Municipal Art Society bestows preservation award on Bruce Ratner

From Capital New York:

A venerable preservationist group will on June 11 honor a developer deplored by preservationists, and the resulting intra-preservationist controversy has boiled over into a proper, public scrum.

On Monday afternoon, the Historic Districts Council sent out an email to the press declaring itself “appalled” by the actions of its colleagues over at the Municipal Art Society for their decision to bestow the coveted Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Medal on Bruce Ratner and Maryanne Gilmartin, the executive chairman and president and C.E.O, respectively, of Forest City Ratner Companies, the real estate concern that gave us MetroTech, Atlantic Yards, Atlantic Center Mall and New York by Gehry at 8 Spruce Street.

“Conflating the company’s record of bulldozing neighborhoods with Mrs. Onassis’s pivotal role in preserving New York City’s Landmarks Law is something H.D.C. feels should not go unnoticed,” reads the email.

“It’s not like they’re building great spaces,” said Simeon Bankoff, the group’s executive director, in a follow-up interview.

To register its displeasure this time around, the Historic Districts Council will host a screening of a film chronicling Ratner’s Atlantic Yards exploits, Battle for Brooklyn, the same night as the gala. Afterward, the group will host a panel discussion featuring Atlantic Yards critics.

One critic that will not be participating? The Municipal Art Society.

During the height of the Atlantic Yards controversy, the society's leadership criticized Ratner for project delays it said could blight the neighborhood.

Ron Shiffman, a Pratt Institute professor, Atlantic Yards critic and a recipient of the Jane Jacobs Medal, which is administered by M.A.S., argued that the nonprofit's pursuit of money was clouding its judgment.

“It says that they needed money,” said Shiffman. “But there’s a point at which principle has to trump need when it comes to these kinds of things.”

LPC rejects Aluminaire House

"Surprise! The Aluminaire is defeated.

I think nobody knew that the LPC was going to hand down a decision, but they did, and it sounds as if it was a unanimous against the Aluminaire House.

But please read on--

This victory was won by the hardest working activists (most of YOU), by the 40+ who took the day off to testify in person, by the 600+ in total who raised objection to the development proposal to the LPC, by the assistance of really smart allies at the Historic Districts Council and other preservation groups, by our elected officials and Community Board 2 who added major clout by testifying on our behalf.

Most especially we are grateful to Councilman Van Bramer for his uncompromising opposition from minute one to this wrong-headed plan, and for his assigning us the excellent help of Nick Gulotta on his staff.

[1] First way to celebrate-- call and say thanks to Councilman Van Bramer and Nick Gulotta at 718-383-9566, ext.5. You may not catch anyone in the office, but leave a quick "Thank you for saving us from the Aluminaire," or put that into an e-mail to JVanBramer@council.nyc.gov

[2] Then we need to re-group for Round 2, because the defeat of this development proposal is not the defeat of the next development proposal. If we are going to save this historic planned playground and its rare buildings so the public can enjoy it forever, we will need to persuade the City to negotiate right away to purchase the land and make it a park.

Thanks again to you, who will hear more soon from the envisioned Friends of Cautley Gardens Park -- and please spread the word, especially to neighbors you know who don't have e-mail.

Hurrah,

Herb Reynolds & the Sunnyside Gardens Preservation Alliance"

Forest Hills rowhouses historically significant

Photo by Michael Perlman

From Brownstoner Queens:

The Historic Districts Council just announced its annual list of six areas of New York meriting preservation, as part of its Six to Celebrate campaign this year. Over the year, the HDC will offer hands-on assistance in a number of preservation issues, like documentation, research, zoning, landmarking, publicity, and public outreach. Here in Queens, the HDC selected the Forest Close neighborhood of Forest Hills as an area worth celebrating. Here’s what they have to say about Forest Close:

Designed in 1927 in the spirit of the garden city movement, Forest Close is a charming nook of 38 neo-Tudor houses surrounding a shared communal garden. While the Forest Close Association maintains covenants that regulate design and open space elements of the community and advises residents on design guidelines for building projects, they are now exploring other tools to better protect the area’s special character. The Association is working to engage residents and local stakeholders to promote the preservation of this lush neighborhood in Forest Hills.

Schumer attacks preservationists

Dear Neighborhood Partner,

On Monday, New York’s preservation community was attacked in the New York Post as “those people would see the city die a slow death”. This is provocative (although the Post has called us worse) but when the writer is United State Senator Charles Schumer, it demands action.

Senator Schumer is writing about the plan to upzone East Midtown, which is currently under consideration by the City Council and due to be voted on by next week. The plan is opposed by eight community boards, elected officials, labor unions and even the property owners of Grand Central Terminal but that hasn’t stopped our adversaries in the Real Estate Board of New York from beating the drums and calling in favors to get this massive upzoning passed. Along the way, REBNY wants nothing less than each and every preservation activity fully and firmly squashed. This is more than landmarking, this is overall assault on public participation in development in our neighborhoods. These are the people who spent millions of dollars interfering with local elections and send lobbyists out to community meetings to sabotage preservation efforts. The fruits of their efforts can be seen in Sen. Schumer’s indictment of us as “those people”.

Senator Schumer’s insult affects more than just people who care about Midtown. New York is about to see a massive change in city government for the first time in a dozen years and to have our efforts derided by one of the state’s senior politicians as shortsighted and reflexively negative is unconscionable. Preservationists have been fighting for the soul of New York through the most development-friendly administration in history and to be dismissed and insulted by our Senator in front of a new government requires an answer.

Please circulate this petition far and wide to your friends, neighbors and members. Schumer is not just insulting preservation efforts in Midtown Manhattan, he’s attacking everyone who is working to protect their neighborhood.

Sign the petition: http://goo.gl/bGiPKj

To contact Senator Schumer directly: http://www.schumer.senate.gov/Public/contact.htm

Thank you,

Simeon Bankoff
Executive Director
Historic Districts Council
232 East 11th Street
New York, NY 10003

Aluminum house to go before LPC

From the NY Times:

This isn’t a case of Nimby, the neighbors in Sunnyside Gardens, Queens, say. It’s more a matter of namby.

Some residents are upset about a plan to build a two-story, eight-unit apartment house at 39th Avenue and 50th Street, in the Sunnyside Gardens Historic District.

What has galvanized opposition is a gesture that was supposed to make the project palatable: In the crook of the L-shape apartment house, the architects Frances Campani and Michael Schwarting would reconstruct the vestiges of the groundbreaking prefabricated, all-aluminum Aluminaire House of 1931.

“How can a house that in some ways resembles a spaceship be plopped down in the middle of this neighborhood?” asked City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, who represents Sunnyside Gardens.

The proposal is scheduled to go before the Landmarks Preservation Commission on Tuesday.

The heads of two influential preservation groups, the Historic Districts Council and the New York Landmarks Conservancy, said they did not support the Aluminaire House plan. Still, almost everyone hopes it will have another life.

“The Aluminaire House is architecturally significant,” Councilman Van Bramer said. “It should be restored and put on display for people to learn about, enjoy and experience. However, that should be done somewhere else.”

Avella requests landmarking for Flushing Meadows

From Capital New York:

State Senator Tony Avella has asked the city's Landmarks Preservation Commission to landmark Flushing Meadows Corona Park, the site where Major League Soccer would like to build an arena, Related Companies and Sterling Equities would like to build a mall, and the United States Tennis Association would like to expand its National Tennis Center.

On February 20, Avella sent a letter to Robert Tierney, the chairman of the Landmarks Preservation Commission, requesting the park be added to the city's list of scenic landmarks, like Central, Fort Tryon, and Morningside parks.

"The Park is a valuable asset for the city not only because of its green space and natural areas, but also due to its embodiment of historical structures and leading cultural and educational institutions," he wrote.

The park is home to a number of World's Fair relics that have fallen into disrepair, including the Philip Johnson-designed New York City Pavilion, the New York City Building, which for several years housed the United Nations, the Queens Museum of Art, and the Unisphere, which was granted landmark status in 1995.

"We’ve long felt that Flushing Meadows Corona Park is of historic significance for many different reasons, and while I'm not ready to say should the whole thing be landmarked, but goddamn, obviously, there are areas of the park that are historically significant and deserve to be protected," said Simeon Bankoff, executive director of the Historic Districts Council.

Have landmarking advocates gone too far?

From the NY Post:

In their frenzy to derail the decades-overdue rezoning of the Grand Central district, three esteemed preservationist groups are making utter fools of themselves.

Altogether, The Municipal Art Society, the New York Landmarks Conservancy and the Historic District Council are asking the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission to prohibit four dozen East Midtown buildings from ever being demolished or altered.

Worse, the groups can’t agree on which properties are worth immortalizing. In fact, their most recent wish-lists are laughably at odds.

“Save the masterpieces from the bulldozers!” is the rallying cry. We’re told that allowing larger new office buildings in the 78-block area will mean wholesale demolition of supposedly architecturally distinguished structures — or even, God forbid, cast shadows over them.

But the incoherence of the wish-lists exposes the truth: This campaign is really about thwarting zoning changes needed to reverse the Grand Central district’s slide into obsolescence. (Buildings there average 60-plus years old and are increasingly unsuited to modern office use).

The preservationist hysteria is a just handy tool to spook the City Council into voting down the rezoning later this year. That’s clear when you examine the three groups’ recommendations.

Together, they call for 48 total buildings to be landmarked. But of the “inviolable” 48, the organizations agree on just six — that’s how many show up on all three lists.

Sure, we all have our favorites, but wouldn’t you expect somewhat more of a consensus? Landmarking even a single site has profound, permanent consequences and shouldn’t be taken lightly — which is why the Landmarks Commission sometimes takes years to act.

In fact, the all-over-the-map choices illustrate how treacherously subjective landmark-worthiness can be.

City Council set to gut Landmarks Law

From HDC Blog:

The City Council is holding a public hearing at on Wednesday, May 2 at 10am at 250 Broadway to contemplate 10 bills which, if passed, will greatly change the workings of the Landmarks Preservation Commission in some very damaging ways.

...there are two bills which seek to inhibit LPC’s powers to designate or regulate properties.

Intro 845 (CM Comrie, lead sponsor) – allows for replacement materials on landmark buildings to be those present at time of designation.

Intro 846 (CM Comrie, lead sponsor) – mandates City Planning Commission to analyze economic impact of designation on the development potential of proposed landmark and instructs City Council to strongly regard this analysis in their deliberations. The bill also requires the LPC to issue very detailed draft designation reports early in the public hearing process and promulgate rules for historic districts immediately after designation.

These bills are aimed at making the LPC ineffectual and providing faulty intellectual rationales for the Council to reject designations at the behest of developers.

Intro 845, the Replacement Materials Bill, undermines the basic benefit of LPC oversight in helping to gradually return areas to a more historically-appropriate condition. With the advent of new material technologies and the growth in skilled building artisans, it is easier and cheaper than ever before to replace failing building materials with appropriate replacements of high quality. What this bill would result in would be the endless replacement of white vinyl windows in designated historic districts with more of the same.

Intro 846, the Economic Argument Bill, deliberately misconstrues the economic value of landmark designation by emphasizing the false value of “property strictly as development ”. By enabling the sole criteria of economic value to be the highest use of a site, the bill strives to denigrate the economic value of landmark designation to property value. The most highly valued and most desirable property in New York City falls within historic districts. There are a number of factors why these areas are so successful and one of them is their landmark protection. People want to live where there is certainty and protection. Under this bill, the recent Park Slope extension could be found to have an negative economic effect on the neighborhood because it could potentially affect the FAR of rowhouse blocks, whereas commonsense and actual real world data will show the opposite to be true.

This is a deliberate attack on the Landmarks Law , which was intended by its drafters to “stabilize and improve property value; protect and enhance the city’s attractions to tourists and visitors and the support and stimulus to business and industry thereby provided; and strengthen the economy of the city”. This is how Landmark designation worked in 1965, and it’s how Landmark designation works today.

That the City Council is hearing all these bills with almost no notice is very disturbing. That each speaker is only going to have THREE MINUTES to comment on 10 bills is outright appalling. Regardless of the merit of these bills, the concerned public of New York City’s neighborhoods deserves a real opportunity to discuss the issues raised by these bills. Under these circumstances, any germ of good policy in these bills simply cannot have a fair hearing or thoughtful discussion whereas the bad ideas risk slipping through unchallenged.

HDC urges you to come to 250 Broadway on Wednesday, May 2 at 10am and tell the City Council firmly – this is bad public policy, bad for preservation and bad for New York! Written testimony is also permitted and should be brought to the hearing or sent to CM Comrie and Speaker Christine Quinn at 250 Broadway, New York, NY 10007. You can contact Speaker Quinn on the Council website or send your testimony to gbenjamin(at)council.nyc.gov.

Richmond Hill house landmarked

From HDC:

Even in a neighborhood as architecturally rich as Richmond Hill, the Daniel Eldridge House is a true stand-out. The striking Italianate style free-standing house topped with a cupola has long been considered by many here a landmark, whether officially designated or not. The cupola has the added history of being the spot from which Mr. Eldridge, a Tweed Ring member, is said to have watched for the arrival of policemen to arrest him on embezzlement charges. The incident is an interesting reminder of the connection between this then-rural area and Manhattan even in pre-consolidation days.

Honoring a friend and his home

From the NY Times:

By 1997 Mr. Graziano was living with his parents, which proved fortunate for Mr. Bruce. After his wife died in 2006, he grew increasingly frail. His sons had long since moved away, and the house had become an obstacle course. With the approval of the sons, Mr. Graziano helped care for the older man, escorting him to doctors’ appointments and taking him out so he wouldn’t feel like a shut-in.

And partly because of a wide-ranging career in historic preservation and urban planning, Mr. Graziano had always admired his neighbor’s house. From 2007 to 2009 he served as president of the Historic Districts Council, a citywide organization whose focus is historic preservation. He works as a freelance consultant; his seven-page, single-spaced résumé, described as a “partial work history,” lists nearly 70 projects.

A year after Mr. Bruce died in January 2009 at age 95, Mr. Graziano bought the house, along with its contents, for $407,000. “Before he died, he made it clear to his sons that he wanted me to have the house, and for a reasonable sum,” Mr. Graziano said.

Even before he moved in last October Mr. Graziano had been working almost full time to clean and repair rooms that have sat untouched for decades.

Watch the video.

Addisleigh Park is latest Historic District

From HDC Blog:

Today, the LPC also voted to designate the Addisleigh Park Historic District in Queens. The 422 homes designated represent a community that contains excellent examples of Tudor Revival and Colonial Revival architecture, a wealth of famous past residents, and helps tell the important story of African-American cultural history over the past half-century.

In 2006, HDC, in partnership with the Addisleigh Park Civic Organization, launched a project to document the architectural and social significance of Addisleigh Park. The project included a survey of the core area of architectural significance and documentation of the development of the neighborhood. In addition, HDC documented many of Addisleigh’s most renowned residents, including Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, W.E.B. DuBois, Jackie Robinson, Lena Horne, Milt Hinton, Illinois Jacquet, Percy Sutton, Roy Campanella and the many others who made their homes here starting in the 1940s. We were aided in our work with grants from the Preservation League of New York State, the New York State Council on the Arts and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. To read more about HDC’s work with the neighborhood, click here.

QUIZ TIME!!!!

Guess which council member sent these words as part of a pissed off e-mail to a preservation group today?

"smug"
"patronizing"
"insulting"
"unfortunate"
"preposterous"
"sniveling"
"How dare you"

Was it:

A) Peter Vallone
B) Jim Gennaro
C) Karen Koslowitz
D) Dan Halloran

City Council to overturn Queens landmark designation

From HDC:

If everything goes as expected, by 1pm on January 11, 2011, the Borough of Queens will be well on the way to having one less designated landmark, thanks to City Council.

On October 26, 2010, at a hearing proudly proclaimed as “Queens Day”, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted unanimously to designate Grace Episcopal Church Memorial Hall as one of the 68 individual landmarks in the borough. The two-story red-brick and limestone Tudor Revival building was completed in 1912 by the architecture firm of Upjohn and Constable for use as gymnasium, auditorium, meeting rooms and offices. It is the final piece of one of the most historic church complexes in New York City – the other parts of which (Grace Episcopal Church, 1861-62 and enlarged in 1901-02 and the adjacent graveyard, opened 1734) are both individual landmarks – and an important signifier of the role of the church in Jamaica as it expanded from solely providing religious services to include educational and social services for its community. LPC Chairman Robert Tierney stated, “This picturesque structure was built to serve as a powerful link to the church’s historic past, and secure a promising future. This parish hall nurtured and sustained this important congregation for almost 100 years, and its designation helps to assure its role will continue.” Unfortunately, the congregation doesn’t seem to agree.

Despite not bothering to appear at the public hearing about the hall in February (which they admit they were properly notified about), and despite the City Planning Commission’s analysis that the designation would enable them to sell 314,000 square feet of development rights which could go to approximately 20 nearby receiving sites, they’re not having it. So they reached out to their local Council member James Gennaro who stated “I’m going to be opposing it. More attention should be focused on the financial impacts of landmarking on nonprofit institutions.” Council member Leroy Comrie, who also represents part of Jamaica and is the chair of the City Council’s powerful Land Use Committee also stated to HDC that he would oppose the designation and that is frankly that.

Let’s forget about any lengthy discussions of the merit of the designation or the “financial” implications of landmarking. That really has no place at the public hearing. Most council members are going to vote with the recommendation of the local representative; it makes no sense to do otherwise in the communal environment of democratic government where you depend on the votes of other members to approve projects in your local district. 314,000 square feet of air-rights? What does that really mean when you have to fix your slate roof? In point of fact, St. Thomas the Apostle on Fifth Avenue received over $14 million to go towards building maintenance for some of their air rights in 2008 although, in full disclosure, we weren’t pleased with the proposed development that resulted.

Regardless, we aren’t the decision-makers here, nor are other groups who showed up to support this designation at the Landmarks Commission, nor is the Greater Jamaica Development Corporation who supported this in writing nor Queens Borough President Helen Marshall or State Senator Shirley Huntley who did also. The congregation is in control and the congregation doesn’t want designation, therefore it’s not going to happen, Q.E.D.

To be fair, this unfortunate scenario is well within the allowed-for practice of governmental power. It is the Council’s right to ask whether the power to designate a property as a landmark should be exercised, and there is no required assessment or measurement (political calculation notwithstanding). So the moral of today’s story is “When embarking on a community proposal, get your elected officials onboard early and contact them often.” Remember, if they’re not partners in your campaign, they might be partners in somebody else’s.

New Queensmarks even lamer than the originals

From the Daily News:

Preservationists argue that Borough Hall, including new borough historian Jack Eichenbaum, can prove its commitment to local heritage by posting signage or creating brochures for the spots that will be profiled in these pages.

Eichenbaum sparked a debate over the role of a borough historian last month when he told The News that he wants to be an "educator" rather than fight to landmark buildings.

"I don't see myself championing those types of causes," Eichenbaum said at the time.

Eichenbaum was criticized but defended his approach, emphasizing his efforts to educate children about Queens history and vowing to refer landmarking causes to more "passionate" advocates.

The exchange spawned many ideas on how Eichenbaum, Borough President Helen Marshall and Queens tourism director Terri Osborne could honor local legacy even without landmarking.

For starters, historians say signage may encourage residents to take an interest in Queens' past.

"It can be a very effective way of explaining to passersby the transformation in New York's development," said Simeon Bankoff, the executive director of the Historic Districts Council.

Such efforts, advocates contend, may boost Queens tourism, inspire groundbreaking research and stir public interest in the borough's past.

HA HA HA HA HA! What a waste of time and money.

May I suggest the following wording:

"On the site of this pile of Queens Crap used to stand an historic building. - Jack Eichenbaum, Borough Historian, Helen Marshall, Borough President, Michael R. Bloomberg, Mayor. Plaque donated by the Historic Districts Council."

Can't wait until the plaque unveilings. Let's do Niederstein's first!

Groups want Tammany Hall landmarked

From The Villager:

Preservation advocates are renewing their 25-year campaign to get Tammany Hall, the Colonial revival-style building on E. 17th St. at Union Square East, built in 1928 for the New York City Democratic Party, designated as a city landmark.

During the past three months, advocates including the Union Square Community Coalition, Gramercy Neighborhood Associates, Municipal Art Society, the Historic Districts Council and the New York Landmarks Conservancy, have written letters to the Landmarks Preservation Commission renewing their support for landmarking the building now serving as the home of the New York Film Academy and the Union Square Theater.

“We’ve been at it, off and on, since 1985,” said Jack Taylor, a member of the U.S.C.C. board of directors and chairperson of the coalition’s historic preservation committee. “In the past few months we’ve also received political support for landmarking the building from Councilmember Rosie Mendez, state Senator Tom Duane and Assemblymember Brian Kavanagh,” Taylor said.

There are also 12 individually landmarked buildings around Union Square, Taylor said, adding, “We want Tammany Hall to be the 13th.”

Hey readers, how many individually landmarked buildings are in your communities?

Court fight promised over new building rules

From The Wonkster:

New rules at the Department of Buildings will go into effect Monday that require all zoning diagrams for approved buildings be put online.

But as part of that rule, the public will be limited to comment on those approvals for only 45 days. Public comment is now unlimited.

What the buildings department says is streamlining the development process and will encourage public comment, advocates and elected officials charge that the public’s voice is being silenced.

At a rally this afternoon, mayoral candidate Tony Avella, comptroller candidate John Liu and public advocate candidate Norman Siegel, as well as the Queens Civic Congress and the Historic Districts Council, blasted the administration for the rule change. They urged the department to rescind its plan or to prepare for an arduous court battle.

...advocates say the new rule is obstructionist and could, Siegel hypothesizes, lead to more structurally unsound buildings. They argue a community should be able to raise an unlimited amount of complaints regarding a neighborhood development. The community, they say, are the watchdogs and limiting their comment period is putting developers first.

Historic district designation threatened in Brooklyn

From Brownstoner:

According to an email that went out last night from the Historic Districts Council, the Ocean on the Park Historic District, which has received broad support at every step of the landmarking process, is in jeopardy of being sabotaged at the last minute by Councilman Mathieu Eugene. Calling the situation a "preservation emergency," HDC reports that the Councilman "seems to have been swayed by the anti-preservation rhetoric of one property owner, who has put their property up for sale and has marketed it specifically as a development site."

Update: Ocean on the Park: Crisis Narrowly Averted

HDC Coffee Talk - Community Blogging!

Community Blogging
Monday Morning Coffee Talk, with the Flatbush Gardener

Monday, February 2nd, 2009
8:30-10:00am

Neighborhood Preservation Center
232 East 11th Street
New York, NY 10003

Community bloggers are increasingly the voice of local neighborhoods. As larger newspapers focus less and less on the day to day, neighborhood-based blogs have assumed the role of providing updated, detailed accounts of the issues that directly affect built environment and quality of life. With little more than an internet connection and a digital camera, these activist reporters monitor communities with a passion and in the process end up mobilizing their fellow neighbors to take action and make change.

More info here.

Columbia wants to demolish historic buildings

From HDC:

Three buildings slated for demolition by Columbia University have been deemed historically significant by New York State’s Historic Preservation Office. As a result of an application submitted by Assembly Member Daniel O’Donnell, the state’s preservation office has determined that a group of residential buildings on West 115th Street, West 116th Street and Morningside Drive meet the criteria for listing as a historic district on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. Taken together, the properties could be listed on the registers as the Morningside Drive Historic District.

The eligible district includes 408, 410, and 412 West 115th Street, some of the earliest built multiunit residential buildings that still stand in Morningside Heights. Last July, Columbia University announced plans to raze these buildings while it considers future uses for the site. O’Donnell strongly opposes that demolition and has urged Columbia to find a solution that preserves the integrity of those residential blocks.

State Office Confirms Historic Character of Threatened Morningside Heights Brownstones

Learn all about the BSA

Here's your opportunity to learn what the Board of Standards and Appeals does and how it works. The Historic Districts Council is presenting a lecture on the topic this Monday. Dec 1.

In New York City, one body has the power to grant exceptions to certain local building laws and regulations on a case-by-case basis: the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA). Once granted, such special permissions, known as variances, provide building owners and developers with legal, alternative approaches to the city’s Zoning Resolution, Building and Fire Codes, and Multiple Dwelling and LaborLaws. The BSA also hears appeals made by property owners, community groups, elected officials and the like who believe that a given commissioner or agency head has issued a ruling that is illegal.

Comprised of five mayoral-appointed commissioners, the BSA is considered to be one of the most obscure but powerful bodies in city government. Yet many neighborhood advocates who have opposed or closely monitored construction projects in their neighborhoods have had to appeal to the BSA at one time or another. BSA Vice-Chair Christopher Collins will explain the basic steps of presenting to the Board, from how to navigate their procedures and requirements to how the most effective approach to formulating arguments.

The Coffee Talk begins at 8:30am and is held at the Neighborhood Preservation Center, 232 East 11th Street, between Second & Third Avenues in Manhattan. All Coffee Talk events are free of charge.

Reservations required. To RSVP, email hdc@hdc.org or call (212) 614-9107.