Huge news as The New York Times reports on plans to pedestrianize the block of Broadway above Union Square as well as 17th St. in front of Barnes and Noble. Opinions are divided on this one. What do you think?
Here’s a groovy photo of a groovy chick planting flowers in Union Square on the first Earth Day, 40 years ago. Funny to think she’s over 60 years old now. 
Go here to see a photo of the first Earth Day in Union Square, April 22, 1970. In the photo you can even see a bit of our building.
As you might imagine, the art vendors of Union Square don’t want to be kicked out.
How do you feel about all those artists who take up quite a bit of space selling their art at the southwest corner of Union Square Park. Here’s an article that says they may soon be squeezed into a smaller area:
The Parks Department has proposed new regulations that would drastically limit the number of artists allowed to sell their work in Union Square and other Manhattan parks.
The Parks Department claims the rules will decrease congestion, but critics accuse the city of pushing out independent street artists in order to replace them with more lucrative vendors.
The Parks Department declined to answer questions submitted by the NY Destinations Examiner .
A Parks Department spokesperson provided an email statement, much of which was excerpted from the Parks Department’s March 24 notice in The City Record .
” The dramatic increase in the number of expressive matter vendors on parkland has prompted the Parks Department to develop these rules in an effort to strike a balance between these vendors and other park users, and address other concerns related to maintaining and operating open space in an urban environment, ” reads the statement.
Here’s the official word on how the renovations are going:
Spring weather has brought with it a flurry of activity in Union Square Park, both in the new playground and at the construction site. Parents and kids have been taking full advantage of the warm sunny days by swinging, climbing and sliding their way out of the winter doldrums. The Partnership’s new landscape efforts, including more than 260 ornamental shrubs and 650 perennials, will soon be underway, as well as the creation of additional seating opportunities in the center lawn, in front of the new Pavilion entrance and around the James Fountain (a/k/a Mother & Child).
In construction news, structural work on the Pavilion columns and ceiling beams has finished at last, and the protective plywood barriers have been removed from the front of the building, exposing the beautifully restored neo-classical interior to passersby. As the Pavilion elevator is installed and tested, interior lighting fixtures, gates and handrails round out the final touches of building restoration work.
Park visitors can soon make use of the restroom facilities as they, too, near completion. Last week, eco-resin panels were mounted above the granite walls to enclose the building, allowing the final plumbing fixtures to be installed. Once complete, the Parks Department will work closely with the Department of Buildings to inspect all systems in order to open the facilities for the busy summer season.
Our new neighbor Ann Roth tells us about this incredible image of the 14th St. building that she dug up:
“I found the image on the web, where someone was selling a hand-colored print of the 14th Street facade, from a magazine that dates to 1891. So it clearly dates to that year (or earlier), not 1899, as all the real estate ads say. I ordered it, and they immediately took it off their site, so I can’t send you the link, but I copied the image first, so I’ve attached it. I must say, I wish it still had the fancy spire. The architects were D’Oench & Simon. Albert D’Oench studied in New York and Stuttgart, and then worked for Robert Morris Hunt (who designed the Metropolitan Museum’s facade) for a while. He was the NY Inspector of Buildings for five years, which seems to have mainly involved fire safety. After that, he had a successful architectural partnership with Albert (or Bernard?) Simon, and they designed and built several fire stations in New York. D’Oench later married the mayor’s daughter. Clearly a man with good connections. The plan calls it a “store building,” built it for Mrs. Mary S. Van Beuren, who was the granddaughter and heir of Henry Spingler (who I think has a building on Union Square named after him). She lived nearby, on 14th Street, just west of 5th, and seems to have been a bit of a sharp customer, to judge from some of the legal tussles I found when I searched her name on Google.”
How annoying. The New School construction site seems to be getting its daily dumpster deliveries at 4:15AM. So noisy. Good morning!
Our building (c. 1940)
