UPPER WEST SIDE — Elected officials, preservationists and residents expressed frustration Wednesday at a decision by the city not to include parts of Broadway in the final phase of a newly created historic district, saying the unprotected area is ripe for overdevelopment.
The Riverside-West End Historic District Extension II — which runs from West 94th to West 108th streets on West End Avenue and Riverside Drive — was approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission in June.
But the LPC did not include the western half of Broadway in the district, a last-minute change that stunned and disappointed advocates.
Preservation groups, including Landmarks West and the West End Preservation Society, as well as Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer and City Councilwoman Helen Rosenthal, expressed their dismay at the carve-outs at a City Planning Commission hearing Wednesday.
"It is troubling those portions of the block adjacent to P.S. 75 [were] randomly cut and that entire swaths of Broadway were removed when the research was provided in 2011 justifying the inclusion of these pieces," Brewer testified.
While the hearing gave advocates a chance to call for the inclusion of Broadway, ultimately the commission doesn't have the authority to add buildings into the district, a spokesman said. City Planning only has the power to remove buildings or streets from the historic district.
Knowing that, City Councilwoman Helen Rosenthal said she was open to beginning the process of advocating for another historic district along Broadway.
But, even if rushed through, the process could take years, she acknowledged.
"This was the chance to keep Broadway... within the context of the neighborhood," Rosenthal said of the current historic district.
Now, the buildings that were not landmarked along Broadway are "officially soft sites" for developers who can build there as of right, with no community review, she added.
The City Planning Commission will vote to approve or disapprove the plan on Aug. 19 before it heads to the City Council for a final ruling.
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