My Big Apple - News from New York City

[LindbergMTL]

Je vais déménager à Manhattan au mois d'Août. Je garde un pied-à-terre à Vancouver et reviens fréquemment à Montréal.

 

 

Je viens de voir cette nouvelle toute fraiche. Je vais habiter tout juste à côté de Washington Square, et ce nouveau développement m'intéresse au plus haut point. J'esssaierai de vous en faire part régulièrement.

 

Voici l'article du Wall Street Journal:

 

First Look at NYU Tower Plan

University Wants 38-Story Building on Village Site; Critics Fret Over Pei Design

By CRAIG KARMIN

 

New York University on Thursday expects to unveil its much-anticipated design plans for the proposed 38-story tower in Greenwich Village, one of the most ambitious projects in the school's controversial 25-year expansion plan.

 

 

Before and after: The space between two towers designed by I.M. Pei, above, would be filled by a new tower, in rendering below, under NYU's plan.

 

The tower, sight-unseen, is already facing backlash from community groups who say the building would interfere with the original three-tower design by famed architect I.M. Pei. Critics also say the new building would flood the neighborhood with more construction and cause other disruptions.

 

The concrete fourth tower with floor-to-ceiling glass windows would be built on the Bleecker Street side of the site, known as University Village. It would house a moderate-priced hotel on the bottom 15 floors. The 240-room hotel would be intended for visiting professors and other NYU guests, but would also be available to the public. The top floors would be housing for school faculty.

 

In addition, NYU would move the Jerome S. Coles Sports Center farther east toward Mercer Street to clear space for a broader walkway through the site that connects Bleecker and Houston streets. The sports complex would be torn down and rebuilt with a new design.

 

Grimshaw Architects

 

The plan also calls for replacing a grocery store that is currently in the northwest corner of the site with a playground. As a result, the site would gain 8,000 square feet of public space under the tower proposal, according to an NYU spokesman.

 

NYU considers the new tower a crucial component of its ambitious expansion plans to add six million square feet to the campus by 2031—including proposed sites in Brooklyn, Governors Island and possibly the World Trade Center site—in an effort to increase its current student population of about 40,000 by 5,500.

 

The tower is also one of the most contentious parts of the plan because the University Village site received landmark status in 2008 and is home to a Pablo Picasso statue. The three existing towers, including one dedicated to affordable public housing, were designed by Mr. Pei in the 1960s. The 30-story cast-concrete structures are considered a classic example of modernism.

 

Grimshaw Architects, the New York firm that designed the proposed tower, says it wants the new structure to complement Mr. Pei's work. "It would be built with a sensitivity to the existing buildings," says Mark Husser, a Grimshaw partner. "It is meant to relate to the towers but also be contemporary."

 

 

 

Grimshaw Architects

 

NYU says the planned building, at center of rendering above, would relate to current towers.

 

He said the new tower would use similar materials to the Pei structures and would be positioned at the site in a way not to cut off views from the existing buildings.

 

Little of this news is likely to pacify local opposition. "A fourth tower would utterly change Pei's design," says Andrew Berman, executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation. He says that Mr. Pei designed a number of plans about the same time that similarly featured three towers around open space, such as the Society Hill Towers in Philadelphia.

 

Watch a video showing a rendering of New York University's proposed 38-story tower, one of the most ambitious projects in the university's vast 2031 expansion plan. The tower would be located near Bleecker Street in Manhattan. Video courtesy of Grimshaw Architects.

 

Residents say they fear that the new tower would bring years of construction and reduce green spaces and trees. "We are oversaturated with NYU buildings," says Sylvia Rackow, who lives in the tower for public housing. "They have a lot of other options, like in the financial district, but they are just greedy."

 

NYU will have to win permission from the city's Landmark Commission before it can proceed. This process begins on Monday when NYU makes a preliminary presentation to the local community board.

 

 

Jason Andrew for the Wall Street Journal

 

NYU is 'just greedy,' says Sylvia Rackow, seen in her apartment. Grimshaw.

 

 

While the commission typically designates a particular district or building, University Village is unusual in that it granted landmark status to a site and the surrounding landscaping, making it harder to predict how the commission may respond.

 

NYU also would need to get commercial zoning approval to build a hotel in an area designated as residential. And the university would have to get approval to purchase small strips of land on the site from the city.

 

If the university is tripped up in getting required approvals, it has a backup plan to build a tower on the site currently occupied by a grocery store at Bleecker and LaGuardia, which would have a size similar to the proposed tower of 270,000 square feet.

 

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704198004575311161334409470.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsForth

[jesseps]

I remember hearing about this a few weeks back. The neighbours are unhappy with the idea.

 

I can say that the NYU campus already is really nice. Seeing I have walked through it, around it and inside of it.

 

As for the reduce green space, its understandable but hey they at least have Union Square a few blocks away. Plus the gorgeous Washington Square Park, when its sometimes closed to traffic and people are selling all kinds of stuff (also happens at Union Square*). Sucks that the peeler dude died a few years back*.

 

Insane!!!

 

Only things New York missing (few things I might not mention)...

- Grand Prix weekend

- Just for Laughs

- Jazz Fest

- Piknic Electronik (they do have a weekend long event similar but not special... but its in Central Park)

- Mount Royal

- Montreal style bagels

- Nice airport like Trudeau

 

Things New York has that beats Montreal...

- Museums

- Shopping

- Central Park

- Tall buildings

- Wall Street

- Amazing transit system

- Amazing green spaces like Washington Square Park and Union Square

- UN

- Tribeca Film Festival

- Brooklyn Bridge Park in Brooklyn you can watch movies near the bridge every Thursday

- Bridges to walk across or bike across

 

One thing the Columbia University campus is amazing (sort of reminded me of McGill). Plus in Morningside Heights where the campus is located, you get a pretty nice view of Harlem.

Edited June 18, 2010 by jesseps

[Maisonneuve]

The area of Washington Square has been a very controversial neighbourhood in terms of development in the history of New York. It's seen as New York's "democratic" where people can protest, hold vigils, small celebrations. Hard to demonstrate for causes in Times Square. That's why Washington Square Park is so valuable to Mahattanites. Great location choice. One of my favs in the borough.

[TomOfBoston]

"We are oversaturated with NYU buildings," says Sylvia Rackow, who lives in the tower for public housing. "They have a lot of other options, like in the financial district, but they are just greedy."

 

 

NYU is greedy? Ms. Rackow lives in a subsidized apartment in one of the most desirable neighborhoods in New York City. She is being subsidized by the taxpayers.

[yarabundi]

Things New York has that beats Montreal...

- Amazing green spaces like Washington Square Park and Union Square

We have : Place du Canada/Dorchester Square ; Square Victoria ; Place Jean-Paul Riopelle ; Square Phillips ; Place du Quartier des Spectacles ; Place de l'Adresse Symphonique. Now, we have nothing to envy New-York as for public square !!

- Bridges to walk across or bike across

Not as exciting as Brooklin Bridge, but the Jacques-Cartier bridge is walkable and bikable. How about the stockade that leads to the dirt road parallel to the seaway -dirt road that leads to the Notre-Dame island ?

 

For the others things you mentionned, I would have to agree. Another thing that works in favor of NY : Brooklin's cheesecake !! (I don't remember the name of it but there is a pastry that is well knowned for its sinfull cheescake).

[pedepy]

wash sq park is nice, but it's often filled with bums .. other than that, great area .. if you can afford it, one of the better locations in new york city no doubt.

 

 

 

About jessep' list, while i agree those are all very positive aspects of montreal that make it great, if i ever moved to new york, i wouldn't miss any of these things one bit:

 

 

Grand Prix:

 

New york may not have a grand prix, but what most really think of when they think about montreal's grand prix weekend, is the street animation, the people. That kind of animation which, in parts of new york city, is alive 365 days a year.

 

 

 

On comedy & music:

 

NYC will hand a beating to Montreal any day, in either fields. First of all, outside the cheap conveyer belt that is the l'Ecole de l'humour, comedy is nowhere to be found in this city. And while we may have had a decent underground music scene in recent years here, New York has a long history of making music, that continues to this day in the thousand bars that feature live acts on a regular basis - another thing that is rather scarce in Nontreal.

 

And amongst those up and coming comedians and musicians, world class names can be found, tucked in small corner venues, playing for drinks on a tuesday ..

 

 

Bagels:

 

Now, we all know new york bagel suck. That's just a fact. But while you're down there if you ever crave a montreal style bagel, head out to this place. It's as close as it gets, and they're really good. Really. Just be ready to order quickly and have your money ready. It's a busy place! A nice park is just up the block for you to sit down and enjoy your meal. It won't be quite around your area, but I feel you'll become a regular in no time !

 

 

 

yara: j'ai du mal a croire que tu va reellement comparer les squares new yorkais a ces emplacements. au dela des considerations esthetiques, a new york, ces endroits sont anime a presque toute heure du jour par une foule spontanee, remplie de vie. a montreal, 95% des gens les traversent sans jamais meme savoir qu'ils ont croiser un square ...

 

je ne suis meme pas capable de trouver une photo de la place jean-paul riopelle sur google avec des gens! ..

 

franchement la, range un peu des pompoms pour une minute et regarde la realite en face: c'est bien joli de vouloir glorifier montreal de la sorte et elle merite sans aucun doute de multiples eloges pour ce qu'elle est. mais il faut aussi savoir reconnaitre les qualites des autres villes, et parfois aussi reconnaitre qu'elles possedent des atout que montreal n'a pas.

 

et quand on nie betement cette realite, en lui accordant parfois meme des qualites qui ne sont necessairement les siennes, cela discredite aussi celles qu'elle possede reellement.

Edited June 20, 2010 by pedepy

[yarabundi]

Comme d'habitude pedepy égal à lui-même. Je ne parlais pas nécéssairement de l'animation qu'on peut trouver sur ces places en opposition à Washington square à New-York. Je comparais les places publiques en tant qu'entités -nonobstant l'animation qu'on peut y trouver. Je reconnais que Washington Square possède un niveau d'animation sans égal -qu'aucun square à Montréal ne peut s'y comparer. Washington Square est dans un quartier résidentiel et universitaire. Rien de comparable dans notre ville.

 

Par contre, pas beaucoup d'espaces publiques traditionnelles dans le centre des affaires de New-York pour une ville de cette dimension. Bien sûr, il y a Central Park mais notre Mont-Royal s'y compare aisément. Toutes proportions gardées, nous avons des places magnifiques qui sont prises d'assaut par les riverains aux heures de lunch surtout par temps de canicule.

 

Pour ce qui est du ton utilisé dans ton commentaire, je serais tenté de réagir mais je suis certain que je serais censuré par les modérateurs. Je te dirais simplement ceci : lis sur mes lèvres !!

 

Tu me critiques quand je poste des commentaires négatifs ; tu me critiques quand je fais la promotion de Montréal. Il faut savoir ce que tu veux.

[Malek]

et le parc du Mont Royal? le Parc dans le nord de la ville, Gouin, proche de la 19. Très beau parc aussi.

[ToxiK]

le Parc dans le nord de la ville, Gouin, proche de la 19. Très beau parc aussi.

 

Le parc de l'Ile de la Visitation? Probablement le parc le plus sous-estimé de Montréal.

[pedepy]

yara: peut-etre que tu as mal percu le ton de mon commentaire. il y a juste une tendance pour certain ici (parlant du forum, mais aussi de la ville dans l'ensemble) a vouloir jouer a l'autruche vis a vis les problemes que vit montreal, souvent en se refugiant dans une perception de la ville qui n'est qu'idealisee. c'est pour ca que je parlais de tes pompons - parfois il faut savoir regarder la realite froidement, et ton premier post m'a donne des impressions de fanatisme irreflechi .. comme si qqun se mettais a comparer le blvd tasherault avec les champs elyse ..

 

si tu lis ma reponse, tu verra que je fais la distinction entre l'animation et l'utilisation des squares et les autres considerations architecturales ou esthetiques. bien sur que nous avons de bien beau espaces ici, mais ils sont pour moi sans aucune valeur s'ils ne sont que de simples lieux de transit la plupart du temps ignore de la majorite des citoyens ..

 

prends le parc lafontaine par example. CA c'est un parc qui 'fonctionne'. si tu avais nomme ce parc au lieu de la place du canada, j'aurais peut-etre moins reagit ..

 

pour new york comme telle, je ne trouve pas qu'il y ai si peu de places publiques du genre .... il y en as peu etre moins qu'a montreal, toutes proportions gardees comme tu dis, mais bon l'immobilie coute cher la bas c'est meme pas comparable, et celle qui existent ont au moins le merite de sembler etre apprecie par les new yorkais !