impact upon the nationally significant Cathedral of St. John the Divine and Close." The new tower would be "incompatible in scale" and "inconsistent with the character of the historic buildings and the high quality of design, materials, and workmanship that they represent."
What you can do today:
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Seneca Village Walking Tour
Please join LANDMARK WEST! and friends for
Reconstructing Seneca Village
“Manhattan’s First Significant African American Community”
A Walking Tour with Cynthia Copeland, Nan Rothschild and Diana Wall
Wednesday, July 25, 2007 (rain or shine)
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
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Meet at 6pm sharp at the Mariner's Gate, southside of 85th Street and Central Park West. There will be a reception following the tour hosted by Halstead Properties, 408 Columbus Avenue, corner of 79th Street.
To make sure we start on time, tickets must be purchased in advance. Please send a check for $25 to LANDMARK WEST!, 45 West 67th Street, New York, NY 10023 no later than Friday, July 20. For information, you may also email us at landmarkwest@landmarkwest.org. Space is limited.
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Unbeknownst to many who frequent Central Park, an African American community called Seneca Village once existed in the Park between 82nd and 89th streets. The fascinating story of how African Americans came to acquire property in the area as early as 1825 will be told by accomplished urban archaeologists. Our guides will take us back in time to help us imagine how Seneca Village functioned, how it looked and how it evolved from undeveloped property to a vital multi-ethnic community of 264 people by 1855. We will be able to picture, in our minds’ eye, the homes, churches, cemeteries and the school that served the community before the Village was razed in 1856 to make way for the construction of Central Park.
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Cynthia Copeland, curator at the New York Historical Society, Nan Rothschild, Director of Museum Studies at Columbia and Diana Wall, Professor of Anthropology at City College, have worked together to determine the feasibility of conducting an archaeological dig of an area in Central Park that was once Seneca Village.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Shearith Israel's Application Incomplete: Public Meeting Postponed
IMPORTANT UPDATE: Community Board 7 has postponed its public meeting on Congregation Shearith
When it's complete? Hasn't Shearith
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Presenting P.S. 166's Exquisite Neighborhood Model
LANDMARK WEST! is excited to announce the exhibition of a stunning and colorful neighborhood model created by 2nd graders at P.S. 166* (132 West 89th Street) in collaboration with LW!’s youth education program, Keeping the Past for the Future. The model will be on display in the front window of Council Member Gale Brewer’s district office, located at 563 Columbus Avenue (at 87th Street).
As part of the Keeping the Past for the Future curriculum, 2nd graders studied their immediate neighborhood and environment with a LW! educator, learning about the various building types, architectural elements, and businesses that form part of the exciting Upper West Side community. Students’ models on display include police stations, banks, grocery stores, brownstones, schools, and libraries. The students completed the project under the guidance of P.S. 166 classroom teachers Julie Stone and Carmen Cardona, and LW! Director of Education Elyse Newman.
Be sure to stop by Council Member Gale Brewer’s district office to see this beautiful and detailed student model firsthand! LANDMARK WEST! would like to thank Council Member Brewer for hosting the exhibition and for her continued support for Keeping the Past for the Future.
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Keeping the Past for the Future (now in its 10th year!) is designed to foster within our city’s young people, primarily in grades 1 to 5, a strong sense of engagement, ownership, and responsibility toward their community through learning about the built environment and its history. Through its interdisciplinary and hands-on activities, Keeping the Past for the Future supports literacy, mathematical ability, analytic thinking, problem solving and creative thinking. Meanwhile, the program emphasizes the important role of historic preservation in sustaining the quality of life of our community for present and future generations. During the 2006-2007 school year, KPF reached over 1,000 students in 40 classrooms and 8 schools on the Upper West Side—and at no cost to public schools. If you would like Keeping the Past for the Future to be a part of your child’s education, contact your school principal or parent coordinator
and tell them!
To learn more about Keeping the Past for the Future, visit www.landmarkwest.org/education, or email elysenewman@landmarkwest.org.
*P.S. 166 was designated an individual New York City Landmark in 2000. It was designed by Charles B.J. Snyder and completed in 1898.
As part of the Keeping the Past for the Future curriculum, 2nd graders studied their immediate neighborhood and environment with a LW! educator, learning about the various building types, architectural elements, and businesses that form part of the exciting Upper West Side community. Students’ models on display include police stations, banks, grocery stores, brownstones, schools, and libraries. The students completed the project under the guidance of P.S. 166 classroom teachers Julie Stone and Carmen Cardona, and LW! Director of Education Elyse Newman.
Be sure to stop by Council Member Gale Brewer’s district office to see this beautiful and detailed student model firsthand! LANDMARK WEST! would like to thank Council Member Brewer for hosting the exhibition and for her continued support for Keeping the Past for the Future.
~
Keeping the Past for the Future (now in its 10th year!) is designed to foster within our city’s young people, primarily in grades 1 to 5, a strong sense of engagement, ownership, and responsibility toward their community through learning about the built environment and its history. Through its interdisciplinary and hands-on activities, Keeping the Past for the Future supports literacy, mathematical ability, analytic thinking, problem solving and creative thinking. Meanwhile, the program emphasizes the important role of historic preservation in sustaining the quality of life of our community for present and future generations. During the 2006-2007 school year, KPF reached over 1,000 students in 40 classrooms and 8 schools on the Upper West Side—and at no cost to public schools. If you would like Keeping the Past for the Future to be a part of your child’s education, contact your school principal or parent coordinator
and tell them!
To learn more about Keeping the Past for the Future, visit www.landmarkwest.org/education, or email elysenewman@landmarkwest.org.
*P.S. 166 was designated an individual New York City Landmark in 2000. It was designed by Charles B.J. Snyder and completed in 1898.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Shearith Israel Back in Play
More Tower Talk: Congregation Shearith Israel
After a more than a year of watching and waiting, Congregation Shearith Israel (CSI) is back with its controversial plan to develop 5 stories of luxury condos on top of a new community house at 8 West 70th Street. Community Board 7's Land Use Committee will hold a public meeting to discuss (and possibly vote on) this application on Wednesday, June 20 (starting after 7 PM, more specific time tba). The location is
7 West 83rd Street(between Central Park West and Between the New-York Historical Society on the West Side, Mt. Sinai on the East Side, uptown and downtown (and, as the old song goes, all around the town), the issue of tax-exempt nonprofit institutions exploiting their sites as "development opportunities" is more timely than ever. That's why YOUR participation in CB7's June 20 meeting is absolutely essential! This is about more than one institution's attempt to develop its real estate on the back of the surrounding community. This is about breaking down the West Side 's historically strong resistance to inappropriate development that, block by block, will erode the architectural character and integrity of our city's historic districts.
While CSI could construct an appropriate, 6-story community house facility "as of right" (i.e., following groundrules for sound development), it needs no fewer than 8 special variances from the Board of Standards and Appeals to build a 105'-tall structure, including condos, more than twice as high as the brownstones that define this historic mid-block of West 70th Street, protected as part of an R8-B contextual zoning district AND as part of the Upper West Side/Central Park West Historic District, both created decades ago to preserve the low-rise, human-scale character of our neighborhood's mid-blocks. The site is also immediately adjacent to one of New York 's most important Individual Landmarks, Congregation Shearith Israel
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
Landmarks Budget Emergency
AT RISK: The Landmarks Preservation Commission and Historic Buildings and Neighborhoods Throughout NYC!
Unless YOU act right now, the already minuscule budget of the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) -- the only city agency with the authority to protect
The City Council, now entering final budget negotiations, must hear from you. Immediately. Email/call/fax your local council member and members of the budget negotiating team TODAY. See contact information below.
Frustrated with the LPC? Their slowness to respond? The ever-quickening pace of development, eating away at the character of our communities? It will only get worse, unless the LPC has the resources it needs to carry out its vital mission. Landmark West! is part of a broad coalition advocating for a $1 million increase in the LPC budget on top of its current budget of just over $4 million -- a modest amount of money that could make a world of difference in the LPC's ability to protect the buildings and neighborhoods that matter to the people of our city. ACT NOW! Contact the Council, and forward this message to friends and colleagues.
Who is your council person? Go to http://www.cmap.
Who are the council members on the budget negotiating team?
Quinn quinn@council.nyc.ny.us; F: (212) 564-7347; T: (212) 564-7757
Brewer
Garodnick
Baez
Comrie
Dilan
McMahon
Rivera
Dickens
Fidler
DiBlasio
Gallagher
Oddo
Arroyo
Reyna
Weprin
Katz
At-large members
Seabrook
Sears
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
June 21 Walking Tour with Andrew Dolkart
Please join LANDMARK WEST! and friends for
Vernacular Architecture of the
Upper
A Walking Tour with Andrew Scott Dolkart
Thursday, June 21, 2007 (rain or shine)
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
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Meet at Strangers’ Gate (east side of Central Park West at
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The Upper West Side is literally filled with vernacular architecture, referring to buildings and streetscapes that, while they may not have been designed by
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Together, these builders – often recent immigrants – adapted popular architectural forms to the demands of a dense city. Their deep influence on
“Make Music
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Andrew Scott Dolkart is an architectural historian, writer, the James Marston Fitch Associate Professor of Historic Preservation at
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LANDMARK WEST! is a non-profit award-winning community group working since 1985 to preserve the best of the Upper West Side ’s architectural heritage from 59th to 110th Street Riverside Drive
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Come Learn about Efforts to Improve the Landmarks Preservation Process!
A special invitation to all friends of LANDMARK WEST! and historic preservation
RSVP by May29!
the Citizens Emergency Committee to Preserve Preservation
A restored 1880s Renaissance Revival rowhouse in the heart of the
Upper West Side/Central Park West Historic District
Wednesday, May 30, 2007, 6-8 PM
RSVP by May 29 to citizens@savelpc.org or 212-380-8612. $25 per person
Wine and light food will be served.
**Come join in a chorus of the CECPP preservation anthem (visit YouTube for a preview)!**
Door prize for a lucky preservationist!
The Citizens Emergency Committee to Preserve Preservation (CECPP) will discuss current efforts
to make sure
The challenge is to get the Landmarks Preservation Commission increased funding, operational transparency and political independence to do its job better so that beloved buildings and neighborhoods all over the City can be preserved.
What This Means:
*More staff to designate more landmarks and historic districts and to safeguard them against inappropriate changes*
*Fair and balanced consideration of community input*
*Making sure Landmarks Commissioners are qualified and free from political influence*
For more information about CECPP’s campaign, please visit www.savelpc.org
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