A Thirteen Year Old Story of Stories
The "One from the Vault" feature plumbs the archives of back issues of block association newsletters for new neighbors and lovers of our community and its history. To read others pieces from the vault, click on the category at right.
By Caitlin Hawke
New to the neighborhood or simply moved here in the last 13 years? Perhaps you've wondered about the story behind the stories of the two towers at W. 100th Street and Broadway. Wonder no more. This one from the vault written by David Reich lays it all bare. St. Michael's was a player in the rising skyline. That intangibly opaque thing involving the acquisition of 'air rights' added to the mix. A key decision not to put in parking underground allowed the whole thing to move forward "as of right." And lo! Two highrises were a fait accompli. Yeah, I know. The Zeckendorf's Columbia on the NW corner of Broadway and 96th was the game changer of the early 1980s. And in the early 2010s Columbus Square transformed the Park West Village area. And I know what is now happening up on W. 108th Street.
By Caitlin Hawke
New to the neighborhood or simply moved here in the last 13 years? Perhaps you've wondered about the story behind the stories of the two towers at W. 100th Street and Broadway. Wonder no more. This one from the vault written by David Reich lays it all bare. St. Michael's was a player in the rising skyline. That intangibly opaque thing involving the acquisition of 'air rights' added to the mix. A key decision not to put in parking underground allowed the whole thing to move forward "as of right." And lo! Two highrises were a fait accompli. Yeah, I know. The Zeckendorf's Columbia on the NW corner of Broadway and 96th was the game changer of the early 1980s. And in the early 2010s Columbus Square transformed the Park West Village area. And I know what is now happening up on W. 108th Street.
All those carveouts (see illustration below) on the west side of Broadway in the last landmarking phase in 2015 will usher in new stories of skyscraping construction soon enough.
Some new construction will be known to neighbors in advance. Some will squeak by under cover of night. Of this I am sure.
(See the "As Designated" map with the 2015 landmark boundaries that exclude nearly every building on the west side of Broadway. The map "As Proposed" with the red border only carved out a few buildings by contrast.)
So, you got something to say about Ariel East and West?
Extell me about it!
Some new construction will be known to neighbors in advance. Some will squeak by under cover of night. Of this I am sure.
(See the "As Designated" map with the 2015 landmark boundaries that exclude nearly every building on the west side of Broadway. The map "As Proposed" with the red border only carved out a few buildings by contrast.)
So, you got something to say about Ariel East and West?
Extell me about it!
The difference between what was proposed (2010 at left) and what was delivered (2015 at right) in the last landmarking round. Note the carveouts along Broadway left unlandmarked. Credit: Landmark West via West Side Rag
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