West 13th St.

Issue No. 15 www.west13.org

Gazette
Fall 2007

Voice of the West 13th St. 100 Block Association Inc., 155 W. 13th St., New York, NY 10011

Save The Village!

Huge St. Vincents Construction Plan Threatens Neighborhood
Presidents Message
By Gary Tomei
As you know, St Vincent's plans to sell its present property east of 7th Ave. to the Rudin Organization and use the money to build a new megasized hospital on the west side of the avenue between 12th and 13th streets. Rudin would raze the present hospital buildings to make way for high-rise luxury condos, including a huge building right on 7th Ave. No one opposes St. Vincent's modernizing its facilities. But are Rudin and St Vincent's entitled to a carte blanche regarding their plans to create these two mammoth structures, which would violate our zoning laws and our landmark standards, and cast their shadows across the entire west Village? The very character of the Village, with its relatively low density, is being challenged on all sides, and each encroachment not only eats away our architectural environment, but also impacts our sense of proportion and harmony with the structures that surround us. I believe that most of us in the Village prize not only the sense of community that exists here, but also the light and air missing in other areas of Manhattan that are overcrowded and overwhelmed by Continued on P.2

Our block, our neighborhood and the entire West Village face a crisis unlike any in half a centurya giant construction project that will place several major new buildings in the very heart of the Village.

St. Vincents Hospital wants to build a hospital of the future, as St. Vincents officials put it, on the current site of its existing OToole Building (the white structure with round windows on the west side of 7th Ave, between 12th and 13th Sts.). To finance the new hospital St. Vincents would sell its current facilities, 10 buildings facing 11th & 12th Sts. and 7th Ave., to the Rudin Management Co., which would raze the entire site an enormous demolition job to clear the way for luxury condos, including 19 townhouses and five multi-story buildings. Both the new hospital and the tallest condo towers
Continued on P.2

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Save The Village!

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would be substantially taller than anything in the area. The total floor space would come to 1.3 million square feet. It would be the largest development in Greenwich Village in 50 years, said Andrew Berman, exec. director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, which is leading the opposition to the project. The current plan demolishes, rather than reuses, every one of the hospitals buildings, even those as much as 85 years old, in spite of the the protections the Greenwich Village Historic District is supposed to offer. This will be far and away the biggest thing to happen to our neighborhood in a very long time. Andrew Berman, GVSHP For us 13th St. residents and our fellow Villagers the good news here is that so far, it is only a proposal. The project must be approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission, pass an environmental impact study, and win approval from the Dept. of City Planning. This process will take 1-2 years, at least. I think we are all willing to cut St. Vincents more slack than we might a standard developer, said Berman. But a modernization of the hospital has to be done in a way that maintains some respect for the scale and character of Greenwich Village. I believe this plan still has a long way to go before that is the case. To head off this looming crisis, we must act now. Heres what to do: St. Vincent's has established a Community Working Group to deal with residents concerns. Come to its next meeting on Wed., Nov. 14th at 6:30 pm in the Cronin Cafeteria of St. Vincent's Hospital, 170 W. 12th St. The development plan will be discussed and you will have an opportunity to ask questions and give comments. Local elected officials and the Community Board will be represented. Also, we must write letters. For addresses of key officials and information regarding letters ,

see P.4 of this newsletter, or visit their websites via the links at our website, www.west13.org.

So long, its been good to know ya...

Long-time W. 13th St. residents & W13BA members Mary Perica & Peter Malloy are headed west to San Francisco. Mary served for years on the W13BA board. I want to take this opportunity to thank Mary for all she has contributed to our Assn., says president Gary Tomei. Her beautiful smile, intelligence and warmth will be sadly missed by me and all the residents of the block who were fortunate enough to know her. Mary & Peter, best of luck and come back and see us some time!

Presidents Message
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tall, densely packed buildings. Our block will suffer a new round of rats, dirt, noise and disruption, like that we experienced during the MTAs Big Dig project, completed only this summer after five long years. We also face the prospect of dump trucks rumbling down our block, with the potential of causing structural damage to our buildings. Furthermore, we will experience a significant increase in the number of residents in the West Village (approximately 500 families in the Rudin complex), further straining our community resources, especially our overcrowded schools. We are told that St. Vincents has to restructure as it is the only hospital serving the entire West Side of Manhattan from the Battery to 59th St.; however, if this area has such a dire shortage of hospital care, surely the institution ulitimately responsible for assuring the delivery of this care is the City, just as it provides fire and police protection. Where is the City in this equation? Why is the entire burden being placed on St. Vincent's and the Greenwich Village community? I strongly urge you to write to St Vincent's and to your elected officials, voicing your concerns regarding this project. And please attend the important community meeting on November 14th at 6:30 at St. Vincent's. I must add that the fight to Save the Village has been led by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation and I appeal to you support that organization with your contributions. Contact the GVSHP at 232 East 11th Street New York, NY 10003, (212) 475-9585. Email: gvshp@gvshp.org

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Condo Proposal for St. Vincents Site

www.west13.org
The West 13th Street Block Association once again has its own web site, thanks to board member Alan Jacobs. On it, youll find:
links to every Gazette, going back 10 years links to all the websites of all our local elected officials, and to important organizations in our neighborhood calendars of upcoming events, and the complete Community Board calendar features on St. Vincent's, the new Big Dig, and other topics as they develop We welcome your feedback. Log on today, and send suggestions to ajacobs@nyc.rr.com.

This is the Rudin Companys rendering of the condominiums and townhouses (shaded) that would be built on the site of the present St. Vincents Hospital, if the plan is approved. Note that this rendering does not show the proposed new high-rise hospital, which would have to be constructed on the west side of 7th Ave. before the present hospital is razed to make way for the condos.

About Those Tree Guards...

In case you didnt know, the new tree guard boxes that were placed around nearly all trees on our block after completion of the MTA Big Dig this summer were a special project of the West 13th Street Block Association. This $21,500 beautification project was paid for by the W13BA membership, with additional funds provided by several generous individual homeowners. We think the results speak for themselves, and wish to thank Naomi Usher and Judy Pesin, who coordinated the project, as well as all who contributed financially and those who planted flowers around the bases of many of our trees.

Real Estate Report

by Kitty Sorrell, W13BA member and VP/Assoc. Broker, Corcoran Real Estate Despite the slowdown in housing markets around the country, Manhattan real estate showed strong demand and sales through summer and into fall. Average prices rose by 14%, primarily due to strong condo sales in new luxury developments, which buoyed the entire Manhattan apartment market. On our block, two single-family townhouses are currently on the market, one for just under $9 million and one for $9.5 million. Available one-bedroom townhouse rentals range from $2,700/mo to $2,150/mo.; two-bedroom rentals range from $4,500/mo. to $3,575/mo.; a three-bedroom garden duplex rental asks $15,000/mo. Recent sales in our doorman buildings ranged from $2.95 million for a 6-room apartment; to $1.4 million for a 2-bedroom 2-bath unit; $1.15 million for a 1-bedroom, 1-bath; and $995,000 for a 2-bedroom, 2-bath unit. One-bedroom sales ranged from $700,000 to $625,000, and a studio sold for $385,000. (For additional information, contact Kitty Sorell, 212-539-4968.)

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Fall 2007

You can help Save The Village!

Make Yourself Heard about the St. Vincents/Rudin building project: Join W13BA members and other concerned Villagers at the meeting of the St. Vincents Community Working Group: Wednesday, November 14th 6:30 p.m. The Cronin Cafeteria, St. Vincents Hospital 170 W. 12th Street Write Letters: Few things are more effective in gaining official attention than a lot of letters expressing concern about one issue. Find sample letters by following the links at www.west13.org, or by going directly to the GVSHP website, www.gvshp.org/StVincentsLetter.htm. Here are the addresses you need:
Henry J. Amoroso, President & CEO St. Vincents Catholic Medical Center 170 W.12th St. New York NY 10011 NY City Council Speaker Christine Quinn 224 W. 30th St. #1206 New York NY 10001 Manhattan Borough Pres. Scott Stringer One Centre St., 19th floor New York NY 10007 U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler 201 Varick St. #669 New York NY 10014 NY State Sen. Tom Duane 322 8th Ave. #1700 New York NY 10001 NY Assemblymember Debora Glick 853 Broadway #2120 New York NY 10003 CONTACT INFORMATION FOR ALL LOCAL ELECTED OFFICIALS MAY BE FOUND BY FOLLOWING THE LINKS AT WWW.WEST13.ORG.

ITS YOUR BLOCK ASSOCIATION: JOIN OR RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP NOW!

W13BA dues for calendar year 2007-8 may be paid now. Make checks to W. 13 St. 100 Block Assn. Mail to: W. 13th St. 100 Block Association, 155 W. 13th St., New York, N.Y. 10011 Resident ($10 per individual) Number of individuals: _ Townhouse owner ($50) Business ($100) Cooperative board ($100) Addl. contribution (any amount) TOTAL ENCLOSED: $ ________ This is a renewal. Name or names: Address: Name of business (if applicable): Home phone: Work phone: E-mail: I am interested in the following issues (circle one or more): Traffic / Crime Prevention / Beautification / Community Affairs / Other (please specify): _____________________________