Historic Senate Vote Had Roots in Village House

The United States Senate’s historic passage yesterday of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), banning workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, has deep roots in a house in the South Village at 186 Spring Street — a hotbed of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) civil rights activity in the post-Stonewall […]

Joni Mitchell, in a Bleecker Street Cafe

We here at Off the Grid are obviously big fans of the Village folk scene of the 1960s, and today we’re thrilled to spotlight one of its biggest stars. Singer/songwriter Joni Mitchell was born on November 7, 1943 in Fort Macleod, Canada. As with so many aspiring musicians of her day, she came to New […]

A new mayor means a new administration

New Yorkers have elected a new mayor, but it’s important to note that any mayor of any city does not operate in a vacuum.  A mayor selects many individuals to lead individual parts of city government. On Monday, Karen wrote about the position of Chair of the Landmarks Preservation Commission, a key post in the […]

72 Fifth Avenue, Then & Now

Today we take a look back at a piece written by former GVSHP staffer Dana Schulz about an interesting piece of history on Fifth Avenue involving scandal, cigarettes, and urban policy. Read more from our Then & Now series on Off the Grid! In 1847, on Bond Street in London, a young man named Philip […]

Memo to the New Mayor: Strengthen the LPC

Mr. Mayor, don’t forget the Landmarks Preservation Commission! Amid lobbying on higher-profile issues like stop-and-frisk, public schools, economic inequality and even animal cruelty, the mayor elected Tuesday may not have shaping one of the smallest mayoral agencies atop his list of to-do’s. Yet implementing a couple of relatively easy, thoughtful changes could improve operations of […]

Captains of Industry

As Election Day approaches, like many of you, we’re wondering what the future holds for New York City, as the Bloomberg Era will soon be coming to an end. Toward that end, all this Fall we have been looking back on what we have been able to accomplish over the last ten years, and thinking […]

Building (808) Broadway: Halloween Edition

It’s that time of year again. Someone dressed as Minnie Mouse passes you on your way to the office (just this morning, in fact) and dogs in their Halloween finest parade around the city’s many parks. That’s why on today’s Building Broadway post we’re taking a closer look at 808 Broadway, also known as the […]

    The Red Herring at 570 Lex

    If the “art deco masterpiece” that is 570 Lexington Avenue no longer stood on the southwest corner of Lexington Avenue and 51st Street, perhaps affordable housing could be constructed in its place. But this “suave fantasy of polished marble and modern metals,” built in 1931 for the Radio Victor Corporation and since known as the […]

    Remembering Lou Reed

    The world mourned the passing of Lou Reed this past weekend at the age of 71. Front man of The Velvet Underground, Reed was born in Brooklyn and raised on Long Island, and came to epitomize the raw New York City experience of the 1960s and 1970s. As with many of the great artists of […]

    A Decade of Preserving Historic Houses of Worship

    With next Tuesday’s hearing on the possible landmark designation of the Tifereth Israel Town & Village Synagogue on East 14th Street — the nearly 150 year old former German Baptist and Ukrainian Orthodox Church which has been under consideration for landmark designation for almost fifty years — we thought we’d take a look at some […]

    The Anti-Chain Gang

    Here in the world of preserving worthy buildings, there’s a question that often comes up. “Preserving buildings is well and good,” people say. “But what about preserving the personalities and pursuits that occupy those buildings?” That’s the next frontier. For the most part, meatpackers are mostly gone from the Meatpacking District, few struggling artists still […]

    Community Cornerstones: The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation

    Tucked away on an unassuming block on LaGuardia Place is the former studio and home of sculptor Chaim Gross and his wife Renee. Gross, whose art can be found in the permanent collections of such institutions as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art, worked and lived in the Village for […]

    Tower of Music

    The Carl Fischer Music building dominated the skyline of Astor Place and Cooper Square for many decades.  This 12-story building with its iconic sign along the north face is located across the street from Cooper Union and within the NoHo Historic District. For over seventy-five years it housed the printery and a retail store for […]

    October 17, 1967 – “Sylvette” gets the go-ahead

    On October 17, 1967, Pablo Picasso wrote in a letter that he agreed to allow his colleague, Norwegian artist Carl Nesjar, to reproduce a large-scale sculpture of “Bust of Sylvette” for the University Village/Silver Towers complex, which GVSHP later proposed and successfully fought to have landmarked.  The sculpture is one of only two public outdoor […]

    Ten Years of Progress on Landmark and Zoning Protections — And the Road Ahead

    GVSHP is proud to share it’s new report “Ten Years – A Thousand Buildings – One Hundred Blocks:  A Decade of Progress on Landmark and Zoning Protections in the Village, East Village, and NoHo.” As we come to the end of the Bloomberg era, this meticulously detailed and richly photographed report examines what GVSHP has […]

    October 11, 2005: City Approves Far West Village Rezoning

    On October 11, 2005, the Far West Village rezoning plan was unanimously approved and adopted. Village Preservation had led the fight for this plan to protect a vulnerable part of the Village. Here’s the story: In early 2004, following our successful efforts to landmark the Meatpacking District, Village Preservation and allied community groups kicked off […]

    One Year in the Life of the East Village/LES Historic District

    On this day one year ago, the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission officially designated the East Village/LES Historic District. Encompassing 325 buildings and 15 blocks, centering along Second Avenue and stretching between East 2nd Street and St. Mark’s Place, it is by far the largest historic district designation in the neighborhood, and encompasses much of the […]

    Happy Birthday, John Lennon!

    You don’t have to live in the Village to celebrate the birthday of John Lennon, who was born on October 9th, 1940. But Villagers, and those who love the Village, have a special reason to celebrate the birth of one of the greatest and most transcendent popular musicians of the late 20th century.

    Celebrate Good Times … At Webster Hall

    On Wednesday, GVSHP will be celebrating the 14th Birthday of the Neighborhood Preservation Center, the building where we have made our headquarters for the last fourteen years. The celebration – tickets are still available – is a benefit for the center, which serves as a resource center that offers space and shares information to facilitate […]

    Breakfast at Tiffany’s and the Village

    Breakfast at Tiffany’s, one of the defining movies of the 1960’s, and defining movies about New York, was released on October 5, 1961.  Long skinny black dresses were never the same again. It’s often understandably assumed that Holly Golightly and Paul Varjack lived in the Village, as the cast of unconventional characters which populated their […]

    An East Village Survivor

    It’s been just under four years since the Landmarks Preservation Commission designated as an individual landmark the 1838 Isaac T. Hopper House at 110 Second Avenue in the East Village. GVSHP had strongly supported this individual designation – which happened on October 13th, 2009 — and had given the former Hopper House an annual “Village […]

    R.I.P. Charlie Zito

    On October 1, 1998, Charlie Zito passed away after years of baking bread on Bleecker Street, in the heart of the South Village. There is nothing like the aroma of fresh-baked bread, and when Zito’s Bakery was making bread, I remember that aroma on Bleecker Street – because sometimes it would stop me in my […]

    Where Have You Gone, Fugazy Theatre?

    Last month we featured the drawings of Anthony F. Dumas, a man who was responsible for illustrating countless theaters across the world. One of the beauties of his drawings is uncovering theaters that have been lost for decades, some for well over half a century. That’s exactly how we found the Fugazy Theatre. But just […]

    The Village Voice Past and Present

    Last week’s announcement in The Villager confirming The Village Voice’s move from its offices in Cooper Square got us thinking about the history of the storied Village newspaper. The Voice, which began in 1955 in a tiny space in Sheridan Square, had been located in Cooper Square since 1991. Its office is now located downtown […]

    Bibles Off Broadway

    With the recent news that things are finally beginning to move with the city’s redevelopment of Astor Place, including pedestrianizing sections of Astor Place between Lafayette Street and Cooper Square and surrounding Tony Rosenthal’s Alamo cube sculpture with a plaza, we thought we’d take a look at the site of other big recent change to the […]

    Back to School! GVSHP’s Children’s Education Program

    September means back-to-school time for a lot of New Yorkers, and GVSHP is no exception. As a non-profit organization, part of our mission is to teach children about history and architecture through our Children’s Education program, using Greenwich Village as a model.  This 3-part program is available to all elementary schools throughout the five boroughs. […]

    The Voice Leaves the Village

    The Villager reported today that the Village Voice has vacated its office at 36 Cooper Square and decamped 80 Maiden Lane far downtown. The Voice, a longtime fixture in our neighborhood, was founded in Greenwich Village in 1955, set up shop in Sheridan Square by the 1960s, and moved to its recent location on Cooper […]

    Matthew Del Gaudio, architect of Our Lady of Pompeii Church

    Eminent architect Matthew W. Del Gaudio died on September 17, 1960. One of his most well-known buildings is right here in the heart of the South Village, Our Lady of Pompeii Church, which stands on the corner of Bleecker and Carmine Streets. The building that stands today was constructed in the years 1926 – 1928, […]

    440 West 14th Street: Then & Now

    Near the southern end of the High Line, the Meatpacking District bustles with designer clothing stores, outdoor cafes, and trendy hotels. Tourists in particular flock to this area, and it can often be a source of amusement to watch club-goers navigate the bumpy Belgian block (aka cobblestone) streets in their fashionable stilettos. Many New Yorkers, […]

    The Fate of the Lusitania

    On September 13, 1907, the RMS Lusitania docked at Pier 54 on the Greenwich Village waterfront following its maiden transatlantic voyage. Pier 54, located at West 13th Streets, was the New York home for Cunard Line, a British shipping company.  The Lusitania docked safely that day, but eight years later the ship was sunk by a German U-boat […]

    Building (693) Broadway: The Wise Old Owl

    For today’s “Building Broadway” post we thought we’d do things a little differently. With Broadway being such a busy thoroughfare, it’s not uncommon to find lots of great details on its historic loft buildings aimed to catch your attention or to tell you a little something about its past. But sometimes, when we have shopping […]

    My Personal Remembrance of 9/11

    For a few days after the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, life in Greenwich Village was far from normal. I remember having to walk north of 14th Street just to get a newspaper and basic supplies from a convenience store. There was no traffic allowed below 14th Street, so there were no deliveries to […]

    Before the Election

    As you should now be aware, today is primary election day in New York City. The polls close at 9:00 P.M. tonight, so if you haven’t already, check the location of your polling place and go out and vote. As many of the primary races around the city feature people who have worked in their […]

    Happy Anniversary, Gansevoort Market Historic District!

    On September 9, 2003, the Gansevoort Market Historic District was officially designated by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.  The designation not only culminated a three-year effort to protect the increasingly endangered Meatpacking District from the very real prospect of mass demolitions and oversized new development (such as the Hotel Gansevoort, which preceded the […]

    Bleecker Street Cinema Closed

    It was a sad day for cinephiles on September 6, 1990 when the Bleecker Street Cinema closed.  The beloved movie house was another casualty of the trends that had led to the demise of similar smaller cinemas – the ones that showed older classic films and lesser-known independent and foreign films. There was enormous pressure […]

    Behind the Seams of the Butterick Building

    Do you have childhood memories of your mom sewing your clothes? Or have you ever come across your grandmother’s old sewing machine and huge stash of patterns and fabrics? If you know someone who sews, ask them if they know the name “Butterick” and they will very likely say yes. That’s because 150 years ago […]

    Happy Birthday Malcolm Gladwell

    Journalist, author, and Greenwich Village resident Malcolm Gladwell turns fifty today. Happy Birthday, Mr. Gladwell. Like many authors who have chosen to make the Village their home, Gladwell is originally from elsewhere. Born in Great Britain, Gladwell grew up in Ontario, Canada before moving to the United Stated. He lived in Indiana and Washington D.C. […]

      Last Splash of Summer

      I used to hear from people who said that they hated being in New York City in the summer, and would escape on the weekends to the Hamptons, upstate New York, the Poconos, etc. To me, sitting in traffic every Friday and Sunday, or dealing with peak-fare crowed trains, is not how I want to […]

      Greenwich House: a settlement house past and present

      Founded 111 years ago by reformer Mary Kingsbury Simkhovitch, Greenwich House began as a place to help improve the lives of the expanding immigrant populations in the neighborhood. While times have changed, Greenwich House continues to serve seniors, children, and families with services such as arts education, after-school programs, substance abuse programs, and social and […]

      The Hare Krishna Tree

      In the past Off the Grid has taken a look at some of the architecture surrounding Tompkins Square Park, including St. Brigid’s Church, the Tompkins Square Lodging House for Boys, the Charlie Parker House, and the Tompkins Square Branch of the New York Public Library. Today we thought we would take a look inside the […]

      Happy Birthday Electric Lady Studios…

      …what a long, strange trip it’s been. On August 26th, 1970, an electric lady was introduced to the rock and roll scene on 8th Street in Greenwich Village.  Ushered in by none other than Jimi Hendrix, Electric Lady Studios at 52 West 8th Street was built to provide Hendrix with affordable studio space that would […]

      The Artist: Anthony F. Dumas and His Theater Drawings

      An amazing resource that we have featured here and there on Off the Grid is the theater drawings of Anthony F. Dumas. From the Jewish Rialto along lower Second Avenue to the little gems hidden in the nooks and crannies of the Village’s quirky streets, Dumas seemingly covered it all. And while many of these […]

        Edward Hopper and the Village

        Last week the Whitney Museum  revealed its 3D cut-out recreation of the noted Edward Hooper painting Nighthawks in the prow of the Flatiron Building. The ‘pop-up’ project highlights the museum’s ongoing exhibition Hopper Drawing, which examines the drawings and creative process of the Greenwich Village-based artist. Hopper moved to New York in 1899, and after […]

          Bleecker Bob’s

          On Monday, September 16th, GVSHP and our co-sponsor The New School for Public Engagement will present a screening of the documentary film, “For the Records” by Emily Judem and Hazel Sheffield.  The subject of the film is the record store Bleecker Bob’s which closed last April after 45 years of doing business in Greenwich Village, […]

          Lost Theaters Of The East Village: Loew’s Avenue B

          In the early 1900s, the East Village was teeming with theaters and movie houses.  Second Avenue was the Yiddish Rialto, or Theater district, lined with venues showcasing theater performed, written, and directed by Jewish New Yorkers, often in Yiddish. Vaudeville pioneer B.F. Keith (the ‘K’ in RKO theaters, and eventually films) opened his first theater […]

          South Village: Local Landmark Designation vs. National Register Listing

          Last week GVSHP took an important step in documenting the South Village for its listing on the National Register of Historic places by photographing a selection of sites to be included in the nomination report.  This nomination, written by architectural historian Andrew Dolkart, will soon be sent to the State Office for Historic Preservation to […]

          Op-Ed: Preservation Can Help Affordability

          As seen in:     Don’t Believe REBNY’s Hype; Landmarking Can Help Affordability Read the full article in The Villager or Gotham Gazette     BY ANDREW BERMAN  |  In July, the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) went on a media blitz, touting their latest report blasting landmark preservation in New York City. […]

          Building (809) Broadway: Keep on Manufacturing

          Our Building Broadway series provides a glimpse into the manufacturing past of Broadway’s historic loft buildings. From Houston to 14th Streets, read more posts in this series by clicking here! Located between 11th and 12th Streets, 809 Broadway has been in the news recently with the announcement that Blatt Billards is leaving this location for […]

          John Sloan’s Village

          Today marks the birthday of great Greenwich Village artist and chronicler of everyday life in Lower Manhattan John Sloan, born August 2, 1871. Sloan worked as an painter and illustrator, first in Pennsylvania, and then most notably in New York at the turn of the twentieth century. His work is now highly regarded, and he is considered […]

          James Baldwin, born August 2, 1924

          This past Monday evening, many of us gathered on MacDougal Street near Bleecker for the unveiling of a bronze plaque honoring the San Remo Café. The San Remo Café operated in this corner location for many years and was a home of sorts for so many of Greenwich Village’s most creative people. One of those […]

          This Day in Preservation History: Save Gansevoort Market Founded

          On August 1, 2000, the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation convened the first meeting of the Save Gansevoort Market Task Force.  This project of GVSHP eventually led to landmark designation for most of the Meatpacking District, State and National Register of Historic Places designation for the entire neighborhood, and two successful campaigns to prevent […]

          The South Village and Prohibition

          On July 31, 1923, the New York Times featured an article about an injunction against seven places of business located in the South Village that served alcohol against the strictures of the Volstead Act, or Prohibition. The article refers to “anti-Bohemian” sentiment by neighbors resulting in tip-offs to the authorities about the  speakeasies. As GVSHP […]

          Building (620) Broadway: A Colonette Confection

          Building Broadway is a new series from Off the Grid that highlights the beautiful historic loft buildings that line Broadway between Houston and 14th Streets. These posts cover only bits and pieces of the histories of these buildings; learn how to become your very own building sleuth with our guide to researching the Village! Kicking […]

          Another Summer in the City

          On Monday, July 29th, GVSHP, along with our friends at Two Boots, unveils our latest historic plaque, this one commemorating the San Remo Café, which was a favorite Village hangout for writers, musicians and other artists from the 1940’s to around 1970.  Regulars included Allen Ginsberg, Dylan Thomas, Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs, Miles Davis, […]

          Wood-frame houses in the Village

          This evening, our friends at the The Wooden House Project, a blog that explores Brooklyn’s wood-frame houses, will be conducting a walking tour of some interesting wooden houses in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn. I’ll be taking the tour tonight, but thought I would take this opportunity to get in the right frame of mind […]

          The East Village is Alive .. With the Sound of Music

          Last week Off the Grid featured a story about the 55th Annual Washington Square Music Festival, which presents free concerts in Washington Square Park on Tuesday evenings in July. This week, we thought we would venture East, where the Third Street Music School has been featuring free Thursday afternoon concerts since 1981. Music in Abe […]

          A Tower of Light

          As everyone keeps their fingers crossed that Con Edison can keep the power flowing during this week’s heat wave, we thought we’d take a look at the history of its monumental headquarters building on Irving Place. Though situated on the north side of 14th Street, the tower of the Consolidated Edison Building looms over the […]

            Who Wants Pizza? A Salute to Joe’s.

            Now that I have your attention, what I have to say isn’t just about pizza. It’s about what we already know: Greenwich Village is a really special place. Why would you ever want to leave? Imagine if you had a successful business in New York City – any neighborhood in New York City – and […]

            Smorgasbord of Landmark Applications Tomorrow Run The Gamut

            It may be the dog days of summer, but tomorrow the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) will hear nine applications for changes to landmarked properties in our neighborhoods, ranging from the Meatpacking District to the South Village and NoHo, and from minor changes to dramatic proposed makeovers. You can find information about the extent of these […]

            The Tompkins Square Lodging House for Boys

            On the corner of Avenue B and East 8th Street sits the striking former Tompkins Square Lodging House for Boys and Industrial School, which opened on April 21, 1887, and was designated an individual New York City landmark on May 16, 2000, one of dozens of individual landmarks in the East Village (see a list […]

            Pride Week 2013 wrap-up

            On the last Sunday of June, since 1970, the New York City LGBT community has celebrated the last day of Pride Week with a march (NOT a parade) that ends its route where the gay-rights movement began, Greenwich Village. By now everyone knows the story of the 1969 Stonewall Riots that happened on Christopher Street […]

            The Village Vanguard is Singin’ in the Rain

            On this particularly rainy Monday, an image of Gene Kelly singin’ and dancin’ in the rain sure does come to mind. Lo and behold, an exciting discovery was made: the writers of the classic 1952 movie musical Singin’ in the Rain (and countless other Broadway shows and Hollywood musicals) got their big break at the […]

              Jefferson Market Garden

              On Monday evening I attended the Jefferson Market Garden Friends’ Annual Garden Party. If you are already familiar with the Jefferson Market Garden (a 1991 Village Award winner), there’s no need for me to tell you what a wonderful place this is. If you are not, then allow me to tell you a story about […]

              Hearing on ‘Phase II’ of the South Village Historic District

              Yesterday the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) held its only public hearing on “phase II” of GVSHP’s proposed South Village Historic District. There was a great turnout in support of landmarking the district and we thank everyone who came to testify, sent letters to the commission, and otherwise voiced their support. You can read GVSHP’s testimony […]

              NoHo East Historic District Turned 10 Yesterday!

              Today, the Landmarks Preservation Commission will be holding a public hearing on the proposed South Village  Historic District. Yesterday, the NoHo East Historic District turned ten years old! Yes, on June 24, 2003, the area that encompasses parts of Bleecker, Mott, and Elizabeth Streets and the Bowery was officially given local landmark protections (see map […]

              PFLAG Historic Plaque Unveiling On A Beautiful Day

              Yesterday the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), and The Church of the Village unveiled a bronze historic marker now permanently affixed to the facade of this landmark church memorializing the first meeting of what came to be PFLAG, led by Jeanne Manford, at the church […]

              A South Village Anniversary

              We’re gearing up for the Landmarks Preservation (LPC) hearing about “Phase II” of the proposed South Village Historic District next Tuesday, June 25. We hope you can join us at the LPC at 1 Centre Street, 9th floor, and testify in favor of designating this and the rest proposed South Village Historic District. You can […]

              What’s Happening at 688 Broadway?

              Lately we’ve been receiving emails asking about what’s happening at 688 Broadway in NoHo, which is located on the east side of the street between East 4th and Great Jones Streets. The site is currently an outdoor market, but its vendors don’t have long before the market will close. What will go there in its […]

              Landmarks Preservation Commission Celebrates Gay Pride, Doesn’t Designate Gay Landmarks

              The Landmarks Preservation Commission has recently begun creating on-line slide shows to showcase various history months as represented by some of the city’s roughly 31,000 landmarked properties.  In March, they highlighted Women’s History Month, and in February, Black History Month. Now for the first time, the LPC has also created a “Gay Pride Month” slide […]