GVSHP has been seeking enforcement action against landmarks violations at the Equinox Gym at Greenwich Avenue and West 12th Street and the Keller Hotel at Barrow and West Streets.
Equinox Gym has again shown its blatant disregard for its neighbors and the law by erecting a giant, three-story billboard on the exterior of its building in violation of landmarks and building code requirements. This is not the first time they have done so; in 2010, Equinox also erected illegal billboards covering the entire façade of their building, which GVSHP fought and they were also forced to remove. When Equinox recently erected new billboards again, GVSHP immediately reached out to the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) and the Department of Buildings to ask they take immediate enforcement action. The LPC has ordered Equinox’s billboard be removed, and is fining them $5,000 a day for failing to do so. We will continue to push city agencies and Equinox until the illegal signs are removed. Read more in The Villager.
In 2007, GVSHP succeeded in securing landmark designation of the Keller Hotel at Barrow and West Streets, one of the last surviving, century-old sailor’s hotels along the Greenwich Village waterfront (more here). An initial plan to renovate the empty hotel and turn it into residences has foundered, and the building has lain fallow for years. Conditions at the building have gradually deteriorated, in spite of requirements that landmarked properties be properly maintained. Concerned about the fate of the building and the lack of maintenance, GVSHP has reached out to the Landmarks Preservation Commission, which has issued a Failure to Maintain Warning Letter, which will escalate to a Notice of Violation if corrective action is not satisfactorily undertaken. GVSHP will continue to closely monitor the situation to ensure that this wonderful piece of our history is maintained and restored.
Click here for more information about reporting violations to GVSHP.
