Spring 2016 - Carnegie Hill Neighbors

Transcription

CARNEGIE HILLnews
CARNEGIE HILL neighbors
I
Because it’s our home
I
Spring 2016 / Vol. 37 / Nº1
2016 CHN ENRICHMENT AWARD:
IMMANUEL LUTHERAN
CHURCH
PRESERVES GIFT FROM ANCESTORS
If
you walked down Lexington Avenue to 86th Street
last year, you might have noticed the scaffolding
surrounding the Immanuel Lutheran Church on
the southwest corner at 88th Street. The signs
proclaimed that the restoration taking place is “for the next
150 years.” When the scaffolding came down last November,
it revealed very little change. To its credit, the church—
unrestricted by any landmarks regulations and thus
free to alter its historic facade — has preserved the
building as it was designed in 1885. For this significant
contribution to the architectural character of Carnegie Hill,
the Immanuel Lutheran Church is the recipient of the 2016
Carnegie Hill Neighbors Enrichment Award to be presented
at our Spring Benefit on May 17. (See more on page 18.)
The church was first established on East 87th Street
in 1863, in the middle of the Civil War, by German immigrants for a growing Yorkville congregation. They quickly
outgrew the space, and after some 20 years the parishioners,
who mostly worked in the Third Avenue breweries and local
shops, managed to build a sumptuous place of worship.
The current church on 88th Street was dedicated on
Thanksgiving Day, 1886. It was designed by Arthur Crooks,
Continued on page 24
INSIDE...
CARNEGIE HILL
PROFILE:
WARRIE PRICE—
A VISIONARY
FOR THE
BATTERY
See page 12.
CHN SPRING BENEFIT
TO BE AT OTTO KAHN PALAZZO
See more on pages 17-19.
CARNEGIE HILL
IS A MAGNET
FOR WRITERS,
says author and
neighbor Patricia
Volk. See page 29.
2 I SPRING 2016 • CARNEGIE HILL NEWS
CALENDAR
news
CARNEGIE HILL
SPRING-SUMMER EVENTS
3
4
Spring Calendar
6
8
Major Contributors
CHN UpFront
CHN Activities and Updates
List of Advertisers
On Museum Mile
by Bo Niles
10
12
StreetScape Updates
15
Environmental News
A Green Roof on Goat Hill
by Bonnie Lane Webber
16
CH Profile: Warrie Price
by Suzanne Wiedel-Pace
A New World Palazzo
The Otto Kahn Mansion
Carnegie Hill Doormen
by Jennifer Huntley
17
Community Service Award
Hunter Schools Schoolyard
18
Come to the Spring Benefit
19
20
Spring Benefit Invitation
23
Safe Neighborhood
Subway Safety, Foot Patrol
by Garrett Glaser
24
SUZANNE WIEDEL-PACE
SPRING 2016
Landmark Land
by Lo van der Valk
Neighborhood News
Cooper Hewitt Garden
by Bo Niles
27
Shop the CHN Gift Mart
28
Neighborhood Authors
by Lenny Golay
29
Carnegie Hill Writers I Know
by Patricia Volk
30
Shop Talk
by Marion E. Morey
33
Tree Care
by Julia Bradford
34
City Skyline–Always in Flux
by Cynthia MacGrath
36
CHN Membership Form
Editor-in-Chief: Barbara Coffey
Editors: Samantha Fremont-Smith,
Lenny Golay, Ann Levin, Marion E.
Morey, Bo Niles, Shari Thompson,
Suzanne Wiedel-Pace
Art Director: Cynthia MacGrath
Ad Production: Raji Kaur
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS
ANNUAL SPRING BENEFIT AND AUCTION
The Otto Kahn Palazzo
Tuesday, May 17. See Pages 17- 19.
THE BRICK PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Park Avenue at 92nd Street
212-289-4400 www.brickchurch.org
Strawberry Festival
Live music, great food (hot dogs, strawberry
shortcake with ice cream), games for kids.
Sunday, May 22, 12:30 – 2:30 p.m.
HOUSE OF THE REDEEMER/FABBRI MANSION
7 East 95th Street, 212-289-0399
www.houseoftheredeemer.org
Fabbri Chamber Concert
The American String Quartet. Reception follows.
Call for reservations. Thursday, May 19, 7:30 p.m.
Annual Garden Party
Reception with entertainment, live auction. Please
call the office. Wednesday, June 8, 6:30 p.m.
EPISCOPAL CHURCH OF THE HEAVENLY REST
Fifth Avenue at 90th Street, 212-289-3400
Canterbury Choral Society
canterburychoral.org
Jonathan De Vries, Conductor. Works by Duruflé,
Poulenc, Saint-Saëns. Sunday, May 22, 4:00 p.m.
DILLER-QUAILE MUSIC SCHOOL
14 East 95th Street, 212-369-1484, ext. 18
www.diller-quaile.org
Wednesday, April 27, 7:30 p.m.
String Quartet
IMMANUEL LUTHERAN CHURCH
Lexington Avenue at 88th Street, 212-289-8128
The Baldwin Festival Chorus of New York
R. Douglas Sheldon, Conductor; Jon Tyllian,
organist; Steven W. Ryan, piano; Jennifer Gliere,
soprano. Haydn Lord Nelson Mass;
Mendelssohn Elijah; Goerke Totus Tuus.
Friday, May 6, 8:00 p.m.
PARK AVENUE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
106 East 86th Street, 212-427-5421.
The Spirituals: Expressions of Hope and
Healing Choir Concert. Guest artists and choir
tell stories of courage through traditional and
contemporary song. Sunday, May 1, 4:00 p.m.
Rummage Sale Great deals on gently-used
clothing, household items, toys, books, more.
Saturday, April 30, 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Children’s Summer Music Camp
Ages 3-5 musical exploration. June 6 – 10.
MUSEUM MILE FESTIVAL
The 38th annual festival and the city’s biggest
block party. Free access to all museums from
the Metropolitan Museum at 82nd Street to
El Museo del Barrio at 104th Street. Live bands,
entertainment, art in the street. Tuesday,
June 14, 6:00 – 9:00 p.m., rain or shine.
NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC CONCERTS
IN THE PARK www.nyphil.org
Alan Gilbert, Conductor; Anthony McGill, clarinet.
Wednesday, June 15: R. Strauss, Mozart;
Thursday, June 16: Wagner, Beethoven.
Both concerts on Great Lawn 8:00 p.m.
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Suzie Aijala • Irene E. Aldridge • Heather Brandes • Mark Brookes • Barbara Calabrese
Barbara Coffey* • Kathryn Collins • Dixie De Luca • Samantha Fremont-Smith* • Leslie J. Garfield
Mark L. Goldsmith* • Susan Gottridge* • Lisa Sharf Green • Anne Haubenstricker • Ivan Hrazdira
Julie Herzig • Jurate Kazickas • Renée Klaperman • Linda Kurtz • Della Leathers
Cynthia MacGrath • Joan McLaughlin • Gina Morehead • Virginia B. Pitman • Molly Rand
R. Geoffrey Roesch • April Shelton • David J. Stoll • George Stonbely* • Teri Swanson
Lo van der Valk* • Gregory Warner • Bonnie Lane Webber
* Executive Committee
EMERITUS: Ronald Spencer • Margaret M. Ternes
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS IS DEDICATED TO PRESERVING THE ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD, LANDSCAPING THE MALLS,
ENHANCING STREETSCAPES, CARING FOR TREES, NETWORKING WITH BUILDINGS, AND PROVIDING SECURITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL GUIDANCE.
CARNEGIE HILL NEWS • SPRING 2016 I 3
CHN UPFRONT
TAXUS HEDGES REPLACED, BLOCK BY COLORFUL BLOCK
“
Look for pink Dragon Wing
begonias from May to November
SUZANNE WIEDEL-PACE
T
he Park Avenue malls are a
joy to behold, with tulips and
cherry trees blooming in the
spring and lush Dragon Wing
begonias all summer and
beyond. The lawns and shrubs
are part of the year-round
landscape and require constant
care. The taxus yew hedges
are showing their decades-old
age and need to be replaced.
In March, CHN began the
process, planting new taxus
hedges in the mall on the
north side of 86th Street,
where Carnegie Hill begins.
Replacement of yews on
the other malls to the north,
and their significant cost,
will be spread over the
next few years.
PARK AVENUE APARTMENT BUILDINGS AND FRIENDS SUPPORTING THE MALLS
1040
1045
1049
1050
1060
1065
1070
1075
1088
1095
1100
1105
1111
1112
1120
1125
1130
1133
1150
1155
1160
1165
1172
1175
1185
1192
1199
1220
1230
1235
49 East 86th St.
55 East 86th St.
64 East 86th St.
120 East 87th St.
120 East 90th St.
47 East 91st St.
130 East 94th St.
1082 Park Avenue
The Brinberg Family
The Brick Presbyterian Church
Church of St. Thomas More
The Spence School
PROTECT CARNEGIE HILL TREES.
HELP KEEP OUR SIDEWALKS CLEAN!
T
Monica Green, Nina Whiting, Cee Cee Belford,
and Georgia Burger socialize as they personalize
CHN party invitations.
SPRING BENEFIT COMMITTEE APPEALS TO FRIENDS
embers of the 2016 Spring Benefit Committee gathered over three days
in early March to write notes urging friends to come to the benefit.
Maybe you received an invitation with a personal note? See more about the
benefit on pages 17 to 19, and send in your response card to CHN.
M
here has been ample evidence that many
dog walkers are not curbing their dogs or
cleaning up after them. Before we ask the
New York Sanitation Department to assign an
officer to patrol our neighborhood and give
summonses to offenders, we will try blanketing
the neighborhood with “Curb Your Dog” signs.
We hope this reminder will encourage people
to keep their dogs out of the tree beds, guide
their dogs to the curb, and pick up! If there is
no “Curb Your Dog” sign on a tree in front of
your building, stop by our office and take as
many free signs as you need.
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS STAFF
LISTSERV TO AID COMMUNICATIONS
“H
ow can Carnegie Hill Neighbors help us reach out to
the community?” asked the Reverend Matt Heyd, rector
of Church of the Heavenly Rest. Maybe with a listserv,
CHN members and organizations in Carnegie Hill could post
events and information online to share with the community. CHN
is developing a Carnegie Hill Community Bulletin Board that will be
open to all members
and local groups
with a password, but
LL
CARNEGIE HI
as with the blog on
the CHN website,
items will be cleared
by CHN before
posting to be sure
that they are suitable
and respectfully
worded.
YOUR THRIFT SHOP DONATIONS WORK TWO WAYS
Spring cleaning means making some hard
decisions about what to keep and what
to give away. If you come across
quality items you no longer need,
please think of the CHN online
thrift shop and call the office.
All proceeds from this project
support our StreetScape efforts
to help keep Carnegie Hill
graffiti-free. Wanted: Volunteers
to research, photograph, and write
item descriptions for our eBay posting.
PLEASE SUPPORT THE DOE FUND
T
he Doe Fund workers
sweep the sidewalks and
empty the trash baskets in
Carnegie Hill several times
a week, helping to keep
our neighborhood clean.
Please remember their
service when you receive
a fundraising appeal from
the Doe Fund.
CORRECTION: In the Fall 2015 article about Church of the Heavenly
Rest outreach, the name of the pastor was mispelled. The correct spelling
is the Reverend Matthew Heyd. We apologize!
Lo van der Valk, President
Monica Hirsch, Executive Director
Raji Kaur, Office Administrator
Eve Lowman, Communications and Database Manager
Call: 212-996-5520
email: [email protected]
CHN ONLINE
Join the social network of
Carnegie Hill. Catch the
latest CHN activities and
events. Check out Carnegie
Hill Neighbors on Facebook. See
www.carnegiehillneighbors.org.
Do we have your email?
Receive electronic updates
and the CHN Electronic
Newsletter with important
announcements.
(CHN does not share email,
names or addresses.)
PLEASE SUPPORT OUR ADVERTISERS
90th Street Pharmacy
Page 13
Canterbury Choral Society
32
Carnegie Hill Yoga
13
Carnegie Park Tower
26
Collina Italiana
32
Corcoran Group
2
E. B. Cohen & Associates
11
Eli Zabar Manhattan
11
Patricia Ellis, Douglas Elliman 25
M. Epstein, Language Tutor 32
Feta Bar & Grill`
32
Dr. D. Green, Psychotherapist 13
Holland Court
25
Holly Hunt, Halstead
32
Hotel Wales
14
House of the Redeemer
31
Integrated Security Systems 22
Kleier Residential
Page 32
Della Leathers, Douglas Elliman 35
LC Fitness NYC
22
Joan McLaughlin, Corcoran
13
Mind Your Body Pilates
25
Mister Wright Wines & Spirits 32
Moving Mentor
25
Organiza Wizely
32
Paola’s Restaurant
9
Portraits, Inc. Gallery
13
S. Feldman Housewares
25
Stribling
7
TECNY
25
Tre Otto
13
Urban Garden Center
13
Val More Salon
31
Anne Young, Amanda Young
Brown Harris Stevens
11
PLEASE SUPPORT OUR MERCHANT MEMBERS
90th Street Pharmacy
92nd Street Y
ABV
Alyssia Hair Salon
ACB Retail/Ann Crabtree
Arc-en-Ciel Pre-School
Biscuits & Bath
Bloomie Nails & Spa
Carnegie Hill Cleaners
Carnegie Hill Massage
Children’s General Store
Collina Italiana
Dorothy’s Day Spa
Doyle New York
E.A.T.
Earl’s Beer & Cheese
Eclat! On Madison
Eli’s Essentials
Flessas Design
Food Liberation
Olivia Hutchinson, MD
Jaico Hair Salon
K&D Wines & Spirits
Kent’s Fashion House
Kollageworks Too
Lane Farms Market
Lichten Craig Architects
Linda Horn Antiques
Madden & Warwick
Mister Wright Wines & Spirits
Mr. Richards Cleaners
National Academy Museum
Paola’s Restaurant
PHS Cleaners
S. Feldman Housewares
Tre Otto
Vinyl Wine
Works Gallery
Yura on Madison
Zigzag Jewelry Design
CALL CITY OFFICIALS FOR HELP (212)
Carolyn Maloney, U.S.Congress
Liz Krueger, State Senate
Dan Quart, State Assembly
Rebecca Seawright, State Assembly
Dan Garodnick, City Council
Ben Kallos, City Council
Gale Brewer, Borough President
Latha Thompson, Community Bd. 8
George Sarkissian, Community Bd. 11
Jenny Fernandez, Landmarks (LPC)
Police, 19th Precinct
Police (above 96th St.), 23rd Precinct
860-0606
490-9535
605-0937
288-4607
818-0580
860-1950
669-8300
758-4340
831-8929
669-7923
452-0600
860-6411
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
fax: 452-0652
CHN MAJOR CONTRIBUTORS
MANY THANKS TO OUR GENEROUS DONORS
CARNEGIE HILL DIDN’T JUST HAPPEN.
AP
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS AND OUR VALUED MEMBERS
HAVE HELPED MAKE IT THE SPECIAL NEIGHBORHOOD IT IS TODAY.
CHN THANKS ITS MAJOR CONTRIBUTORS,
WHOSE GENEROSITY ALLOWS US TO KEEP
MEMBERSHIP DUES LOW AND STILL MAINTAIN
A FULL SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES.
ON MUSEUM MILE
EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS
by Bo Niles
NEUE GALERIE NEW YORK
www.neuegalerie.org
The Expressionist Nude. Leading artists in early 20th-century
Germany and Austria radically re-envisioned the human body.
Challenging the romantic ideal that originated with the Greeks,
artists such as Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka, and Alfred Kubin
imbued their studies of nudes, including children, with psychological
undertones that challenged painterly conventions—and taboos.
Through June 13.
Munch and Expressionism. Norwegian artist Edvard Munch’s
The Scream has become a symbol of modern angst. Munch was
highly regarded for his exploration of dark themes, including
alienation, sin, and human vulnerability. This exhibition examines
works by Munch, some never seen in the U.S., and his influence on
his German and Austrian contemporaries. Through June 13.
NATIONAL ACADEMY MUSEUM
www.nationalacademy.org
Miriam Schapiro, A Visionary.
The first career-spanning exhibit
of New Yorker and Academician
Miriam Schapiro includes
examples culled from every area
of this feminist artist’s oeuvre—
from Abstract Expressionism to
pieces using computer software
to figurative paintings devoted to
women artists—plus paintings reflecting
her love of dolls.
Method Order Metric. Dedicated to the idea of “systematic
planning” approaches utilized by artists working in a wide
range of styles, this exhibit highlights notable artists whose
work is included in the Academy’s permanent collection.
Contemporary Highlights from the Collection. Also drawn from
the museum’s holdings, this exhibit features significant gifts from
artists, including Louise Bourgeois, Robert Motherwell, and Robert
Rauschenberg, who were honored as Academicians from the mid1950s through the mid-2000s.
All three exhibits run through May 8.
COOPER HEWITT,
SMITHSONIAN DESIGN MUSEUM
www.cooperhewitt.org
Beauty—Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial. The perennial
question “What Is beauty?” is dissected and given shape
by 63 designers from around the world through various
“lenses” and strata of meaning. Exploiting materials,
both physical and digital, and myriad approaches to
craftsmanship, the over 250 works on display reveal the
seductive, at times transgressive, and transformative
power of the creative process. Through August 21.
Thom Browne Selects. Exploring concepts of reflection
and individuality, designer Thom Browne curates Cooper
Hewitt’s historic mirrors and frames. Through October 2.
GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM
www.guggenheim.org
Moholy-Nagy: Future Present.
Surrealist Laszlo Moholy-Nagy
(1895-1946) was a self-proclaimed “utopian” artist who
believed that art and technology
would work together “for the
betterment of humanity.” This
long overdue retrospective
illustrates how the artist developed his theories through
various media, including drawing, sculpture, and photography.
May 27 – September 7.
THE JEWISH MUSEUM
www.thejewishmuseum.og
Isaac Mizrahi: An Unruly
History. Applauded for his
irreverence and wit for over three
decades, polymath Isaac Mizrahi
has created trailblazing designs in
fashion, film, theater, opera, dance.
Besides original drawings and
photographs, the exhibit showcases video clips of his runway
shows, his cabaret Les Mizvahi,
and a documentary, Unzipped.
Through August 7.
Roberto Burle Marx: Brazilian Modernist.
A renowned landscape architect, horticulturalist, and
pioneer ecologist, Burle Marx (1909-1994) created over
2,000 gardens worldwide. He was equally revered for
his paintings and sculpture, theater designs, tapestries,
and jewelry––all amply represented in this homage to
his 60-year career. Through September 18.
THE MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK
www.mcny.org
Picturing Prestige: New York Portraits, 1700-1860.
Beginning in the 18th century, New York’s well-to-do denizens
commissioned paintings of themselves and loved ones to display
in their homes as indicators of prestige. Drawn from the permanent collection at MCNY, the exhibition features portraits painted
by leading American artists of their day. Through October 11.
Roz Chast: Cartoon Memoirs.
Well-known to readers of
The New Yorker since the
1970s, Brooklyn-born Roz Chast
creates cartoons depicting her
unique encyclopedia of the
neuroses and absurdities of
daily life––as well as its simple
pleasures––embodied by
characters as familiar as family.
Through September 5.
EL MUSEO DEL BARRIO
www.elmuseo.org
Antonio Lopez: Future Funk Fashion.
The son of a seamstress and a
mannequin maker, Puerto Ricoborn Antonio Lopez (1943-1987)
made his name with high-fashion
illustrations for Women’s Wear
Daily, The New York Times,
Vogue, and Andy Warhol’s
Interview Magazine, as well as with
his shoe and jewelry designs. He
collaborated with noted designers such as
Charles James and Karl Lagerfeld to establish a new paradigm of
fashion illustration equally attentive to race, gender, and the body.
June 14 – November 26.
The Illusive Eye. Mounted as a celebration of the Museum of
Modern Art’s 1965 survey of optical art, geometric abstraction, and
kinetic art, this exhibit highlights the many prominent Latin American
artists whose work was
not included in that
show. The Illusive Eye
questions why some
artists may be included
in a collection and
others not, as a focus
of curatorial vision.
Through May 21.
STREETSCAPE
by Susan Gottridge
TREE GUARDS TO GRACE 96th STREET LIBRARY
T
here are two trees in front of the New York Public Library
branch (an Andrew Carnegie library, of course) on 96th
Street, unprotected from pedestrians and dogs. But not
for long. This spring, CHN’s Park Avenue malls contractor
will enlarge the tree beds, install tree guards, and keep
tree beds planted with flowers. We thank all our members
for supporting CHN; your membership dues helped to
fund this beautification project. If you would like to make
a donation towards our efforts to protect more trees with
guards and plantings, please contact the CHN office.
Tree beds at this writing... ...and coming very soon
86TH STREET SUBWAY ENTRANCE COULD CHANGE
New York City Transit (MTA) and the developer of the new building coming
to the northeast corner of 86th Street and Lexington Avenue plan to move the
subway stairway on the 86th Street side now within the building to the sidewalk. The plan also includes adding an elevator to the subway on the 86th
Street sidewalk, to be widened. While the elevator is a welcome addition, it,
and certainly the stairway, should be inside the building. There is significant
pedestrian traffic on the sidewalks near the subway entrances. This subway
stop is the ninth busiest in the system. At a Community Board 8 committee
meeting in March, community groups, including CHN expressed strong concerns about these intrusions on the sidewalk. The committee voted to limit the
sidewalk intrusions and seek more information from the developer and the MTA.
CHN REPORTS PROBLEMS AND GETS RESULTS
n Last fall, Quality of Life Manager Josephine Mazur contacted
MillionTreesNYC with a list of tree beds in Carnegie Hill that needed
trees. This spring, 40 new trees adorn our sidewalks.
n CHN receives many complaints about newsracks that clutter our
sidewalks. Last fall we sent an eblast to neighbors with a link to a
newsrack complaint form on the Department of Transportation (DOT)
website. If enough complaints are logged for a particular rack, the DOT
will investigate it for removal. To report a newsrack that is not maintained, go to the CHN website, select Quality of Life/StreetScape and
click on the News Box complaint form.
n Although the DOT has not allowed the public to paint over graffiti on
lampposts and traffic signal posts, Ms. Mazur asked the DOT for permission for CHN to use nonconductive paint on the posts. Within two
weeks, DOT responded with the information CHN needed to proceed.
n There has been a spate of graffiti on solid security gates in Carnegie
Hill. The CHN Security Patrol guard scanned the neighborhood and noted all
problems, and Ms. Mazur called 311 with locations. Our security company
representative met with the 19th Precinct’s Community Affairs officers to
provide details of the graffiti; the precinct will work on removing it.
Please contact our office (see top of page 5) if you would like to
become involved in any of these activities.
EAST 86TH STREET BID MOVES FORWARD
The Business Improvement District effort for East 86th
Street has the support of several major real estate owners
in the area. Two of them co-chair the steering committee,
which is in the process of recruitng participation in the
BID among property owners in the corridor. The committee is meeting with owners, working on details such
as exact boundaries, services and budget, and following
the many city-required procedures. In the interim, corner
buildings are adopting the city trash cans on their sidewalks. This means the city will provide trash bags, and
building staff will empty and rebag the cans. CHN has
supported the effort to form the 86th Street BID and its
goal to improve the sanitation and security of the area.
WARRIE PRICE: A VISIONARY WHO
TRANSFORMED THE BATTERY
S
itting in her living room in her Carnegie Hill apartment on a
cold, rainy February evening, Warrie Price’s eyes sparkled with
energy and enthusiasm as she described The Battery’s new
Seaglass Carousel, where children and adults ride inside large,
colorful glass fish, swirling around as though through water.
Warrie (she prefers to be called by her first name) is The Battery
Conservancy founder and president, New York City's Battery
administrator, and director of New York State's Harbor Park's
Heritage Area. She is also the visionary behind the creation of
the redesigned park at the tip of Manhattan. “In many ways,”
she observed, “the project began with
work I did here in Carnegie Hill, the
neighborhood I love so much.”
“Once I see it, I have to do it,”
Warrie said as she described how she
was able to realize her
In The Battery,
vision for The Battery, a
children and
vision that enabled her,
adults ride
with the help of others,
inside a carousel
to raise $144 million of
of swirling,
city, federal, and private
colorful glass
funds, beginning in 1994.
fish.
Today, in addition to the
carousel created by George Tsypin
(the Russian designer for The Little
Mermaid and Spiderman), the Battery
encompasses vast perennial gardens
designed by Dutch horticulturist Piet
Oudolf, an urban forest, and an organic
urban farm where 3,000 children plant
gardens and learn to value the environment. Resilient stormwater management sets a new standard in public landscape
design in the area where New York City had its earliest beginnings,
and where George Washington walked the streets.
Warrie’s journey to the Battery from her childhood in
Texas has had many fortuitous turns. She credits her passion for
beauty to her grandparents’ gardens and farm and to the open
space. “These taught me to value the beauty of the environment
and that belief has always been central to who I am.” In an
unexpected twist, Warrie’s college roommate was Lynda Johnson,
and when Lyndon Johnson suddenly became president, she was
invited to live in the White House with the family. “There we
were, right at the center of the U.S. government.” This had
a major influence on Warrie; later, she became a founding
director of Lady Bird Johnson’s Wildflower Center.
Warrie’s journey also included a stint as one of the State
Department’s youngest Foreign Service officers and a post
at the American embassy in
Santiago months before Salvador
Allende was elected president. This was followed by a fellowship
to Harvard’s Kennedy School to study government and urban policy,
where she earned an M.A. in public administration in 1972.
Warrie describes her next stop as the critical one. A position
with New York’s Bureau of the Budget brought her to New York
City, and her marriage to James David Price brought her to her
beloved Carnegie Hill. While raising their three sons, she became
involved in an increasing number of volunteer civic organizations,
including Trees New York, CIVITAS,
and the 96th Street Task Force. As a
member and chair of Community Board
8, she became involved with everything
from potholes to major water usage
issues and learned a lot about how the
city’s private and government sectors
worked. “I loved that period, I adored
Carnegie Hill, and I knew that I loved
creativity and innovation, and I thought
a lot about what should come next.”
When her youngest son was 12,
and with the encouragement of Betsy
Barlow Rogers, Warrie restarted her
public career. In 1994, she applied her
vision and political and environmental
know-how to the design and renovation
of The Battery. Over the past 22 years,
she has spearheaded the 25-acre park’s
dramatic transformation by forging
partnerships with overlapping jurisdictions of city, state, and
federal agencies; private sector organizations; and individual donors.
“New York, with its culture of philanthropy and generosity, is
probably the only city in the world where you could raise that
amount of money for a park,” she said. “You can bring private
energy to motivate government to do the extraordinary, and,
ultimately, I believe beauty draws support.”
The Battery project has faced challenges, including 9/11
and Hurricane Sandy, whose destruction still affects the area.
But now it is a place of beauty, education, and healing for the
approximately 25,000 people who visit it every day, some on
their way to the Statue of Liberty or Staten Island ferries. And
there is more to come. On a sunny spring day in her office
overlooking the park and 11,000 acres of harbor, Warrie’s eyes
shone with excitement as she held up a tiny model of the puppet
theater that will be constructed in the park this summer with
space for children to design and perform.
SUZANNE WIEDEL-PACE
CHN PROFILES
TRE
OTTO
Ristorante * Bar
SERVING AUTHENTIC ITALIAN CUISINE
OPEN DAILY FOR LUNCH, DINNER
AND DELIVERY
CHECK OUT OUR EXCITING NEW MENU!!
1410 Madison Avenue (97th/98th Street)
(212) 860.8880 www.treotto.com
ENVIRONMENT
by Bonnie Lane Webber
SUZANNE WIEDEL-PACE
GOAT HILL ROOFTOP GOES GREEN
M
any brownstone owners have thought about installing a green roof, and now
there is one, appropriately, on Goat Hill (the block on 95th Street between
Park and Lexington). Where goats once roamed, there is a lawn above one of
the stately neo-Grec Romanesque homes.
The owners, who moved here from London and prefer to remain anonymous, bought the
house a few years ago. They say they love Carnegie Hill, especially the fact they can walk
north where it is being gentrified, but is still diversified. They consider themselves environmentalists, so when their architect, Robert Finger of Fogerty Finger, suggested a green roof,
they agreed, to have better insulation and to help improve the air quality in the city, regardless of the additional cost.
According to landscape architect Steven Tupu of Terrain (terrain-nyc.net), clients are
choosing this option mostly because green roof plantings slow down the flow of storm water
into our city drainage system. This green roof includes a mixture of sedum plantings that grow
low, are very drought-tolerant, and do not require irrigation after they get started.
Two things made the project feasible: the owners were adding an additional story to
the house that would require a completely new roof in any case, so they could start from
scratch, and they did not need to use the roof for outdoor living space. Although the cost
of going green was higher than adding a conventional roof, they expect to reap energy
savings. However, they have no statistics from before this renovation for energy-usage
comparison. The green-thinking owners know it makes a big difference in the summer and
are happy they could do a good turn for the planet.
ORGANIC COMPOSTING STARTS
uilding composting has finally begun in
Carnegie Hill. In mid-March, a NYC
Organics Collection bin was delivered to the
first of four neighborhood buildings, whose
staff completed the online composting
program. Thanks to Brian Moore, building
manager at one of the pioneer buildings, for
gathering this composting information.
To enroll your building (high rise with 10
or more units) in the Department of Sanitation’s (DSNY) Program, follow these steps:
B
1. Submit an online inquiry
to www1.nyc.gov/assets/dsny/contact/
programs/apartment-programsinquiry.shtml.
All eligible candidates will be invited to
attend a training session.
2. Attend a training session, or schedule
a site visit with a DSNY representative.
Complete a service agreement.
3. Once service agreement is approved,
receive bin delivery and schedule of
service.
ENROLLMENT DEADLINES FOR ORGANIC
COMPOSTING APPLICATIONS FOR SERVICE
TO HIGH RISE BUILDINGS IN 2016:
n Summer—June 6 n Fall—August 8
n Winter—October 3
MOUNT SINAI
GREENMARKET
SPONSORED BY
GROWNYC
Madison Avenue
and 99th Street
Open Wednesdays
June 29 to November 23
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Textile Recycling and
Compost Collection
8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
MORE THAN
THREE TONS OF ELECTRONICS
COLLECTED
The CHN Annual Electronics
Recycling Day held Sunday,
January 31 in front of the 92nd
Street Y collected 6,378
pounds of electronics from
149 households. This was
a good turnout, considering
people have the option to
bring items to electronics
stores. Many supers brought
items they had collected in
their buildings, and one of
them said, “It’s much more
difficult to dispose of
electronics now.
We rely on community
initiatives like this.”
NEIGHBORHOOD
CHN BENEFIT AT NEW WORLD PALAZZO
by Nalina Moses, with Cynthia MacGrath
O
n the evening of May 17, supporters of Carnegie Hill Neighbors attending
the Spring Benefit will enter through the porte cochère of the Otto Kahn
Mansion on the corner of East 91st Street and Fifth Avenue and step into
another world. The building, which now houses the middle and upper school of Convent
of the Sacred Heart, is one of the best preserved early 20th-century homes in the city.
Behind its serene limestone facade lie sumptuous period interiors.
The mansion, the city home of financial baron Otto Kahn, was completed in 1918.
Kahn’s architect took his inspiration from the Palazzo della Cancelleria in Rome. Like
that Renaissance monument, the mansion has a fortress-like ground floor, a second floor
or piano nobile, and higher floors that are quietly articulated. Its facade looks not so much
sculpted as etched, as if its trims and moldings were inscribed into the surface of the
limestone. It makes a fitting New World palazzo.
Inside there are several remarkable spaces. There is a music hall with a vaulted
plaster ceiling that sweetens acoustics; there is a tall, second-floor foyer with stone floors
and a gilded coffered ceiling; and there is a ballroom whose walls are trimmed with
dramatically veined green marble. But the mansion’s most memorable space is its
second-floor courtyard, which overlooks Central Park and offers an intimate glimpse
of the greenery and the reservoir. Its stone walls and balustrade shape a comfortable
urban enclave.
Kahn was an avid supporter of the arts. He patronized the Metropolitan Opera,
supported numerous American writers, and invested in movie houses and Broadway
plays. George Gershwin, Mark Twain, and Giacomo Puccini were frequent guests at his
home, and Enrico Caruso was among the singers and musicians who performed there.
The mansion still bustles with activity. After classes, one group of Sacred Heart
students may be gathered in the foyer discussing assignments, another rehearsing a
musical in the music room. That Otto Kahn’s mansion is still filled with conversation
and song seems a fitting legacy.
In May 2011,
CHN held its
Spring Benefit
for the first
time at the
Otto Kahn
Mansion.
Be sure to
join us when
we return
May 17.
1170 Fifth Avenue:
FATHER-SON DOORMEN TEAM
oey and J.V. Quiambao are unique father-son doormen at 1170 Fifth Avenue.
Joey Quiambao had a long, successful career in law enforcement in the
Philippines before immigrating to the United States. He has a B.A. degree in
criminology and worked for the government, eventually serving as an intelligence
agent for the Philippine Coconut Authority. For eight years Mr. Quiambao went
undercover, infiltrating black-market gangs that were smuggling governmentsubsidized copra meal, the main coconut by-product used in feed. “I lived with
them and traveled with them to Palau, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia. We made many
arrests,” he says, but he admits it was dangerous. “My wife never slept when I was
away.” In 1997 relatives in New York urged him to bring his family to the U.S.
For a short time he worked as a meter reader before a friend recommended him for doorman at 1170 Fifth Avenue.
His son, J.V., was hired five years later as summer relief and then full-time doorman.
Longtime 1170 resident Elizabeth Flinn says the Quiambaos are efficient and considerate and do more than is
necessary. This spring Mr. Quiambao will retire, and says he is sad to leave. “They treat us like their own family.”
He plans to divide his time between the Philippines and New York City, visiting his seven grandchildren in both countries.
Is there a favorite doorman in your building you would like to see featured in our newsletter? Please tell us.
JENNIFER HUNTLEY
J
by Jennifer Huntley
SUZANNE WIEDEL-PACE
COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD
HUNTER MAKES GIFT TO COMMUNITY
“W
The Hunter schoolyard is open to the
public at 5:00 p.m. weekdays and all day
on weekends during the school year and
periods when there is no summer school.
A guard is present until 10:00 p.m.
?
e are all very excited about the Community Service
Award that CHN is giving us for our––and your––
renovated courtyard,” said Dean Ketchum, director of
Hunter College Campus Schools and principal of the
Elementary School. We were watching 6th graders practice their
tumbling routines on the new synthetic green turf at the center of
the schoolyard. Mr. Ketchum observed that the dramatic renovation
of the courtyard and playground between 94th and 95th streets and
Park and Madison avenues was made possible by Hunter College
President Jennifer Raab’s collaboration with Manhattan Borough
President Gale Brewer, City Council Member Dan Garodnick,
and Comptroller Scott Stringer, who allocated money for the
project. At the opening ceremony last November, Dr. Raab called
the project “a labor of love” that is a gift not only to HCCS but
also to the community. “It is also,” Mr. Ketchum noted, “a
testimony to the warm relationship between the Hunter School
and its neighborhood.”
For years residents of Carnegie Hill have taken their children
to the school’s jungle gym after school hours, and in the summer
given them a last swing on the monkey bars or run down the slide
before bed. Over time, the playground grew scruffy, as Summaiya
D’Adamo, current president of Hunter’s PTA acknowledged.
“The reconstruction,” she said, “took at least three years of fundraising and planning, but after only a summer of work, here it is,
to our delight.”
It now offers students and neighbors a full-size basketball court,
a handball court, and a soccer and lacrosse area with recycled fiber
turf. A deep sand base provides drainage. At lunchtime, some students
relax there, others tumble. “It’s so bouncy, we really feel good,”
said practicing gymnasts Cindy and Sherema. The playground also
has a life-size chess board with recycled 8-by-10-inch squares.
The resurfaced brick steps on the Madison Avenue side of the
courtyard have long been popular with students and neighborhood
residents, and now they are safer, as is the entire area and
particularly the surface under the jungle gym, where young children
practice acrobatic skills.
“The neighborhood is good to us,” said Mr. Ketchum, “and we
want its residents to enjoy our wonderful new space.”
CARNEGIE HILL VILLAGE FOR SENIORS
I
t is a given that Carnegie Hill is a wonderful place to live, but it can be a challenge for aging residents who want
to remain active and independent. A growing committee of interested residents is exploring a way to provide support,
using as a model the Beacon Hill Village in Boston. Its solution is Carnegie Hill Village, a nonprofit enterprise with a
membership fee, which would provide services to enable seniors to continue living at home in Carnegie Hill.
In order to determine the feasibility of this venture, Carnegie Hill Village has inserted a survey in this issue of
Carnegie Hill News. Please complete it and return it as directed. Later in April, a CHN eblast will provide a link to
a similar online survey. Carnegie Hill Neighbors is pleased to support the concept of Carnegie Hill Village.
SPRING BENEFIT 2016
The Spring Benefit co-chairs invite you to
CELEBRATE SPRING AT THE OTTO KAHN MANSION
CHN is fortunate to once more have three terrific
co-chairs spearheading the 2016 Spring Benefit.
NINA WHITING (center) has been co-chair of the last two
events and LEIGH HRAZDIRA (left) was a co-chair last
year. For 2016, they are joined by CEE CEE BELFORD
(right), long active on past benefit committees. Cee Cee
and her husband Jeb have lived in Carnegie Hill since
2004 and have two children, who go to Buckley and
Nightingale-Bamford. Cee Cee studies painting at the
National Academy and the Art Students League and
has a background in book publishing and interior design.
A
s co-chairs of the benefit committee, we would like to extend a
personal invitation to all of you to join us at the CHN Annual
Spring Benefit on Tuesday, May 17. This is always a festive
evening among friends and neighbors, and even though we have
been spared a season of snow, ice, and slush this past winter, we
should all be ready to kick up our heels and celebrate spring!
This year we will return to 91st Street, but this time to the
Otto Kahn Mansion, an Italian Renaissance-style palazzo, now
the middle and upper school of Convent of the Sacred Heart.
As when the impresario Khan entertained a century ago,
a trip up the stunning stone staircase will lead you to delicious
food (by Yura), an open bar, and music in the ballroom, and,
weather permitting, the courtyard overlooking Central Park.
We doubt Kahn ever had a magician entertaining his guests, as
we will. The benefit will also feature the popular silent auction
with such items as a weekend at the rustic Beaverkill resort, dinner
for four at the superb Barbetta restaurant, and hors d’oeuvres
and wine for 12 in your home. Fabulous raffle prizes include a
week in St. Maarten for two in an oceanfront villa, a two-day
stay at the Hotel Wales, a necklace from Blue Tree, and more.
The 2016 CHN Enrichment Award (see page 1) will recognize
the Immanuel Lutheran Church. CHN will also salute Hunter
College Campus Schools (see page 17).
You can purchase Spring Benefit tickets using the form
on the following page or by visiting our website:
www.carnegiehillneighbors.org. Members and friends of CHN
will receive an invitation in the mail in mid-April. We look
forward to seeing you at this year’s CHN celebration!
Leigh Hrazdira • Nina Whiting • Cee Cee Belford
2016 CHN Spring Benefit co-chairs
The award-winning former firehouse, recently restored by hosts Mark Shafir and Hillary Schafer, was the festive venue for the Spring Benefit Committee planning party.
Alan Morehead and Hillary
Schafer, holding baby Charlotte
SPRING BENEFIT
COMMITTEE 2016
Lisa & Robert Abel
Suzie & Ainar Aijala
Renee & Sumner
Anderson
Irene Aldridge &
Steve Krawciw
Phoebe P. Barnard
Jeb Belford
Kitty & Charles Berry
Heather & Philip Brandes
Georgia & Nicholas
Burger
Susan Burke-O’Neal &
Michael O’Neal
Barbara &
Michael Calabrese
Devon & Scott Caraher
Barbara & John Coffey
Orla Coleman &
Rikki Tahta
Paige & Matt DeFusco
Norah & John Daly
Dixie De Luca
Ninna & Breck Denny
Lynn & Bob Ducommun
Blair & Jack Enders
Alex & Dan Fallon
Samantha & Matthew
Fremont-Smith
Julie & Manish Gautam
Arlene & Mark Goldsmith
Susan Sullivan Gottridge
Lisa & Eric Green
Monica &
Holcombe Green
Lisa & Robert Guida
Katherine & Alex Harman
Anne & Tom
Haubenstricker
Paula & John Hornbostel
Ivan Hrazdira
Holly & Ernest Hunt
Erica & Robert Juneja
Jurate Kazickas &
Roger C. Altman
Elizabeth & Daniel Keegan
Rosalind & Kevin Kruse
Linda & Glenn Kurtz
Lisa & Brad Larson
Della & John Leathers
Cynthia MacGrath
Christine &
Richard Mack
Joan & Jay McLaughlin
Warren & Bill Miller
Gina & Allan Morehead
Tracey & Ken Pontarelli
Molly & William Rand
Hillary Schafer &
Mark Shafir
April & Mark Shelton
Nancy & John Sipp
Natalie & Eiko Stange
Christine &
George Stonbely
Carmen C. Torruella
Lo van der Valk
Melissa & Conrad Vlak
Gordon J. Whiting
Suzy Woldon &
Jon Horowitz
Alisa & Alastair Wood
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS ANNUAL SPRING BENEFIT
Tuesday, May 17, 2016 / 6:30 – 9:00 pm / THE OTTO KHAN MANSION / 1 East 91st Street
Open Bar & Hors d’oeuvres, Music, Silent Auction, Raffle Prizes
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS ANNUAL SPRING BENEFIT
Please reserve the following tickets to be held at the door: (Unreserved tickets at the door are $200)
$175 Friend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$
$125 Friend (under 35) . . . . . . . . . . . .$
PREMIUM TICKETS (Admits two and includes listing in Benefit Program and Carnegie Hill Newsletter)
$600 Supporter. . . . . . . . . . . . $
$2,500 Leader. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $
$1,000 Benefactor. . . . . . . . . . $
$5,000 Carnegie Circle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$
$1,500 Patron . . . . . . . . . . . . . $
$50 Raffle Booklet includes 6 chances . . . . .$
2016 ENRICHMENT AWARD
to Immanuel Lutheran Church
For the sensitive and authentic
restoration of the 19th-century
church roof and steeple that
respects the gift of the congregation's
ancestors and preserves the
building for future generations.
We cannot attend, but support CHN with a tax deductible contribution of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$
(Please list guests’ names on reverse) Number of guests:
Name:
(as you would like to be listed in the program-must be received by May 13)
Address:
Carnegie Hill Neighbors.
e-mail:
Check enclosed
Visa
Master Card
Please print name exactly as it appears on card
Acct.#
Benefit tickets (minus $100 per
guest) and all other
contributions are tax deductible.
Please make checks payable to
Phone:
Payment:
TOTAL: $
Exp.Date:
AMEX
For more information or
additional invitations, please
call 212-996-5520
To purchase online,
please visit our website:
www.carnegiehillneighbors.org
2016 COMMUNITY SERVICE
AWARD
to Hunter College Campus Schools
For the exciting renovation of the
Hunter schoolyard, and particularly
for opening it to the Carnegie Hill
community after school hours to the
delight of neighborhood children.
LANDMARK LAND
by Lo van der Valk
CHN AT WORK TO PRESERVE TWO GEMS...
ANOTHER VICTORY FOR 1143 FIFTH AVENUE
STAN HONDA
L
ast November, the proposal to add six stories to this J.E.R.
Carpenter gem, a seven-story apartment building at 1143
Fifth Avenue, was resoundingly turned down by the
Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC). This was
largely due to the outpouring of support by neighbors and
experts organized by Friends of J.E.R. Carpenter, which
spearheaded the effort; 500 petition-letters collected by CHN
from the community; and the critical backing by our elected
officials. A revised proposal was submitted March 1, which
reduces the six additional residential stories to two set-back
floors, but with large glass windows plus two stories of
mechanical equipment, all of which would be highly
visible. Written tesitmony was submitted by CHN and
Friends of J.E.R. Carpenter pointing out these deficiencies.
At the March hearing the LPC instructed the developer to
reduce the size of the residential addition, as well as the
two upper floors of mechanical equipment. The revised
proposal could be resubmitted soon.
A STACK OF SUPPORT FOR THE CHURCH OF ST. THOMAS MORE
The landmarking effort for the Church of St. Thomas More continues with a
petition-letter campaign that has now exceeded 3,000 letters. CHN is
awaiting a determination of eligiblity certifying that the St. Thomas More
complex could qualify for listing in the State Register of Historic Places, which
would provide additional support for landmark designation when presenting
these petition-letters to the LPC. Copies will also be presented to City Council
Member Dan Garodnick and Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer.
NEW ZONING RULES TO INCREASE AFFORDABLE HOUSING BY RAISING BUILDING HEIGHT LIMITS FOR SOME AREAS
ayor Bill de Blasio’s two city-wide rezoning proposals,
Zoning for Quality and Affordability (ZQA) and
Mandatory Inclusionary Housing (MIH), were designed to
create or preserve 200,000 new affordable housing units
within the next 10 years. Introduced early last year, the City
Council made major changes in both ZQA and MIH before
voting to approve them in March.
ZQA primarily provides voluntary zoning incentives to
create affordable senior housing, but major reliance is being
placed on MIH, which offers incentives for market-rate
housing if affordable housing targets are met. MIH applies
only to specifically created districts. No such districts are
currently proposed for Carnegie Hill, but ZQA could have an
impact on Lexington Avenue.
CHN, along with many other preservation and civic
groups, strongly opposed the original proposals because,
in exchange for new affordable housing, the main incentive
was to allow building heights to increase, thereby reducing
M
street light and air and diminishing neighborhood character.
Also, many argue that on a net basis the current stock of
affordable housing would be decreased through demolition.
Due to this opposition and the help of our elected
officials, especially Manhattan Borough President Gale
Brewer and City Council Members Dan Garodnick and Ben
Kallos, several important changes were made. An early
victory rescinded the height limit for narrow mid-block
streets that was to increase from 75 to 85 feet. Three other
improvements were made at the last hour: the sliver law
(which prohibits construction of stand-alone tall buildings)
was kept intact; certain height increases without compensatory
affordable housing creation were scrapped; and affordable
senior housing was barred from encroaching on rear yards.
However, the original provisions to allow a height increase
from 170 to 200 feet and a modest increase in floor area, in
exchange for creating 20 percent affordable senior housing,
will remain for most of Lexington Avenue below 96th Street.
...AND TO PROTECT THE SKYLINE
MARYMOUNT SCHOOL PLANS TALL CONSTRUCTION
arymount School is seeking to build a new
middle- and upper-school building on an
L-shaped, mid-block, through-lot between 97th
and 98th streets and between Park and Lexington
avenues at the northern end of Carnegie Hill and in the district
of Community Board 11 (CB11). The plan calls for a school
building, illustrated at right, that, at 229 feet in height, is
substantially taller than any school on the Upper East Side
or East Harlem, and will require a number of major zoning
variances from the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA).
Even though the applicable zoning for most of East
Harlem (R7-2) imposes no height limits and makes very generous scale and bulk provisions for schools and
other community facilities, the school is still in need of variances. It is seeking a tower-type building allowed
by zoning, which typically has a small base supporting a narrow and tall tower. But to accommodate its needs
the school is seeking both a taller base and a wider tower than allowed.
The school’s plan is further encumbered because it shares the zoning lot with a residential mid-block
tower whose height was made possible in exchange for permanent open space assigned to the school’s portion
of the lot. This makes it even harder for the school to meet the zoning requirements. The plan was reviewed at
four CB11 hearings, where CHN and a group of neighbors opposed it. In March, CB11 voted to recommend
disapproval to the BSA, on the grounds that the building’s height and massing would adversely impact the
neighborhood character. The BSA is expected to consider the application this spring.
AT LAST, A MOVE FOR A LAW TO LIMIT TOWER HEIGHTS
hile tall buildings were increasingly appearing on
streets near the southern end of Central Park, a
proposal for a 600-foot-tall tower in Sutton Place galvanized
this close-knit residential neighborhood to lead the first
effort in recent years to seek height limitations to counter
super-tall buildings. This effort elicited a sympathetic
response from elected officials, especially City Council
Member Ben Kallos, to fast-forward the lengthy process
of seeking a zoning change to limit building heights to
210 feet for the area.
Council Member Kallos is also looking to limit the
height of buildings on First, Second, and Third avenues,
which now have no height restrictions. Concurrently, at the
edge of Carnegie Hill, a proposal for a building at 180 East
88th Street at Third Avenue (pictured at left) is seeking a
height of almost 500 feet. CB8, with civic groups including
CHN, is looking into ways to challenge this plan. This building’s L-shaped lot surrounds three small corner buildings
and faces both the avenue and street. The 22-foot wide front
on 88th Street is narrow enough to invoke the sliver law,
which limits a building (or building section) under 45 feet
wide to a height roughly commensurate with its neighbors.
But if applying the sliver law is successful, it may only impact
a part of the building without reducing the overall height.
W
If granted the necessary
zoning variances,
Marymount School’s
planned 229-foot tower
would be substantially
taller than its neighbors.
THE DALTON SCHOOL SUIT
IN NEW APPEAL
CHN and two buildings near
The Dalton School lost the
appeal brought to prevent
the school from adding
another two stories to the
building that already exceeds
the mid-block height limit by
70 feet. Our response brief
for the second appeals
round was filed March 18.
Three to four judges will
make a decision in this
round, as oposed to only
one judge who turned down
the initial appeal. A decision
is not expected for a number
of months.
PLANS FOR A NEW BUILDING
on the northeast corner of 86th
Street and Lexington Avenue
are covered in StreetScape.
See page 10.
COOKFOX ARCHITECTS, LLP
M
SAFE NEIGHBORHOOD
thank you
PATROL CAR
PROGRAM SUPPORTERS!
DON’T SLEEP IN THE SUBWAY, DARLIN’
(and other useful tips for navigating New York’s underground)
R
eported crime in the New York subways
was up 36 percent this January over
last. It turns out about half of the
theft victims were napping, according
to NYPD Commissioner William
Bratton, who has announced a new
policy: Subways are not for sleeping!
In an interview with Time Warner
Cable’s NY1 he said, “I know a lot of
people are tired. They work very hard. But our
officers are going to be instructed to start waking people up. By sleeping, you make yourself,
as reflected in our crime stats, a very easy
victim to lose your phone or your wallet.”
Vincent Bassi, a retired NYPD Transit
sergeant who specialized in preventing subway
crime for 20 years, knows a lot about subway
safety. He worked in the plainclothes AntiCrime Unit, riding the subways, protecting the
riders, addressing quality-of-life conditions, and
apprehending criminals. For the last 10 years,
Mr. Bassi has been a managing director at
Integrated Security Services, the firm that provides the guards for CHN’s Security Program,
and is now CHN’s point man. We recently
asked Mr. Bassi for tips on riding the subways
by Garrett Glaser
If your building is not listed
on the chart below, please
ask your board to consider
participating. The cost is
only $45 per apartment
unit per year. Call CHN at
212-996-5520 to arrange
for our team to tell your
board and managing agent
about our Security Program.
safely, especially in the wee hours.
He replied, “It’s the 21st
century and anyone should feel free
to travel on mass transit, but
you’ve still got to follow safety
rules, especially at night. With better
trained cops and new technology
underground, crime-fighting efforts
have paid off, but the bad guys are still
looking for the ‘loner rider’ who may be inattentive. Hand-held devices are not only the target
for thieves, but attract criminals to distracted
riders. Behavior like falling asleep and/or
slouchy body language makes an easy target.”
Mr. Bassi recommends, “Avoid sitting by the
train doors where bad guys can easily run with
your bag, jewelry from your neck, or other
items. When possible, ride in the conductor’s
car located in the middle of the train.”
FIFTH AVENUE
1056
1060
1067
1080
1107
1115
1120
1125
1133
1136
1140
1148
1150
1158
1165
1170
1130
1133
1150
1155
1160
1165
1172
1175
1185
1192
1199
1220
1230
PARK AVENUE
1040
1045
1049
1050
1065
1070
1075
1082
Here are some other tips from Mr. Bassi:
n Follow your instincts. If someone near you
is making you uncomfortable, move.
n Wait for trains from behind the yellow line,
not close to the edge of the platform.
n Use the “Off Hours Waiting Area” in every
station. It is denoted by bright yellow signs,
a talk-back intercom box, and closed-circuit
cameras.
n Do not wear exposed jewelry in the subway.
n Keep your wallet and cash out of sight, and
never in your rear pocket.
n Hold on to your handbag, even one with a
shoulder strap.
n Beware of noisy incidents nearby.
Pickpockets can stage these as a distraction.
n Look alive. Be alert. If you start to doze,
1088
1095
1100
1105
1111
1112
1120
1125
LEXINGTON AVENUE
1349, 1435
EAST 86th STREET 25, 49, 55
EAST 87th STREET
11, 21, 47, 55, 115, 120, 153
EAST 88th STREET
2, 4, 5, 19, 40, 47, 60, 111,
121-123
EAST 89th STREET 17, 45, 50
stand up. Never fall asleep on a train.
EAST 90th STREET
14, 21, 51, 115
EAST 91st STREET 15, 108
EAST 92nd STREET 12, 46
EAST 93rd STREET
55, 125, 134, 155
CHN ADDS FOOT PATROL FOR SECURITY
The CHN Security Program is now augmented
by a new foot patrol. Former NYPD officers
Keith Hockaday and Jimmy Velasquez, at left,
take turns patrolling every weekday, 1:00 p.m.
to 7:00 p.m. The foot patrol will focus
on the 96th and 86th Street subway stations
and recent crime locations, as well as blocks
near schools in Carnegie Hill.
EAST 94th STREET 40, 64
EAST 95th STREET
3, 4, 17, 19, 27,30
EAST 96th STREET
8, 14, 16, 17, 60, 70
EAST 98th STREET 2
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS SECURITY PATROL, 365 DAYS A YEAR
Patrol Car: Weekdays 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m. Weekends 8:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m. Foot Patrol: Weekdays 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS
by Bo Niles
A
fter months of anticipation,
Cooper Hewitt’s Arthur
Ross Terrace and Garden
finally opened this winter
as a free and accessible
green space that can be
enjoyed by the public weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00
p.m. Saturdays 10:00 a.m.
to 9:00 p.m., and Sundays
10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Rockery
Inspired by the original Richard Schermerhorn Jr. garden design commissioned by Andrew and Louise Carnegie
being installed
in 1901, Hood Design Studio in collaboration with RAFT Landscape Architecture and Diller Scofidio + Renfro,
near entrance
carpeted the outdoor “room” with a lawn, which they surrounded with lush border plantings along the restored
to the gift
wrought-iron fence to echo plantings in Central Park, across Fifth Avenue.
shop and cafe.
One significant geological feature—also inspired by the Park—is a charming rockery located near the
entrance to the museum’s Tarallucci e Vino cafe and gift shop. The interior cafe and gift shop can be accessed and
enjoyed separately without going through the museum itself. Tables and chairs invite passersby and museum-goers
alike to stop and have a bite, or simply sit and enjoy the serenity of a quiet oasis of green space. The opening of
the garden marks the final phase of Cooper Hewitt’s renovation of the Carnegie Mansion and museum campus.
thank you, COOPER HEWITT, for this beautiful gift to Carnegie Hill!
CHN ENRICHMENT AWARD
to Immanuel Lutheran Church
The church underwent an
earlier renovation in 1953 and an
extensive interior repair in 1969,
(Continued from page 1)
when the construction of the nearby
an English architect known mostly
Gimbels East department store
for Roman Catholic ecclesiastical
caused the plaster on the vaulted
buildings in New York, in a neoceiling to collapse. The beams and
Gothic style popular at the time in
truss work of the vaulted ceiling
Germany and northern Europe.
were then left exposed, revealing
Even with the use of Maine granite,
the exquisite wood that had been
limestone, and massive buttresses,
installed in 1885-86.
the exterior presents a lovely, almost
More recently, it became apdelicate impression.
parent that the frequently repaired
Inside, the church is 100 feet
slate roof would soon need to be
deep, 60 feet wide, and seats 1,200. The vaulted ceiling
replaced,
and
for
seven
years the congregation saved for
To its credit, the
rises 75 feet above ornate chancel woodcarvings, hand- church has preserved the inevitable project. Pastor Reverend Gregory Fryer says,
the building as it was “One weekend a leak dripped into the chancel by the
carved in the Black Forest of Germany. Lancet-arched
designed in 1885.
stained-glass windows alternate with slender stone
communion rail, and I placed a bucket to catch the drips.
buttresses. The octagonal steeple is flanked by peaked
At the Sunday service, a concerned parishioner saw the
gables and conical pinnacles. The 200-foot bell tower houses three
leak and said, ‘It is time for a new roof!’ and made a substantial
bells, a gift to the new congregation from Empress Augusta Victoria
contribution to back up the proclamation.”
of Germany. The bells were inscribed “Glaube, Hoffnung, and Liebe,”
John G. Waite Associates, an architectural firm intent on
Faith, Hope, and Love, quoting from Corinthians, 13:13, “And now
quality restoration, was engaged and worked with the congregation.
these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
Pastor Fryer continues, “We are proud of this project and the results.
Adjacent to the church on 88th Street is the parish house.
The people sacrificed to fund it for the generations to come and
The five-story neo-Grec building, now painted, retains some original preserve the gift from our ancestors.”
details including window cornices and bracketed sills, and a
This dedication to preservation exemplifies the spirit encourcast-iron roof cornice with modillions and a decorative frieze.
aged by Carnegie Hill Neighbors in our historic community.
SUZANNE WIEDEL-PACE
THE GIFT OF A GARDEN
HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW CARNEGIE HILL?
TAKE OUR ARCHITECTURAL QUIZ
W
e live in Carnegie Hill and walk our streets every day. We pass by elegant mansions, venerable
apartment buildings, charming rowhouses, grand townhouses, and know there is something special
about this unique neighborhood. Each building has a story—a certain architectural style, perhaps
a famous archiect, a unique design, a century-old history. Some buildings have quiet details
that may not be noticed in a routine stroll.
5.
1.
6.
7.
2.
3.
8.
4
Test your knowledge of our hidden-in-plain-sight gems with our Architectural Quiz. Find the answers
in the Carnegie Hill Architectural Guide, along with descriptions of every building in Carnegie Hill, the history
of the neighborhood, biographies of 180 architects, and eight self-guided walking tours. All for just $20.
(And if you promise to buy the Guide, we will tell you where to find the answers to the quiz: page 30.)
ORDER YOUR CHN GIFT MERCHANDISE TODAY — BY PHONE,
EMAIL, OR WEB, OR CLIP AND MAIL THIS FORM
Item
Quantity
Price
Tax
ARCHITECTURAL GUIDE $20 (TAX $1.78)
_______
_______
______
UMBRELLA $25
(TAX $2.22)
_______
_______
______
OPEN TOTE $25
(TAX $2.22)
_______
_______
______
(TAX $3.11)
_______
_______
______
JUMBO TOTE $35
SHIPPING: $5 PER ITEM
CHN GIFT MART
CHN UMBRELLA
Green and white. $25
________ Total Goods, Tax, Shipping __________
FREE DELIVERY WITHIN CARNEGIE HILL FOR CHN MEMBERS
Name_______________________________________________________
Address____________________________________ Apt. #___________
City___________________________State_________ Zip _____________
Telephone_____________________email__________________________
Payment:
® Check enclosed
Please charge my: ® Visa
payable to Carnegie Hill Neighbors, Inc.
® MasterCard
® Amex
_____________________________________________________________
Print name exactly as it appears on card
_____________________________________________________________
Account Number
CHN OPEN TOTE
White cotton, 13” x 11”. $25
CHN JUMBO TOTE
White with green straps,
zip closure, 23” x 15”. $35
Expiration Date
Mail form to Carnegie Hill Neighbors, 170 East 91st Street, New York, NY 10128 • PHONE 212-996-5520 • EMAIL: [email protected] • www.carnegiehillneighbors.org
ARCHITECTURAL PHOTOS BY DAVID BALDERSTON
CHN GIFT MART
NEIGHBORHOOD AUTHORS
by Lenny Golay
HUMOR & HISTORY,
O
pening Belle, Maureen Sherry’s
whip-smart and funny novel, takes readers
into the adrenaline-fueled chaos of a
Wall Street trading desk. It is 2008 and
Isabelle appears to have it all: an Upper West Side
apartment, three healthy children, a handsome
husband, and a high-powered job. But her reality is
something else. Enter Henry, the former college
fiancé she never quite got over, now a hedge fund
mogul. He becomes her largest client, and Belle gets
to see the life she might have had with him.
JFK and the Reagan Revolution: A Secret History
of American Prosperity is an eye-opening look at one
of the most important yet least understood episodes in
American economic history. In a blow-by-blow narrative
of the tax battles within the Kennedy administration,
Lawrence Kudlow and Brian Domitrovic reveal how
Kennedy drew upon his deep reading of history to opt
for tax cuts and a recommitment to the gold standard.
CRIME & REDEMPTION
In The Detective & the Pipe Girl, Michael Craven
delivers a richly atmospheric, humorous, and fast-paced
mystery that introduces private eye John Darvelle,
a man of specific tastes and opinions. One of Tinseltown’s most powerful men hires Darvelle to find a
young woman named Suzanne Neal, an incandescent
beauty. What starts as an easy assignment soon has
Darvelle on a twisting, turning journey that puts him
face-to-face with the LAPD, a ruthless underground
crime operation, and a cold-blooded killer.
There will be a reading at The Corner Bookstore on
Wednesday, June 22, at 6:00 p.m.
A threnody is a poem or song of lamentation, and
Tenement Threnody, as its title suggests, is a book
of laments, but it is also a unique book of celebration.
Meredith Trede’s evocative poems of Irish-American
tenement life and their speakers are alive and human,
and their voices are perfectly captured in sonnetsized forms. These are portraits and voices from a
lost world.
Ellen Feldman’s Terrible Virtue is the provocative
and compelling story of Margaret Sanger. One of the
most fascinating and influential figures of the 20th
century, she was the daughter of a hard-drinking,
smooth-tongued free thinker and a mother worn down
by 13 children. The founder of Planned Parenthood,
she vowed her life would be different and, at great
personal cost, shaped the sexual landscape we inhabit
today. This is her compelling story.
The Grievance: A Real Life-and-Death Story
is Lawrence Abram’s moving personal memoir of the
whirlwind of circumstances, decisions, and emotions
surrounding the death of his vibrant wife of more than
50 years. Her living will, which stated what medical
procedures were not acceptable, was handed to staff upon
arrival at “The Hospital,” a teaching hospital in New
York City, where it languished in a loose-leaf binder.
Diane Williams is America’s short fiction’s grand
master. Her very short stories have been aptly called
“folk tales that hammer like a nail gun.” Her 40 new
ones in Fine, Fine, Fine, Fine, Fine are sharper
than ever. They are unsettling, frequently revelatory,
and more often than not downright funny. Their originality, precision, and power bring the familiar into
startling, enchanted relief. Not a single moment here
is what you might expect.
Ellen Tovatt Leary, a frequent contributor to
Carnegie Hill News, grew up in Greenwich Village in
the 1940s, the shy, introverted only child of a glamorous,
flamboyant, and eccentric divorcée who was also an
artist’s model. An actress on Broadway and OffBroadway, she paints in her memoir, Mother Once
Removed, a vivid, colorful, detailed portrait of New
York bohemian life in the 1940s and ’50s.
Jay Greenfield’s stunning decades-spanning debut
novel, Max’s Diamonds, is about a man forced to
confront his moral culpability, the legacy of impossible
loss, and the claims of his Jewish identity. Paul
Hartman grows up haunted by the specter of his cousin
Max, an Auschwitz survivor, and Max’s mysterious
cache of diamonds. When a stranger from his past
confronts him with an impossible demand, Paul must
make choices that will change his fate forever.
There will be a reading at The Corner Bookstore on
Tuesday, May 3, at 6:00 p.m.
In his hilarious debut, Bill Keenan, whose hockey
obsession began on Lasker Rink in Central Park when
he was 5, tells how he overcame multiple obstacles to
find fulfillment and redemption in the strange world
of European minor-league professional hockey. Part fishout-of-water travelogue, part coming-of-age memoir,
Odd Man Rush: A Harvard Kid’s Hockey Odyssey
from Central Park to Somewhere in Sweden—
with Stops along the Way, will capture the interest
of both hockey fans and fans of good writing.
CARNEGIE HILL WRITERS I KNOW
by Patricia Volk
We have noted the extraordinary number of authors who live in Carnegie Hill and asked Patricia Volk, one of our
frequently published writers, Why so? Ms. Volk is the author of Stuffed: Adventures of a Restaurant Family; Shocked:
My Mother, Schiaparelli, and Me; To My Dearest Friends; and All It Takes: Stories. She lives and writes in Carnegie Hill.
T
hirteen Carnegie Hill writers are scheduled to read at The
Corner Bookstore this year. Some I know because I live on 95th
Street and have since 1977, when New York was contemplating
bankruptcy and you could pick up an eight-room apartment for
less than a studio will set you back today.
I’m lucky to be living here because writers thrive on quiet,
and New York neighborhoods don’t come quieter than Carnegie Hill.
The streets are safe and tree-lined. Chewing gum-constellations
rarely pock the sidewalks. And Central Park, ideal for writing in
your head, is 47 steps from my awning.
Several Carnegie Hill writers are friends. Heading to Morton
Williams, “Why, hello Mary Stewart Hammond, Daphne
Merkin, and Amanda Vaill!” I’ve spotted Adam Gopnik, Paula
Deitz, Kate White, Philippe de Montebello, Francine du Plessix
Gray, Renata Adler, and Peggy Noonan. There’s Michael J. Arlen
spatziering into Patrick Murphy’s, and Michael J. Fox walking his dog.
Around the corner, Andrew McCarthy is teaching his little girl to ride
a bike. Isn’t that Paul LeClerc examining mushrooms at Fairway?
Some of Carnegie Hill’s writers have moved. Amy Hempel
migrated from 1361 Madison Avenue to Gainesville, Florida.
Polly Blitzer and Woody Allen now homestead in the 70s. Erica
Jong sold her townhouse, but her daughter Molly Jong-Fast is
still here. Some have died, including Al Hirschfeld, Martin
Bergmann, Brendan Gill, the adorable and brilliant Andrew
Sarris, spirited Alice Alden, and a former beau, the writer/editor,
Jonathan Dolger, who wound up marrying another Carnegie
Hill writer, Jane Isay. Jonathan lived across the street from Gordon
Lish, also a writer/editor, who once took a short story of mine for
his literary magazine, The Quarterly, on the condition that I
change the word “pee” to “piss.” (He was absolutely right.) I used
to run into Lish on his way to Patti Marx’s place. But Patti has
moved from 19 East 88th Street to the 50s (Carnegie Hill writers
refer to that as “downtown”). I miss her but am grateful three of
my dearest writer friends have stayed put. I met Frances Kiernan
when she was an editor at The New Yorker. We reconnected when
former Carnegie Hill writer Sheran James invited us to tea at
Sarabeth’s. Then Frannie introduced me to Lily Tuck. And then
to Molly Haskell one windy afternoon in front of 45 East 89th
Street, the building that Lish says “creates its own weather.”
If you live in Carnegie Hill, you know what he means.
Now Frannie, Lily, Molly, and I walk around the reservoir
together. We meet at the Engineer’s Gate at 7:30 (where we often
bump into Ellen Feldman and spot Ricky Lauren) and loop the
bridle path talking about, what else? writing. Then we head for
cappuccinos at Church of the Heavenly Rest. Back home, we hit
our computers, charged for the day. Alas, this walk is falling
apart. Frannie is writing her Mavis Gallant book mostly at her
country house. Molly broke her knee last year tripping over a
sidewalk Christmas tree. And Lily is off to Prague again. It’s
through Lily I met Roger Angell. He lives in her building and
came to a party I threw when she won the National Book Award
for The News From Paraguay. Because of his annual Christmas
poem in The New Yorker, I made sure to let Roger know all the
words that rhyme with Volk. “Yolk,” I said. “Poke, joke, folk.
Toke!” He laughed, but I have yet to appear in a poem.
For every Carnegie Hill writer mentioned above, I’m betting
I’ve missed three. I’ll hear about it. “What? How could you
forget _______?” So apologies to each and every one from our
beautiful, clean and quiet paradise. Happily, our beloved Corner
Bookstore hasn’t morphed into a nail salon, couture baby boutique,
or designer eyeglass store. We have more of those per capita than
any other New York neighborhood. The only thing that could
improve Carnegie Hill for this writer is a Dollar Tree. And Roger,
if you’re reading this: Coke and soak. Okey-doke?
SHOP TALK
by Marion E. Morey
EAT, DRINK, WORK OUT
FETA BAR AND GRILLS, (formerly
Cantina), 1436 Lexington Avenue
(between 93rd and 94th streets),
opened in March with a Greek flair for
wine, cocktails, and a full menu including keftedakias, loukaniko, lamb chops,
Greek burgers, and baklava. Owners
Stacy and Constantine host this
friendly place. 646-852-6872. www.
Fetabarandgrills.com. Monday – Friday, 11:30 a.m. – midnight, Friday and
Saturday, 11:30 a.m. – 2:00 a.m.,
Sunday, 10:30 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
FIVE PILLARS YOGA, 1298 Madison
Avenue, second floor (between 92nd
93rd streets), offers 75-minute classes
from basic to vinyasa, ashtanga-based,
prenatal, and restorative yoga. New
clients get unlimited class time for seven
days for $50. Manager Brad Brownson’s
instructors keep clients in top shape.
212-426-6111. www.fivepillarsyoga.com.
Open daily; hours vary.
CARNEGIE CUP CAFE, 1080 Park
Avenue (northwest corner at 88th
Street), is a top-notch coffee bar and
snack shop, family-owned and just
opened. Wake-up coffee never tasted
so good, freshly ground for each cup
from an exciting range of international
coffee beans. 646-590-3195.
Monday – Friday, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.,
weekends, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
VAL MORE SALON, 1323 Madison
Avenue (between 93rd and 94th
streets). Owner Val brings 15 years
of experience to Carnegie Hill with
a colorist and six stylists for hair
enrichment, skin smoothing, make-up,
spray tanning—all in an elegant setting.
212-300-4169. www.valmoresalon.com.
Monday – Saturday, 9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.,
Sunday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
...AND LOOK GREAT!
PURE BARRE, 1325B Lexington
Avenue (between 88th and 89th streets),
opened its Carnegie Hill branch in
February, featuring low-impact, easyon-the-joints exercises for all ages.
This bi-level studio holds up to 20 clients
per 55-minute session. In addition to
classes, DVDs, apparel, equipment and
client retreats are offered. 646-484-5447.
www.purebarre.com. Hours vary.
Moved...
EDÍT, 1298 Madison Avenue (between
92 and 93rd streets), moved from
Lexington Avenue, but still showcases
international women’s clothing designs,
from Chloé to McCartney, day and
evening wear. 212-876-1368.
www.editnewyork.com. Monday –
Saturday, 10:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.,
Sunday, 11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Renamed...
RIGBY & PELLER (formerly Intimacy),
1252 Madison Avenue (southwest corner
of 90th Street), offers swimwear, nightgowns and fitted underwear, which
“nobody will see, everybody will notice.”
212-860-8366. ww.rigbyandpeller.com.
Monday – Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00
p.m., Sunday, noon – 6:00 p.m.
Opening Soon...
GINA AMERICANA, 27 East 92nd
Street (between Fifth and Madison
avenues), in the former site of Ciao
Bella. 222-360-6900.
Answers to Architectural Quiz, page 27
1. 114 East 91st Street
2. 24 East 95th Street
6. 1217 Park Avenue
7. 1040 Park Avenue
8. 23 East 92nd Street
BEN ASEN
SINCE 1963, AND NOW REINCARNATED:
BLACKER & KOOBY
I
n November 1963, Joseph Blacker and
Fred Kooby were signing their partnership
agreement when they heard on the radio that
JFK had been shot. That partnership forged
50 years ago launched Blacker & Kooby, Carnegie Hill’s beloved
purveyor of fine papers and writing instruments, upscale stationery,
and art supplies for over half a century. If you grew up on the
Upper East Side, you probably bought your school supplies at
Blacker & Kooby. In time, however, a depressed economy coupled
with sharp rent increases in commercial real estate forced out
many longstanding family-run businesses, including Blacker
& Kooby, the last original business on their block at 88th and
Madison Avenue, which closed its doors in January 2014.
Vanessa Kooby and her staff relocated to 1390 Lexington
Avenue, directly across from the 92nd Street Y, where for the past
two years, they shared space with Richard’s Interiors, fulfilling
orders for monogrammed
stationery, or personalized
materials like wedding
invitations under the name
“Blacker & Kooby by
Vanessa.” There they
frequently heard comments
such as, “We miss your old
store.” “There is nowhere
to buy the things you used
to carry.” “I grew up in your store.” So when Richard’s Interiors
left the premises this past December, Vanessa Kooby knew it was
time to take over the space and bring back the old Blacker & Kooby.
They have completed construction and have expanded their
offerings to meet the needs of the neighborhood. Says Ms. Kooby,
“I worked side by side with my father for 27 years, and I picked
up a thing or two. He was helping me every day before I lost him
in September. The business was in his blood, and it was something
he and I shared. I miss him dearly, and his legacy lives on with the
new store and with me. My mother helps me to do the buying and
fills in at a moment’s notice. We will take what still works from
before, give it some tweaks, and fill the void that grew when we
left Madison Avenue.”
Carnegie Hill residents will rejoice to hear the news.
FRENCH & SPANISH TUTORING
English as a Second Language
Conversation, Essay Writing Skills, Test Preparation,
Schoolwork, Accent Reduction, Playgroups (ages 3 and up),
Private and Small Group Lessons, all levels.
Dynamic teachers with extensive experience abroad
and in NYC private schools.
Michele Epstein
212-722-5793
[email protected]
TREE CARE
CITIZEN PRUNERS
GROUP
BRANCHES OUT
SUZANNE GOLDSTEIN
by Julia Bradford
C
arnegie Hill Neighbors’ 15 new Citizen Pruners recently
received their licenses from Trees New York which authorize
them to care for our trees. Most of our original pruners were
trained in the ‘70s and ‘80s, and our numbers have diminished
due to relocation, age, and shifts in interests. But with the help
of Linda Kurtz and April Shelton, our committee is being
revitalized. At a Carnegie Hill Neighbors’ welcome breakfast
last fall, Linda and April challenged attendees to join them in
becoming Citizen Pruners, and many expressed interest in
signing up for the course. An email went out to everyone on
the CHN’s email list, and more potential pruners signed up.
Because CHN could guarantee that at least 10 people
would participate, Trees New York offered to hold a class in
Carnegie Hill. Linda and April shepherded the process. They
contacted all interested parties, arranged for class space at the
Church of St. Thomas More, coordinated the class schedule
with Trees New York and the participants so that it did not
conflict with national holidays and school vacations, and held
a welcome breakfast for those who had signed up, where they
learned more about the CHN Tree Care program and history.
The pruner course, taught by Sam Bishop, Trees New York’s
director of education, began in late January and ended in late
February, and all 15 pruners passed the final test. On March
12, the class used their newfound knowledge on trees on East
95th Street between Lexington and Third avenues during the
CHN pruning class practices newfound skills on East 95th Street.
mandatory pruning outing, where they learned the proper use
of pruning tools, including a hand saw, hand pruner, pole saw,
and lopper while they practiced their tree-identification skills.
The committee co-chairs are excited to welcome the new
pruners to our 2016 spring and fall outings. Our city trees are
under stress. Not only do they grow in small tree pits, which
supply them with barely enough nutrients, but also suffer
from too much salt in the winter and not enough water in the
spring, summer, and fall. Temperatures this winter fluctuated
wildly and averaged well above normal. As a result, many trees
were ready to bud out all winter.
The infusion of new pruners will help the committee
members maintain the tree canopy that makes Carnegie Hill
one of New York’s most beautiful neighborhoods. And who
knows, if another 10 Carnegie Hill neighbors want to become
Citizen Pruners, we might be able to host another class again
here in Carnegie Hill. Thank you, Linda and April, and thank
you, Mr. Bishop and Trees New York.
ROSES (AND TULIPS) TO...
SHARI THOMPSON, for having the plaque commemorating the late Al Hirschfeld again affixed to
his former house at 122 East 95th Street after an absence of more than six years. The plaque
from the Historic Landmarks Preservation Center was placed in 2006 on the front of the salmon-pink
rowhouse, where the famous “caricaturist” lived and drew for 55 years. It was removed when new
owners renovated the building and assumed lost when the house was sold again. Ms. Thompson
tracked down the missing plaque and persisted until it was put back in its rightful place.
TIMELINE
PROPOSED:
97-98TH STREETS
by Cynthia MacGrath
THE CITY SKYLINE: ALWAYS IN FLUX.
EVEN IN CARNEGIE HILL.
PROPOSED:
180 EAST 88TH STREET
COMPLETED 2014:
1110 PARK AVENUE
Marymount has plans for a
middle and upper school on a
mid-block lot between 97th and
98th streets, and Park and
Lexington avenues. See page 21.
UNDER CONSTRUCTION:
SUZANNE WIEDEL-PACE
UNDER CONSTRUCTION:
ORIGINAL BUILDINGS 1856
(2-story
addition
1985)
ORIGINAL ALLAN GARAGE 1930
1110 Park (originally 1108
and 1110 Park, built in 1856.)
A 15-story condominium was
completed in 2015.
A
CURRENT: 147-151 EAST 86TH STREET
SUZANNE WIEDEL-PACE
152 E. 87th Street, for 85
years the Allan Garage, was
stripped of ornamental terra
cotta in 2009 and demolished
in 2015. Under construction:
a glassy 19-story complex with
up to 60 apartment units and a
smaller public parking garage.
CURRENT: VACANT LOTS
180 East 88th Street, once
the location of a 4-story brownstone, will combine with lots
1558 and 1560 Third Avenue
to create a 31-story skyscraper,
at almost 500 feet, the tallest
tower north of 72nd Street.
PROPOSED
200 East 95th Street/1681
Third Avenue, The Kent, will
be a 30-story condo tower;
completion scheduled for late
2017. It replaces several
4-story mixed-use buildings.
147-151 East 86th Street, at the
northeast corner of Lexington
Avenue, now consists of low
mixed-height commercial units.
Demolition is scheduled for this
spring to build a 21-story
development; 50 condo units
will occupy floors 5 to 21.
lmost half of Carnegie Hill is protected, either as a historic district or as individually landmarked buildings. However, since
the Carnegie Hill Architectural Guide was published just eight years ago, there has been a spate of new and proposed buildings.
One is completed and several are under construction. All are in areas not protected by landmarks designation and most will be
high-rise condo towers. Will they cast shadows, both literally and historically, on our unique residential neighborhood?
PRESRT STD
U.S. Postage
PAID
New York, NY
Permit No. 2154
CARNEGIE HILL neighbors
170 East 91st Street, LL
New York, NY 10128
TELEPHONE 212-996-5520 • FAX 212-996-8313 • EMAIL [email protected] • www.carnegiehillneighbors.org
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS—FULFILLING OUR THREE MISSIONS FOR 46 YEARS—BECAUSE IT’S OUR HOME.
QUALITY OF LIFE
u
SECURITY
u
PRESERVATION
For just a $75 membership, you can help ensure that these efforts continue. Join now!
CARNEGIE HILL NEIGHBORS MEMBERSHIP FORM
All contributions are tax deductible
501(c)3. Please indicate your
preferred membership category:
c
c
c
c
c
c
$5,000 or more Carnegie Circle
$2,250 Leader
$1,250 Patron
$750 Benefactor
$350 Supporter
$150 Contributor
c $75 Basic
c $__________ Other
c My gift will be matched by
__________________________________
Supporter members and higher are listed in the
Spring Benefit program and Carnegie Hill News
Mail to Carnegie Hill Neighbors, 170 East 91st Street, LL, New York, NY 10128
or join online at www.carnegiehillneighbors.org.
Name:____________________________________________________________________________
If a couple, how would you like to be listed? John and Mary Smith, John Jones and Mary Smith, etc.
Address:__________________________________________________________________________
Telephone:______________________email:____________________________________________
Payment:
c Check enclosed
Please charge my: c Visa
c MasterCard
_____________________________________
.
.
Print name exactly
as it appears
on card
Make your check payable to Carnegie Hill Neighbors, Inc.
c Amex
________________________________
Account number
_______/_________
Exp. Date
VOLUNTEER YOUR SERVICES: Contact for Your Building _____ At Large _____ StreetScape ______
Landmarks _____ Tree Care _____ Public Relations/Marketing ______ Membership _____ Fundraising ______
Environment _____ Brownstone Initiative _____ Newsletter Design/Writing _____ Grant Applications ______

Spring 2016 - Carnegie Hill Neighbors

Transcription

Similar documents

Carnegie SVRA Corral Hollow Rd. Tracy, CA

My Brother, My Sister: Shannon Boodram Rob Hill, Sr.

Stone Hill Flowering Pear L.E. COOKE CO

10/3 Dragon0Do-Right Assembly 6:00 Homecoming Parade 10/8

fantastic fabric prices! quilting cottons

Braedale Hill - North Lanarkshire Council

Wychitella Nature Conservation Reserve

CMU Fact Sheet.All Campus - Heinz College Home

Finding Kinney Park - Lane County Government

Indian Trincheras - Green Valley Recreation Hiking Club