Seaport Named 'Endangered Historic Place'
By AMANDA WOODS
The South Street Seaport, now at the center of a development controversy, has been named one of “America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places” by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Trust condemned developer Howard Hughes Corp.’s plans for the Seaport—especially the 494-foot residential tower at the New Market Building site—as a “threat” that would “disrupt the look, feel and low-scale historic character of the Seaport.”
“The proposed developments will have an overwhelming impact on the historic neighborhood, diminishing the Seaport’s unique relationship to the water and compromising one of the most intact 19th century neighborhoods in Manhattan,” Stephanie Meeks, president of the Trust, said in the statement. “If it were constructed on a pier jutting over the water, the tower would alter the character of the waterfront and block views of the Brooklyn Bridge to and from the historic Seaport.”
Meeks said she hopes that including the Seaport on the list will encourage Hughes Corp. to “consider relocating the tower away from this beloved historic district.”
With demolition of deteriorated portions of two former fish market buildings set to begin by the city, the preservation group called the Seaport redevelopment issue “urgent.”
In a letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio earlier this month, Hughes Corp. CEO David Weinreb said the developer is “working on a significantly revised plan" that would further “address the height issue” of the tower. Last November, the developer announced that it would lower the tower from 650 to 494 feet, and include a three-story, 71,000-square-foot middle school at its base.
In response to the Trust, Hughes Corp. executive vice president Chris Curry issued a statement that did not mention the Seaport's designation on the “endangered” list, but reiterated that the company is “exploring a significant reduction to the height of the proposed building.”
In a reference to Hughes Corp. initiatives to restore a number of Seaport buildings and bring a variety of programs and activities to the area, Curry added: “Our long-term vision for the Seaport celebrates the area's rich history by creating a vibrant Seaport District while also preserving its historic fabric and architecture, puts the South Street Seaport museum on sound financial footing and reestablishing New York's cherished connection to the working waterfront.”
At a recent Community Board 1 meeting, Curry had nothing to report about its scaling down of the tower's height, to the disappointment of several dozen opponents of the plan who attended the meeting hoping for an update.