By Kim Velsey 1/31 2:00pm

In the Rezone

What will it mean for development in the South Village? (Trinity Real Estate)

Should Hudson Square’s Rezoning Have to Wait for the Designation of a Historic District?

There is no doubt that the Hudson Square rezoning, if and when it is approved, will reshape what is arguably the last remaining swath of downtown Manhattan’s formerly industrial landscape. Preservationists, however, are not concerned with the fate of the neighborhood’s old printing plants, but rather, that of the quaint district that borders Hudson Square to the northeast.

The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation claims that development and demolition plans in the as-yet unlandmarked South Village—a chunk of Soho bounded by West 4th to the north, Sixth Avenue to the west, West Broadway to the east and Watts Street to the South—have been speeding up as the rezoning moves through the approval process. Read More

By Kim Velsey 10/03/12 1:12pm

Making History

And here shall rise a 14-story mixed use development.

Soho, Oh No! Preservationists Panic Over Planned South Village Development

It is a story that has been writ repeatedly on the landscape of New York: neighborhood transforms from working class haven to bohemian haunt to the place where every developer in the city wants to build a luxury condo with a bank of boutiques on the bottom floor.

And yet, there are few places that have been assaulted as mercilessly as Greenwich Village, Soho and the enclave nestled between their two historic districts—and thus highly attractive to developers— known as South Village. It is an area flush with building permits, preservation battles—activists have spent the last few months fighting to stop the historic townhouse at 186 Spring Street from being torn down to make way for a condo project—and a languishing landmarks proposal. Read More

By Kim Velsey 7/11/12 11:19am

Making History

The buyer of Horovitz's old house is seeking a license to tear down. (Kevin Mazur/WireImage)

Beastie Boy’s Former SoHo Townhouse Faces Demolition

Seller beware! In April, Beastie Boy Adam Horovitz sold his SoHo townhouse to a Canadian developer, who claimed he wanted it for “personal use.”

Now The Village Voice is reporting that the new owner, Stephane Boivin, is seeking permission to demolish the property.Which doesn’t come as a huge surprise given that Mr. Boivin is planning a seven-story, mixed-use property adjacent to the Beastie abode, plus he already owns several other properties in the city. Read More