Playtime in Central Park :: Work & Play

Only at a playground is work synonymous with play! 

This pair of circa 1972 photos come to us from a mother who said of her tyke and his friends, as they made like monkeys, climbing up trees: "Being a kid is their job, to have fun!"  We have the same mantra at LANDMARK WEST!, as some of our recent holiday antics (here and here) prove evident.

Seeing the results of our blog readers digging deep into their photo archives is too fun!  Thank you, all!

What are YOU waiting for?  Join the fun!  Send in your photos today!

Playtime in Central Park :: What goes up ...

... must come down, right lil' Charles S.?  Adventure Playground, just inside Central Park at West 67th Street, has gotten a good amount of bloglove during the photo series, and why shouldn't it!  As architect Richard Dattner's first adventure-style playground for Central Park, it kicked off a trend that would later include the Ancient Playground north of the Metropolitan Museum.

That equipment in the background look familiar?  We love seeing how the design of Central Park's playscapes continues to entertain young New Yorkers year after year, decade to decade.  We've seen Adventure Playground in the 70s, the 80s ... let's see it today!  Send your photo of this--or any!--Central Park play area and we'll add it to the series. 

JOIN US! Celebrate Community this Saturday at Amsterdam Houses, West 64th St.

Gather your crew; organize your tribe; rally your club.  Saturday is all about FAMILY! Come together at Amsterdam Houses to celebrate the spirit of community with residents and neighbors at this year's Family Day celebration!  LW! will be there (fourth year running); join us! Held annually, Family Day is a celebration-turned-tradition set aside for residents to enjoy each other's company, barbecue, meet their neighbors, and experience a day filled with fun activities.       WHAT:   Amsterdam Houses Family Day       WHEN:   Saturday, August 13th, 12PM to 7PM     WHERE:   Bennerson Park on West 64th Street,                     between Amsterdam and West End Avenues                     (click here for map)  At the invitation of Residents Association President Margarita Curet (a 2011 "Unsung Hero"!), LW! has participated in Family Day at Amsterdam Houses since 2008.  Each year, we share information about the history of Amsterdam Houses and the Upper West Side.  But more importantly, we love to learn from residents what they value most about their community.* As we celebrate the past of Amsterdam Houses, we also look ahead to its future: the children!  Debi Germann, LW!'s Director of Education, encourages Amsterdam Houses youth to explore their community in new an unexpected ways.  A materials rubbing exercise, for example, is a fun way for children to think about the bricks in the buildings and the stones on the ground in a new light.  And let's be honest, an afternoon in Bennerson Park coloring is just darn fun!  So join us! *The Amsterdam Houses community just keeps getting better!  Thanks to the dedication of RA Pres. Margarita Curet, Councilmember Gale Brewer and many others, Amsterdam Houses opened its new media room in July.  Learn more on our blog! Past Years at Amsterdam Houses Family Day ... Residents Association President Margarita Curet (in yellow) and Amsterdam Houses Resident Manager Clarence Gordon, along with student volunteers from Fordham University, welcome the crowd to Family Day 2009.City Councilmember Gale Brewer (far right) joins in the festivities!  Mark Foley, West Sider and Founder of Volunteer Music, leads children on a sing-a-long at the 2008 celebration. The Jazz Mobile delights residents and neighbors gathered in Bennerson Park (from Family Day 2009; they were with us in 2008, too!).  Brick, greenery, you name it!  This young Amsterdam Houses resident explored his surroundings in a fun new way. Dir. of Education Debi Germann and Dir. of Preservation Cristiana Peña manning the LW! table at Family Day 2010.  Come see us this year for Family Day 2011!

Playtime in Central Park :: Let's bowl!

Show some respect--Bowls is older than your great-great-great-great-great grandparents, and then some!

In Central Park, the New York Lawn Bowling Club gathers regularly to play a sport more than 5,000 years old.  Below, Club members put their skills to the test!

Curious?  Wanna give it a try?  Us, too!  Learn more about Bowls in this May 29, 1989, article from which the image above was excerpted.

Have a picture--new, "vintage" or otherwise--to share?  Send it in today!

Playtime in Central Park :: Friday Fun, Part II

Rollerskating at the Naumburg Bandshell

Located just a stone's throw south of Bethesda Terrace is the mecca of roller and in-line skating: the Bandshell.  It seems fitting that the Park's principal formal element--the rectilinear promenade that is The Mall and Literary Walk, which the Bandshell connects with--would be the site of some of its most free-spirited recreation!

And for those seeking aural relaxation, catch one of the season's Naumburg Orchestral Concerts!  See?  Something for everybody. 

What are you favorite playtime memories in Central Park?  Tell us!  Join in the fun of sharing your photos, new and "vintage" alike!

Playtime in Central Park :: Friday Fun, Part I

Bethesda Terrace

From the formality of pony prancing c. 1930s (thanks again, Bruce S.!), we move on to the short-shorts and tall socks of the 1970s at Bethesda Terrace!

Featuring Bethesda Terrace today is serendipitous, as the site has been at the front of our minds while LW! prepares for Monday morning's Design Commission review of Cherry Hill.  The 1980s renovation of the Cherry Hill Concourse was directly influenced by the style of nearby Bethesda Terrace.  Read more about Cherry Hill in our May blog post, and stay tuned for updates post-Design Commission!

Visit Bethesda Terrace or one of the other great Central Park locales featured thus far in this blog photo series!  Snap a photo and submit it to see yourself on the blog, too.  Fame and fortune are sure to follow ...

Playtime in Central Park :: Wanna go for a ride?

Rachel H., you've been bested.  Little Lila and Isabella, while your lakeside hideaway is enviable, the cuteness factor here is just undeniable.

It's refreshing to know that even as technology advances and child's play looks more and more like a feat of engineering excellence, the simple joy of mounting a pony in Central Park and going for a trot is timeless.

Our thanks to Bruce S. for digging deep into his photo albums for this gem.  It's a nostalgia trifecta: vintage fashion (riding pants! sailor collars!), old-style accordion camera, a landmark (not then, but now!) backdrop of Central Park and Fifth Avenue beyond.

What are you waiting for?  Join with others, like Robert I. and Robin C., and send in your photo(s) of playtime in Central Park!  Our playground map can guide you to new adventures, just waiting to be captured on film.  Submitting is easy, so get out there and play!

Landmarks Commission Approves Substantial Expansion for West 83rd Street Row House and Rear Yard

UPDATE from the FIELD
As reported by Cristiana P.

Today at Public Meeting, the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) swiftly approved a modified proposal for the row house at 51 West 83rd Street.

As reported on the LW! blog yesterday and by the press, this overwhelming proposal for (simultaneously!) a rooftop addition, a rear yard addition, and the excavation of the entire rear yard to accommodate an indoor-outdoor pool was roundly opposed by both LW!, a coalition of neighbors who came together to voice their concerns, and citywide organizations alarmed by what this could mean for low-density neighborhoods in all five boroughs.  Too much, we proclaimed in unison!

First reviewed by the LPC at Public Hearing on July 26, 2011, the Commissioners noted areas in which they'd like to see further modification (ie: the height of the rear yard addition, the possibility of truncating the rear yard excavation to allow for planting, etc.). Two quick weeks later, the application was back before the LPC with slight modifications; enough to receive an approval from the Commission.  The changes:

Click on the image to view an enlarged "rough sketch" of the approved work.

(1) ORIGINAL PROPOSAL: Three-story rear yard addition, topped with a terrace accessible via the fourth story.
MODIFIED and APPROVED PROPOSAL: Third floor downsized; no longer a fourth story terrace, now a third story terrace.

Click on the image to view an enlarged "rough sketch" of the approved work.

(2) ORIGINAL PROPOSAL: Excavation of the entire rear yard. The easternmost side to accommodate the pool; the western portion to accommodate underground mechanicals.
MODIFIED and APPROVED PROPOSAL: No change to the pool side of the rear yard; excavation of eastern side of the rear yard reduced by 10 feet, to accommodate plantings.

Modest tweaks, these updates barely scratch the surface of the overall inappropriateness of the proposed additions.

This approval sets a clear, negative precedent for backyards not only on the Upper West Side but city-wide. The historic character of No. 51 will be irreversibly lost. The inappropriate, insensitive and contextually disconnected design approved to replace it may well become a benchmark against which the LPC evaluates other proposals in the future. A sort of "we've approved bigger, glassier before--at 51 West 83rd Street--so why not here?"

Landmark properties are dynamic resources and must respond to the city's evolving needs. But, as LW! testified before the Commission in July [link], change must be responsibly managed to preserve the character and livability of our historic neighborhoods. The community looks to the LPC to defend the best of New York, and it is unfortunate that the Commissioners did not realize the deep impact their discussion and approval will have on backyards going forward.

Preservation in the Press :: West 83rd Street project in print, on the air

The diminutive row house at 51 West 83rd Street is making a splash.  Or at least the owners would like for it to.

At a recent public hearing of the Landmarks Preservation Commission, a proposal was reviewed for substantial modifications to this understated row house: (1) a three story, full-width rear yard addition, (2) a rooftop addition, and (3) the excavation of the rear yard to accommodate an indoor/outdoor pool.

While the latter of the proposals elements--the pool--seems to be attracting the most press mentions, it is the cumulative impact of all these proposed interventions to a historic row house that is most concerning to LANDMARK WEST!  At the LPC public hearing on July 19th, we presented a statement that relates our position on excessive bulk, contemporary design in historic districts, the value of historic rear yards, and more.  For our full statement, click here.

Following a piece by the New York Post, the story has quickly been picked up by other news outlets:

And just this afternoon, LW!'s Director of Preservation, Cristiana Peña, met with a news team from Fox 5 News, along with oft-quoted neighbor of No. 51, Jonathan Stuart.  Photos of the taping are below. 

Tune in to Fox 5 News at approximately 6:15PM to watch the piece air.  Then, tell us what you think!  Use the "Comments" link below to weigh in on what responsible landmark stewardship means to you!

LW's Cristiana Peña, far right, speaks with Fox 5 News in front of 51 West 83rd Street.

Cristiana touches upon issues of overall bulk, design appropriateness and
the importance of protecting historic row house rear yards.

Jonathan Stuart speaks to the impact of the proposed modifications to neighbors.

Jonathan Stuart shows the Fox 5 News team the rear yard environment
of the West 83rd/West 84th Street yards.

Playtime in Central Park :: Splish, splash at Levin Playground

What's a toddler to do when the temperature hits triple digits?  Cool off in one of Central Park's playground fountains!  West Sider Robert I. captured this tot doing just that.

"I took this in the summer of 2007 in the playground to the north of the sail boat pond along 5th Avenue." ~~ Robert I.

The whimsical Sophie Loeb Fountain is the perfect backdrop for a bit of fun in Central Park.  Dedicated "In the Memory of Sophie Irene Loeb, Lover of Children--A Home for Every Child", the fountain features carvings of characters from the classic story "Alice in Wonderland".  A New York Times article covering the ribbon-cutting in 1936 described the fountain: "the King, the Queen, the Duchess, the Mad Hatter, Father William, the Pig Baby and the Frog Butler, and, of course, Alice, gaze down upon spouting water flowing from the mouths of minor 'Alice' characters into the large bowl."

Discover the Loeb Fountain for yourself!  The fountain, in the Levin Playground, is located at East 77th Street.  While you're out, use our playgrounds map to explore more of Central Park's play destinations.  And don't forget to snap a photo while you're there and send it in!