Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Report From The Carroll Gardens Landmark Forum

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The Forum On Landmarking Carroll Gardens last night was all about information. The Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association assembled an impressive panel of experts who were able to answer most of the questions about what landmarking entails and how it would affect homeowners. The turn-out was great.
This was an important step in Carroll Gardens and will help residents decide how best to protect this Brownstone neighborhood from developers.
Currently, Carroll Gardens has an R6 zoning which means that there is no height limit whatsoever for buildings. C.G.N.A. has asked N.Y.C.Planning to change the zoning to mainly R6B which limits the height of buildings to 50 feet.
Though such new zoning will certainly cap the height, it would not protect from non-contextual construction. That is where landmarking would come in.
The meeting was moderated by Robert Levine, Landmarks Committee Chairperson of Community Board 6.
The panel was composed of:
John Graham
and Diane Jackier of the NYC Landmarks Preservation Committee,
Simeon Bankhoff of the Historic Districts Council, NYC
Ben Baxt of Baxt/Ingui Architects, PC
Craig Hammerman, District Manager CB6
Roy Sloane, Cobble Hill Association, Land Use Committee CB6
Bob Furman of the Four Borough Neighborhood Preservation
and Everet Ortner, founder, Brownstone Revival Committee

The panel answered questions from the audience which were submitted on index cards.
More than once, the main concern seemed to be along these lines:
" Will Landmarks make me change my windows and doors if I do not want to change them as a homeowner?"
(The answer from Landmarks representatives was : No, not until the homeowner is ready to replace their windows and doors themselves.)
Surely, this will be a long and ongoing discussion here in Carroll Gardens. Last night was only one step in a long, drawn out process. It may take months or even years before the neighborhood is landmarked or down-zoned.
However, as mentioned last night, not doing anything is not an option. "If we don't do anything, we are going to leave the developers to impose their vision on our Brownstone neighborhood."

Related Reading:
click: Bill DeBlasio Makes An Appearance In Carroll Gardens And Gets Scolded By C.O.R.D.


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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

landmarking will not stop development it will only cost homeowners more time and money to repair their property. educate yourself before you make a decision to support this.

Kelly said...

Sorry Anon,
I am very educated on the subject having lived for 22 years on one of only two landmarked streets in Carroll Gardens.
I have gladly consulted with Landmarks to preserve my house's historical integrity.
Did the repairs cost more? Not necessarily. I would have done the same repairs to any house here in Carroll Gardens, landmarked or not.

Anonymous said...

Wouldn't landmarking force residents out who can neither afford the expensive upkeep nor higher property taxes which come along w/ higher property values?

Unknown said...

Wake up people. Carroll gardens is a fantastic place that is at real risk from overdevelopment. You only need to look as far as the Corcoran website to see that its the landmarked neighborhoods in Brooklyn that have the highest value. Protect our neighborhood and its value!!!
Landmark now!!!

Anonymous said...

Anonymous recommends people to educate... could anonymous be more specific when talking about time and money? bring examples ?...