10/11/12

EXCLUSIVE: Rich Fifth Avenue residents signed deal with Metropolitan Museum of Art to limit crowds i

Fifth Avenue coops sign secret pact to shrink Metropolitan Museum of Art's plaza
By KATE BRIQUELET Last Updated: 10:27 AM, September 16, 2012 Posted: 12:30 AM, September 16, 2012

Its the peoples piazza no more. The upper crust in nine Fifth Avenue buildings signed a secret deal with the Metropolitan Museum of Art to scale down big plans for the institutions iconic plaza, the Post has learned. Under the agreement, the Met will reduce its design from 100 tables and 400 chairs to 30 tables and 120 chairs and do away with a proposed food kiosk as long as the tony co-ops dont publicly criticize the $60 million rehab or file lawsuits against it for a year. But factions within the co-ops which are home to Daphne Guinness and George Soros still arent satisfied. Some are privately agitating to remove all chairs to keep crowds down. This isnt some sort of sidewalk cafe or food court, said one angry resident at a meeting at the Met on Thursday. What museum has tables and chairs in front of it? As part of its revamp, paid for by billionaire David Koch, the plazas giant twin fountains will be replaced with smaller pools and trees. There will be portable benches, tree-lined walkways and retractable parasols. Construction will begin next month and last two years. Community advocates are outraged that changes to the ballyhooed plaza plan were made behind closed doors. The plaza is owned by the city, and the museum gets millions in taxpayer money.
www.nypost.com/f/print/news/local/manhattan/rich_play_met_make_deal_uvZPusFJbKj4AMiEu6DGRI 1/3

10/11/12

EXCLUSIVE: Rich Fifth Avenue residents signed deal with Metropolitan Museum of Art to limit crowds i

This was a museum of the people, fumed Theodore Grunewald. Now its the people versus this self-appointed group of elite people. Teri Slater, a preservationist and community-board member, was shocked to learn of the backroom deal, inked in July especially because it requires residents to praise the new design. This undermines the public process, she said. Private individuals were deciding what goes into public space. Grunewald heads a band of preservationists who want to save the fountains, which Koch and the museums director Thomas Campbell have deemed ugly. Pritzker Prize-winning architect Kevin Roche designed the fountains in 1968 for the museums centennial. Theyre 110 feet long and the second-largest in New York after the one surrounding the Unisphere in Queens. The agreement states that the co-ops cannot file suit against the museum or assist anyone else in challenging the plaza. If others sue the Met, the Fifth Avenue socialites must provide an affidavit stating that the museums plans for the fountains, trees and plantings will significantly improve the plazas visual appearance, the legal document says. Spokesman Harold Holzer said the museum wasnt trying to sidestep the public but wanted to move the project forward without a lawsuit. We dont regard it as a crucial design element of the plaza, and it didnt seem worth [notifying people] over an issue like a portable kiosk, he said. Its not a matter of secrecy at all, Holzer added. Its just getting the project to move forward without anybody being unhappy. kbriquelet@nypost.com

www.nypost.com/f/print/news/local/manhattan/rich_play_met_make_deal_uvZPusFJbKj4AMiEu6DGRI

2/3

10/11/12
SMALLBUSINESSINSIDER

Met Slashes 280 Planned Seats From Plaza Redesign - DNAinfo.com New York
OKTOBERFESTBROOKLYN NEIGHBORHOODBRUNCHING HALLOWEEN FollowUs
DownloadiPhoneApporAndroidApp

SEARCH

Sunny 54

NEIGHBORHOODS

NEWS

EVENTS

FOOD&DRINK

NYCKIDS

HEALTH&WELLNESS

WEATHER

SWEEPSTAKES

UpperEastSide&RooseveltIsland
Seemore:DavidKoch,HaroldHolzer,l,MicheleBirnbaum,PeggyPrice,ThomasCampbell,FifthAvenue,MetropolitanMuseumofArt, construction,museum,Plaza,publicplaza

SeenextUpperEastSide&Roosevelt Islandarticle

MetSlashes280PlannedSeatsFromPlaza Redesign
UpdatedOctober4,20124:21pm
October4,20124:21pm|ByVictoriaBekiempis,DNAinfoReporter/Producer 0 share print

UpperEastSide& Roosevelt IslandNewsletter

SIGNUPNOW!
Email Address
Iunderstandandagreethatsubscriptionand registrationonthissiteconstitutesagreement tothesite'sTermsofUseandPrivacyPolicy.

Zip Code

UPPEREASTSIDEPlansfora$60millionmakeoverof theplazaoutsidetheMetropolitanMuseumofArthave continuedtoshrink,asorganizersannouncedthey're slashing280seatsfromaplanned400seatcourtyard. AftersteppingbackinSeptemberfromplanstoinclude foodandticketkioskslargelybecauseresidentsfeared thattheywouldturntheareaintoaStarbuckslike "hangout"theMethasagreedtodecreasetheplanned seatingfrom100tablesand400chairsto30tablesand 120chairs,a70percentdecreaseinthenumberofseats. "Wedidthisoutofrespecttotheneighbors,"saidHarold Holzer,seniorvicepresidentforexternalaffairsattheMet, whospokeatCommunityBoard8'sTransportation CommitteemeetingWednesdaynight. Theythought"itwastoomuchtoosoon,"heexplained. Afterconstructioniscompletedintwoyears,Metofficials willstudytheareaandreconsiderwhetherkiosksshouldbepermitted,headded. ThechangesarepartofalongplannedoverhaultoNewYork'stoptouristattraction,slatedtostartOct.15. InadditiontobolsteredpublicseatinginthestyleofaEuropeanplazaMetofficialswillinstallnewlighting,trees,and amodernizedfountain. OfficialswantedtherenovationfundedbyDavidKochtohelprelievecongestionontheoftcrowdedmusemsteps. Neighbors,however,fearthattheplazawouldharmtheneighborhood'squalityoflifeandbringtoomanyloiterers. "ThisspellsStarbucks:aplacetohangoutalldayandhavecoffee,"PeggyPrice,CommunityBoard8member,saidat thattime. Attendeesalsowantedtoknowwhetherpresentfoodsellersandartistswouldbepermittedaftertheconstruction,adding thattheydon'twanthotdogvendorsaround. "Wedon'tcontrolthat,"Holzerexplained. Thosepresentalsoworriedaboutthetreesselectedfortheplazasycamoresandlindensmightmakethemuseum lookbadifpoorlymaintained. Lindens,onewomansaid,requiredconstantwateringandmaintanence. "Ifyouhadarowfullofwiltedlindens,itwouldnotbeanassettothemuseum,"saidthewoman,whodidnotgiveher name. Museumofficialsrespondedthatthetreeswouldbeadequatelyhydrated,astheyareinstallinganundergroundirrigation system.
AlsoonDNAinfo.com...

MetDropsKiosksFrom$60MPlazaOverhaulPlan MetMuseum's$60MPlazaWouldBeanUnwelcome'Hangout,'NeighborsSay CrumblingEast81stStreetPedestrianBridgeSetforMakeover

ByVictoriaBekiempis,DNAinfo.com

onFacebook

dnainfo.com/new-york/20121004//met-slashes-75-percent-of-planned-seating-from-plaza-redesign

1/3

10/11/12

David Koch Funding Major Metropolitan Museum of Art Plaza Renovation - DNAinfo.com New York
OKTOBERFESTBROOKLYN NEIGHBORHOODBRUNCHING HALLOWEEN FollowUs
DownloadiPhoneApporAndroidApp

SMALLBUSINESSINSIDER

SEARCH

Sunny 54

NEIGHBORHOODS

NEWS

EVENTS

FOOD&DRINK

NYCKIDS

HEALTH&WELLNESS

WEATHER

SWEEPSTAKES

UpperEastSide&RooseveltIsland
Seemore:DavidKoch,ThomasCampbell,FifthAvenue,MetropolitanMuseumofArt(TheMet),FifthAvenueplazarenovation,fountain renovation,LondonPlanetrees,StreetVendors

SeenextUpperEastSide&Roosevelt Islandarticle

DavidKochFundingMajorMetropolitanMuseum Roosevelt ofArtPlazaRenovation IslandNewsletter

UpdatedFebruary7,20128:54pm
0

UpperEastSide&
SIGNUPNOW!

February7,20128:54pm|ByAmyZimmer,DNAinfoNewsEditor

share

print

Email Address
Iunderstandandagreethatsubscriptionand registrationonthissiteconstitutesagreement tothesite'sTermsofUseandPrivacyPolicy.

Zip Code

MANHATTANBillionaireindustrialistandMetropolitan MuseumofArtTrusteeDavidKochisfootingthebillfora majorrenovationofthelandmarkinstitution'sfourblock longoutdoorplazaonFifthAvenue,officialsannounced Tuesday. Therenovation,reportedtocost$60million,willmarkthe Met'sfirstoverhauloftheplazain40years,whenthe designwaschangedtoaccommodatecaraccess,officials said.Thenewrenovation,whichwillreplacethefountains andseatingthathaveagedbeyondrepair,willfocuson pedestrianaccess. "Weseetheneedforaspacethatwillmakeasignificant contributiontoourneighborhood,richinspatialcharacter, withgloriousfountains,welcomingshade,choicesfor seating,beautifulplantings,andlightrefreshments,allin elegantcomplementtoouriconicBeauxArtsbuilding," ThomasCampbell,directorandCEOoftheMet,saidina statement,

Arenderingshowingbird'seyeviewoftheMetropolitanMuseumof Art'sproposedFifthAvenueplazaredesign.(OLIN)

TheMetwillremovethedeterioratingfountainsthathave beenaroundsincethe1970s,installingnewonesclosertothemuseum'sfrontstepsthatwillbeoperationalyearround withwaterwarmedbyrecyclingsteamtopreventfreezing. Theplan,bytheurbandesignfirmOLIN,willalsoimproveaccesstostreetlevelentrancesat81stand83rdstreets,and createanewshadedwalkwaywith100LondonPlanetreesthatwillbe"pollarded." Thepruningtechniquewillallowsuntowarmtheplazainthewinterandcoolitinthewinter,withoutthetreesbeing allowedtogrowtalltoblockthebuilding'sfaade. Asforthe44LondonPlanescurrentlythere,officialssaidtheywereplantedin"inadequate"conditionsandwillbe removed. Ornamentalbedsofshrubsandflowerswillhearkenbacktotheoriginalconceptsbythebuilding'sarchitects,McKim MeadandWhite. Therewillalsobenewseatingwithlightweightmovablechairssimilartoonesinthecity'spublicplazas,aswellas energyefficientlightingthatwill"treatthebuildinglikeaworkofart,"museumofficialssaid. Themuseumwilldesigntwokiosksfortheplazaonetoserve refreshmentsandtheothertodistributemuseuminformationandspeed upmuseumadmissions. MuseumofficialssaidtheyexpectedtheParksDepartmenttore designatespecificvendingspotsforartvendorsandthetwofood concessionscurrentlythere. CampbellpresentedtheplansatseparatemeetingsTuesdayforpublic officialsandUpperEastSideresidents.TheMetwouldliketobegin constructionontheproject,whichneedspublicapproval,bythefallof 2012.Itwouldtakeanestimated23monthstocomplete. KochisNewYork'swealthiestresidentandisknownformakinglarge donationstoconservativepoliticalcauses.HisdonationstoLincoln Center,whereatheaterisnamedforhim,haveattractedtheireofsome OccupyWallStreetprotesters. 123
AlsoonDNAinfo.com...

onFacebook
TheMetropolitanMuseumofArtonFifth Avenueat82ndStreet.(FlickruserWallyG)

MetMuseumReopensAmericanWingAfterExtensiveRenovations UpperWestSide'sDavidKochOftenMistakenforBillionaireNamesake FrickCollection'sNewGlassEnclosedGalleryOpens CooperHewittNationalDesignMuseumHits$54MMilestoneForRenovation

dnainfo.com/new-york//david-koch-funding-major-metropolitan-museum-of-art-plaza-renovation

1/3