If you would like to send Mr. Robert Tierney a message about the LPC decision of the Hotel Pennsylvania, and the Cafe Rouge, now is your chance! Be sure to let him know how you feel.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/mail/html/maillpc.html
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
LPC response letters for the Cafe Rouge
We finally got a copy of the LPC response letters regarding the Cafe Rouge proposed landmark status. Thanks to Steven Lepore for getting this for us and being brave enough to submit the applications.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
Do you think 15 Penn Plaza will do good or bad things to New York?
Yahoo Answers wants to know. Let us know your opinion.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Hotel Pennsylvania 1st Q reports
Vornado announced their first quarter reports today, for the period ending March 31, 2011. Although the Hotel Pennsylvania showed an improvement from last year at this time, they are still down. The Hotel lost $68,000 this quarter, which is an improvement from last year at this times, loss of $447,000.
Vornado the parent company and current owner of the Hotel Pennsylvania, did not invest any money this past quarter in improvements to the building.
Currently the hotel property size is 1,400,000 SqF with a retail portion of 188,000 SqF.
The full report can be read off of the SCC website here.
Vornado the parent company and current owner of the Hotel Pennsylvania, did not invest any money this past quarter in improvements to the building.
Currently the hotel property size is 1,400,000 SqF with a retail portion of 188,000 SqF.
The full report can be read off of the SCC website here.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Land's End - Gatsby Mansion Torn Down
Yet another historic building gone for good. When will people learn that history must be saved not destroyed?
Sunday, April 17, 2011
2012 HOPE Conference
2600 has announced that they will be holding the HOPE conference in 2012 at the Hotel Pennsylvania, we can only assume that this is a good thing. We will continue to keep you posted on the status of the 2012 HOPE Conference.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
Gimbels Passageway
A recent NY Times article about the current Vornado situation with 15 Penn Plaza, (a.k.a. Hotel Pennsylvania) state, that before construction can begin on the 15 Penn Plaza office, "transit improvements must be designed and agreed upon before the city will grant Vornado building permits." Check out the link for more information.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Gimbels Passageway Simulator
A clockwork disc simulator for designing movements to appear in the hall of Gimbels Passageway in New York City.
Ear Studio was commissioned by Vornado Realty Trust to design a public art element for the Gimbels Passageway renovation; the underground pedestrian tunnel connecting Penn Station to Herald Square closed in the 1970s.
This simulator, built with Processing and OpenGL, allows Ear Studio to experiment with the choreography of approximately 900 rotating discs and the invisible gearing system that couples them. The simulator exports this choreographic data for use by the team's 3D fly-through mockup designers and will also inform the data driving the final piece. The video can be found here.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Happy 92nd Birthday!
Today Hotel Pennsylvania Celebrates it's 92nd Birthday. 92 years of history forever embedded in those walls. If walls could talk what would they say? Well, today they'd say "Congratulations Ol' Girl!" Here's to 92 more years!
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Getting a Lawyer
Does anyone have any lawyers they know that could assist us in pressing charges against Vornado or is anyone interested in helping?
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Merry Christmas Hotel Penn
Merry Christmas Hotel Pennsylvania. This may be your last so we hope it is your bet one yet!
Friday, November 19, 2010
New York Times Ad
I finally managed to get a copy of the NY Times, full page ad from The Empire State Building. This ad appeared on the same day as the hearings, (Monday August 23, 2010), and is actually a letter to the following council members.
Speaker Christine Quinn,
Deputy Majority Leader Comrie (Consumer Affairs; Cultural Affairs, Libraries & International Intergroup relations; Finance; Land Use, Chair (Zoning & Franchises); Rules, Privileges & Elections)
Mark S. Weprin, (Land Use, Zoning & Franchises, Chair).
The ad can be found here.
Speaker Christine Quinn,
Deputy Majority Leader Comrie (Consumer Affairs; Cultural Affairs, Libraries & International Intergroup relations; Finance; Land Use, Chair (Zoning & Franchises); Rules, Privileges & Elections)
Mark S. Weprin, (Land Use, Zoning & Franchises, Chair).
The ad can be found here.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Final letter from the LPC
I just got a letter back from the LPC regarding regarding the Cafe Rouge landmarking Status. It was denied. They claim the Cafe "has been too significantly altered". This is a bunch of bull. I don't get why they couldn't just say the truth that the buildings demolition was already approved. Highly unprofessional if you ask me. I will post the full letter later.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
FM/TV signals could be in trouble because of 15 Penn Plaza Tower.
A recent article was published stating the obvious fact that the new 15 Penn Plaza building will more than likely disrupt FM and or TV signals from the Empire State Building. Jim Stagnitto, director of engineering for New York Public Radio, is concerned about both of his FMs at Empire, WNYC(FM) and WQXR(FM). “WQXR is a low-power Class B and will be especially susceptible to multipath in New Jersey. I’m very concerned. And without a predictive study to examine, we really don’t know how bad it could be,” Stagnitto said.
The question is what are they going to do about it? Can the FCC put a stop the the project because of this or until the find a way to relocate the antennas to a new higher location?
The question is what are they going to do about it? Can the FCC put a stop the the project because of this or until the find a way to relocate the antennas to a new higher location?
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Testimony of Wally Rubin for Community Board Five at the New York City Council Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises, Monday, August 23rd, 2010
TESTIMONY OF WALLY RUBIN FOR COMMUNITY BOARD FIVE AT THE NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL SUBCOMMITTEE ON ZONING AND FRANCHISES, MONDAY, AUGUST 23rd, 2010
Good morning. My name is Wally Rubin and I am the District Manager for Community Board Five. Thank you for the privilege of addressing you today on the topic of 15 Penn Plaza, one of the most important development projects our Board has faced in years.
Community Board Five and its Land Use & Zoning Committee spent considerable time meeting with the applicant and reviewing every available document before we voted 36 to 1 to deny this application.
Obviously, our Board felt very strongly about this application and here are the reasons why:
First, we think that the transportation improvements Vornado has proposed are inadequate. Many of the improvements are ultimately either self-serving or mandated and wholly insufficient for the 474,000 square feet Vornado will receive in exchange. Indeed, as one of our Board members put it, they are akin to Vornado cleaning up its own basement.
Second, Community Board Five is deeply troubled by this applicant's request for a midblock up-zoning, adding yet another 266,000 square feet to a tower that is utterly lacking confirmed details, including building size, height, tenancy, construction timetable or financing plan. The applicant conceded to us that it could be many years – years - before any development scenario might move forward, which entirely demolishes the argument that we should approve this project now as a salve for our current economic troubles.
If the up-zoning were to be granted now, it would remain with the zoning lot permanently, regardless of future development plans or even if the lot is eventually sold. It is ill-advised from a proper planning perspective to approve such an up-zoning without a clear rationale for its request. This up-zoning, just blocks from the Empire State Building, will allow Vornado, or whoever might eventually own this site, to build a building that will change the iconic skyline of New York City forevermore. Such a change must be deeply considered and well thought out, both in terms of its design and, more broadly, its impact on future land use decisions in the immediate area.
Community Board Five is not opposed to development and we recognize that this site is appropriate for a large commercial building. We value the job creation that will result not only during construction but also after the proposed building is complete. But we are also acutely aware of how the area
surrounding Penn Station is poised to undergo enormous development, growth, and change in the coming decade. This means that each individual land use decision will cumulatively contribute to its transformation.
Therefore, we hope that the ladies and gentlemen on this committee and the Council as a whole will join us in asking Vornado to return to the table with their request for a permanent up-zoning when they have a rationale and a final, financed plan in place. Until such time, we urge the Council to join with City Planning, the Moynihan Station Community Advisory Committee and Community Boards Four and Five to begin to outline a Moynihan Station subdistrict zoning plan and a future for this area that is both well-considered and comprehensive.
Thank you for your time.
Community Board Five and its Land Use & Zoning Committee spent considerable time meeting with the applicant and reviewing every available document before we voted 36 to 1 to deny this application.
Obviously, our Board felt very strongly about this application and here are the reasons why:
First, we think that the transportation improvements Vornado has proposed are inadequate. Many of the improvements are ultimately either self-serving or mandated and wholly insufficient for the 474,000 square feet Vornado will receive in exchange. Indeed, as one of our Board members put it, they are akin to Vornado cleaning up its own basement.
Second, Community Board Five is deeply troubled by this applicant's request for a midblock up-zoning, adding yet another 266,000 square feet to a tower that is utterly lacking confirmed details, including building size, height, tenancy, construction timetable or financing plan. The applicant conceded to us that it could be many years – years - before any development scenario might move forward, which entirely demolishes the argument that we should approve this project now as a salve for our current economic troubles.
If the up-zoning were to be granted now, it would remain with the zoning lot permanently, regardless of future development plans or even if the lot is eventually sold. It is ill-advised from a proper planning perspective to approve such an up-zoning without a clear rationale for its request. This up-zoning, just blocks from the Empire State Building, will allow Vornado, or whoever might eventually own this site, to build a building that will change the iconic skyline of New York City forevermore. Such a change must be deeply considered and well thought out, both in terms of its design and, more broadly, its impact on future land use decisions in the immediate area.
Community Board Five is not opposed to development and we recognize that this site is appropriate for a large commercial building. We value the job creation that will result not only during construction but also after the proposed building is complete. But we are also acutely aware of how the area
surrounding Penn Station is poised to undergo enormous development, growth, and change in the coming decade. This means that each individual land use decision will cumulatively contribute to its transformation.
Therefore, we hope that the ladies and gentlemen on this committee and the Council as a whole will join us in asking Vornado to return to the table with their request for a permanent up-zoning when they have a rationale and a final, financed plan in place. Until such time, we urge the Council to join with City Planning, the Moynihan Station Community Advisory Committee and Community Boards Four and Five to begin to outline a Moynihan Station subdistrict zoning plan and a future for this area that is both well-considered and comprehensive.
Thank you for your time.
Monday, September 27, 2010
NYC Council
This past weekend I was lucky enough to capture a recording of the NYC Council on Zoning meeting for 15 Penn Plaza on the NYC Gov TV Channel. Over the next few days I will be attempting to make an audio transcript of the meeting (minus the commercials). Please be patient with me as I do this. We have also reached out to CB5 for a copy of the speech that Mr. Wally Rubin gave that day, if we get it from CB5 will will gladly post it here.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
A letter to Mr. Roth and Mr. Greenbaum
I opened up my mailbox today and found this wonderful letter from Mr. Marco Zanaletti, who just happens to live in Italy. the letter is listed below and reads:
Thank you Marco, let us hope your letter does not fall on deaf ears.
Da: Marco <marcoz88@alice.it>Data: 18 settembre 2010 16.26.07 GMT+02.00Cc: sroth@vno.comOggetto: Pennsylvania Hotel
Dear Sirs,
From what it was once a beautiful and unique Country - Italy - I am begging you not to demolish the Pennsylvania Hotel. An awfully lot of money can be made more easily and smartly out of history than out of cheap consumerism. If we had preserved our country and our landscape, we would today be much richer, not only in our pockets, but in our hearts too. New York has lost already many landmarks, last but not least due to terrorism.So please, let the Penn hotel survive, as a piece of the America which changed the world for the better and that we learned to love and respect.
Yours truly,
Marco Zanaletti
Via Ticino 8820081 Abbiategrasso (Milano)
Italy
Thank you Marco, let us hope your letter does not fall on deaf ears.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Atlantic Yards Report: "Stealing the common from the goose": Henry Stern's compelling case against 15 Penn Plaza (and the glaring Atlantic Yards blind spot)
An interesting blog that I came across. He makes a valid point, and just for those who are wondering, it's not over, yet.
Atlantic Yards Report: "Stealing the common from the goose": Henry Stern's compelling case against 15 Penn Plaza (and the glaring Atlantic Yards blind spot)
Atlantic Yards Report: "Stealing the common from the goose": Henry Stern's compelling case against 15 Penn Plaza (and the glaring Atlantic Yards blind spot)
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