By Gabriela Resto-Montero
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
UPPER EAST SIDE — A disagreement between residents of Hellgate Hill over designating the block part of the Carnegie Hill Historic District led to supporters of preservation withdrawing the application for landmark status Wednesday.
"There was a lot of opposition and we felt we should bring the two sides together," said Lo van der Valk, president of the Carnegie Hill Neighbors, which supported landmark status.
Neighbors of the proposed addition, which covered the north side of East 94th Street and the south side of East 95th Street between Lexington and Third Avenues, argued over the effects of landmarking at a contentious landmarks committee meeting Monday.
Despite the debate, the committee voted to landmark the block, saying historic designation was the best way to protect the homes from development.
Since the vote, the Hellgate Hill Householders Association and the Carnegie Hill Neighbors have discussed other ways to protect the block's historic value without having to obtain historic designation, van der Valk said.
The issue of historic preservation for the block will be revisited in October at the earliest, he said.
