Protesting Skewed Images Behind Landmarks Approval for New Building at 538-544 Hudson Street
GVSHP has recently learned that images provided by a developer as part of an application approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission for a new building at 538-544 Hudson Street (Charles Street) in the Greenwich Village Historic District were inaccurate and misleading, making the proposed new building look smaller than it actually would be in relation to surrounding buildings and context. This is especially disturbing given that the size and scale of the proposed new building was one of the main points of contention during the application process, to which GVSHP and many neighbors objected. Read our letter to the Landmarks Preservation Commission regarding this serious issue here, and our original testimony to the Landmarks Preservation Commission criticizing the proposed design as (among other things) too large here.
It’s critical that the LPC take appropriate action in this case. Not only is the integrity and validity of this application at stake; a failure to act on the part of the LPC will only encourage other applicants to include misleading and inaccurate materials to try to secure the approvals they seek. GVSHP has reached out to elected officials, fellow preservation groups, and the local Community Board to encourage them to also ask for action by the LPC.
