Resolutions: October 2007

WHEREAS, Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church , located at 7 West 55th Street is requesting a street activity permit to hold a reception for congregation, on November 11th 2007 between the hours of 8am and 2pm; and

WHEREAS, The applicant has already held similar events on different dates for the past 45 years with no negative impact to the community; and

WHEREAS, The applicant will set up tables on the sidewalk and will place barricades at the curb but does not request the street to be closed to traffic; and

WHEREAS, The event is entirely free and open to the public, and the applicant will offer complimentary coffee and cookies to members of the congregation as well as to visitors; and

WHEREAS, The applicant will not use any sound equipment; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommendsapproval for the street activity permit in front of 7 West 55th Street between the hours of 8am and 2pm.

The above resolution recommending approval by a vote of 16 in favor; 12 opposed; 1 abstaining.

 WHEREAS, the restaurant Japonais DBA Geisha NYC, located at 111 East 18th Street, between Park Avenue South & Irving Place is requesting a consent to reduce the length of the steps for the restaurant main entrance by 2’6’’, and

WHEREAS, the change is made to allow access to Con Ed equipment below grate, and

WHEREAS, the proposed change will not change the egress and will have no adverse impact on the property and the community, therefore be it

RESOLVED that CB5 recommends approval of the application to reduce the length of the steps at Japonais, located 111 East 18th Street.

The above resolution passed by a vote of 29 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstaining.

WHEREAS, Cosmos Spa located at 11 West 36 Street, is applying for a BSA special permit to legalize a physical culture establishment on the second floor at 11 West 36th Street; and

WHEREAS, The spa will offer therapeutic massage, nail and facial treatments; and

WHEREAS, The spa will employ only licensed massage therapists; and

WHEREAS, The spa will operate everyday between 10am and 10pm, and will have discreet signage in keeping with the character of the neighborhood; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends approval of the BSA special permit to legalize an operation of physical culture establishment at 11 West 36th Street.

The above resolution by a vote of 27 in favor; 0 opposed; 2 abstaining.

WHEREAS, the application is for the legalization of the BSA special permit for physical culture establishment for Bliss, located at 12 West 57th Street; and

WHEREAS, The applicant Bliss is a reputable massage and spa establishment that used to operate a similar facility on East 57th street; and

WHEREAS, The applicant has relocated its mid-town operation to another building and is requesting a BSA special permit for this new location; and

WHEREAS, The establishment will offer body treatments and beauty services, including massage, facials, manicures and waxing; and

WHEREAS, The neighborhood will not be negatively impacted by the establishment; therefore be it,

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends approval for a legalization of a BSA special permit to operate a PCE at 12 West 57th Street.

The above resolution by a vote of 27 in favor; 0 opposed; 2 abstaining.

WHEREAS, The application is for an extension of term of a previously granted special permit for physical culture establishment, and

WHEREAS, Osaka Health Spa, located at 37 West 46th Street has been operating for the past 10 years as a physical culture establishment specializing in shiatsu massage, and

WHEREAS, Under the extension of term, there will be no change in the method of operation, therefore be it,

RESLOVED, That Community Board Five recommends approval for an extension of term of a BSA special permit for PCE for Osaka Health Spa, located at 37 West 46th Street.

The above resolution by a vote of 27 in favor; 0 opposed; 2 abstaining.

WHEREAS, The application is for a permit for an unenclosed sidewalk café for The Black Duck Restaurant, located at 120 East 28th Street, between Park Avenue South and Lexington Avenue, and

WHEREAS, At this location, the sidewalk is 15 feet wide, and

WHEREAS, The  café would have a maximum of 5 tables and 10 chairs, and would occupy an area no wider that 7 feet, including a pathway to serve tables, and any planters, or fences that the applicant may want to install, leaving an 8 feet clear path for adequate pedestrian traffic, and

WHEREAS, The hours of operation would be from 8am to midnight from Sunday to Thursday and 8am to 1am on Saturdays and Sundays, therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends approval of the unenclosed sidewalk café for The Black Duck, located at 120 East 28th Street.

The above resolution recommending approval with a vote of 22 in favor, 4 opposed, 6 abstentions.

WHEREAS, 3 East 17th Street is located on the north side of 17th Street between Fifth Avenue and Broadway in the Ladies’ Mile Historic District; and

WHEREAS, The building was constructed in 1904 as a nine-story building and the top seven floors were demolished around 1941; and

WHEREAS, The present two-story building has a retail tenant for the ground floor and has a single residence on the second floor; and

WHEREAS, The applicant has been unable to locate a photograph showing the original storefront; and

WHEREAS, The existing storefront of black anodized aluminum was approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1998; and

WHEREAS, The existing entrances to the retail space and the residential space are located side-by-side at the eastern-most portion of the storefront and are recessed from the street wall; and

WHEREAS, The proposed storefront would include a fixed awning made of deep purple fabric with the name of the retail tenant on the skirt; and

WHEREAS, The proposed storefront would be constructed of clear anodized aluminum and clear glass, extending to the full height of the top of the awning, with a perforated aluminum grill on the lower portion of the storefront and with acrylic and steel handles; and

WHEREAS, The proposed storefront would relocate the retail space entrance to the center of the retail space, with such entrance recessed from the street wall, resulting in jigsawed storefront with separate indentations from the street wall for the retail and residential entrances; and

WHEREAS, The applicant has represented to Community Board Five that at this time there will be no security gate installed, no signage on either the slope of the awning or on the building façade and incandescent lighting will be used on displays behind the glass of the storefront; and

WHEREAS, The materials and configuration of the proposed storefront do not serve the architecture of the building and are not appropriate for the Ladies’ Mile; and

WHEREAS, Community Board Five believes the building would benefit from a less jagged and less conspicuous façade constructed of more traditional materials; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends denial of the application to replace the storefront at 3 East 17th Street.

The above resolution recommending denial by a vote of 31 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstention.

WHEREAS, The application is for a Certificate of Appropriateness to restore the ground floor storefront for 25 East 21st Street in the Ladies' Mile Historic District in connection with a 74-711 Zoning Change; and

WHEREAS, The applicant is also applying for a Certificate of No Affect to replace non-historic ground floor doors and light fixtures, clean, repair, repoint and restore masonry and trim on the facade, restore sash and masonry window openings at the side facade, adopt rear and side window master plan; and

WHEREAS, The applicant will adopt a Landmarks Maintenance Plan satisfactory to LPC; and

WHEREAS, The applicant is not increasing the building bulk; and

WHEREAS, The building has been altered and modified many times in the past and the proposed restoration work is deemed to have minimal affect on the landmarked property; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends approval of the requested Certificate of Appropriateness and Certificate of No Affect.

The above resolution recommending approval by a vote of 30 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstention.

WHEREAS, 136 Fifth Avenue is a remnant of a four-story row house in the Ladies’ Mile Historic District built in 1850, altered in 1982, converted for commercial use from 1900 to 1950 and altered to its current form in 2006; and

WHEREAS, The top two stories of the building were destroyed by fire in 1960 and the lower remaining stories are now occupied by White House Black Market, a retail store; and

WHEREAS, The applicant, White House Black Market, came to CB5 in July 2006 for approval of the existing façade; and

WHEREAS, The applicant, White House Black Market, is now seeking permission to install an illuminated sign on the façade; and

WHEREAS, The proposed sign would be 19 inches high and would be illuminated with LED; and

WHEREAS, The Landmarks rules established in 2002 stipulates that bracket signs illuminated with LED lighting is not appropriate for the Ladies Mile Historic District; and

WHEREAS, The Landmark rule stipulates that the bracket sign rule encompasses signage in Chapter 2, section 20, paragraph b : “ In addition, a bracket sign may consist solely of an outline of a shape and/or letters intended to act as a symbol or sign for the establishment; and

WHEREAS, The sign itself is deemed too large and not in keeping with the historic fabric of the neighborhood; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends denial of the application to install an illuminated sign, White House Black Market, on the facade at 136 Fifth Avenue, in the Ladies Mile historic district.

The above resolution recommending denial by a vote of 31 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstention.

WHEREAS, The application is to replace windows at 174-176 Fifth Avenue, in the Ladies Mile Historic District; and

WHEREAS, The building  is a six story early 20th century commercial store and loft building located between West 22nd & West 23rd Streets (West Side), built in 1927-28 for the Connell Holding Company; and

WHEREAS, The existing windows are wood-framed single-pane sash in a tripartite format with wood mullions known as “Chicago style windows”; and

WHEREAS, the central pane windows pivot around a vertical axis in a mechanism that is typical of commercial loft buildings of early 20th century in the Ladies Mile Historic District; and

WHEREAS, The applicant proposes to relocate the air conditioning units in a continuous pattern and to replace the windows with non pivoting aluminum windows; and

WHEREAS, The loss of wood windows with a pivoting mechanism would be a great loss to the historic fabric of the Ladies Mile Historic District; therefore be it

RESOLVED that Community Board Five recommends denial of the application to replace wood windows with non-pivoting aluminum windows at 174 Fifth Avenue in the Ladies Mile Historic District.

The above resolution recommending denial by a vote of 22 in favor; 10 opposed; 1 abstention.

WHEREAS, The I. Miller Shoe Building, 1552 Broadway (actually on Seventh Avenue, but having a Broadway address) and West 46th Street in Manhattan, is an individual Landmark built in 1929, designed by A. Stirling Calder, father of the artist Alexander Calder (known for his mobiles), and has four large statues on its West 46th Street facade depicting Great Ladies of the Theater (Mary Pickford, Rosa Ponselle, Ethel Barrymore and Marilyn Miller); and

WHEREAS, The owner of the building is proposing to  restore the facade of the landmark, including the restoration of  the 46th Street storefront, which is in great need of repair; and

WHEREAS, The owner is also applying for approval of additional signage for the building, including a new, large sign to be placed above the West 46th Street facade; and

WHEREAS, The owner is to be commended for the restoration and repair of the facade, but Community Board Five considers the proposed West 46th Street signage overwhelming, inappropriate and a detraction from the landmarked building; therefore be it,

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends denial of the application for approval of the additional signage although any restoration work approved by LPC would be welcomed.

The above resolution recommending denial by a vote of 27 in favor; 4 opposed; 1 abstention.

WHEREAS, PlaNYC 2030 has a goal of planting 15,000 street trees per year and one million trees citywide by 2017 including reforestation of 2,000 acres of parkland; and

WHEREAS, As part of the PlaNYC 2030 effort the City Planning Commission is proposing zoning text amendments to require under certain triggering events that one tree be planted for every 25 feet of street frontage with a minimum of one per street if the street frontage is less than 25 feet; and

WHEREAS, In higher density residential (R6+), commercial and manufacturing districts street trees would be planted in tree pits and boxes with existing trees counting toward the requirement and in lower density residential districts (R1-R5) trees would be planted in planting strips; and

WHEREAS, The trigger for the street tree requirement would be any new development, enlargement of an existing development by more than 20% or changes of use which increase the development by 20%.  An exception would be granted for Use Group 16 (automotive and semi-industrial) and an exemption provided to Use Groups 17 and 18 (light and heavy industrial uses); and

WHEREAS, When planting may be unfeasible due to site constraints such as proximity to infrastructure such as utility vaults or landmark issues offsite tree planting within the community district or one half mile from the site is allowed; and

WHEREAS, The trees will be maintained by the Department of Parks and Recreation and all tree pits and boxes will meet with the sidewalk requirements of the Department of Transportation; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five supports Zoning Text Amendments N080078ZRY and N080081ZRY to require a street tree for every 25 feet of street frontage and encourages adoption of these amendments.

The above resolution recommending approval by a vote of 32 in favor, 0 opposed, 1 abstention.

WHEREAS, Bryant Park Corporation came to Community Board Five to present its program and event plans for the October '07' through August 08 season, and

WHEREAS, The events presented consisted of a reasoned balance of public, private, corporate, large and small scale events, and includes the skating rink, the carrousel, the reading room, and the Good Morning America series (see attached programming schedule); and

WHEREAS, Bryant Park Corporation made every effort to inform the board of its plans in extensive detail; and

WHEREAS, Bryant Park Corporation has agreed to return to the Parks Committee and Community Board 5 and present any additional events to be schedules at the Park; and

WHEREAS, Bryant Park Conservancy demonstrated good faith in attempting to accommodate the expressed concerns of Community Board Five pertaining to the scale, scope, and character especially pertaining to the balance of public versus private events, and therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends approval of the Bryant Park Conservancy's proposed '07-'08 Season Calendar of Events.

WHEREAS, A proposal has been received from Conservation Services Group, on behalf of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), to hold a Consumer Education and Press Event in conjunction with the ENERGY STAR Change a Light Bus Tour on the north plaza of Union Square Park; and

WHEREAS, The event will be held October 23, 2007, from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm, with set up starting at 6:00 am and clean up ending by 10:00 pm; and

WHEREAS, The event will mark the last day of the national ENERGY STAR Change a Light Bus Tour; and

WHEREAS, The event will feature the ENERGY STAR Change a Light Bus, an interactive education center designed to demonstrate how important our lighting choices are as a first step toward saving energy and helping to fight global climate change; and

WHEREAS, Visitors will be invited to commit to change at least one light at home via the ENERGY STAR Change a Light Pledge; and

WHEREAS, The event will include a press event to report the results of NYSERDA's 10K Day pledge drive, a public commitment to collect 10,000 ENERGY STAR Change a Light pledges statewide; and

WHEREAS, ENERGY STAR is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy; and

WHEREAS, The event will be free of charge and no merchandise will be sold; and

WHEREAS, The applicant is considering giving away ENERGY STAR qualified light bulbs during the event; and

WHEREAS, The applicant has arranged for on-site security and clean up; and

WHEREAS, All appropriate sound permits will be obtained from the Police Department; and

WHEREAS, Community Board Five applauds the appropriateness of use of the Green Market space on the north plaza for an event to encourage energy conservation; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five whole-heartedly recommends approval of the application by Conservation Services Group, on behalf of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, to hold a Consumer Education and Press Event in conjunction with the ENERGY STAR Change a Light Bus Tour on the north plaza of Union Square Park on the north plaza of Union Square Park on October 23, 2007, from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm.

WHEREAS, The Epoch Times, a for profit publication, has submitted an application seeking permission from the City of New York Department of Parks & Recreation, in order to conduct an event in the South Plaza of Union Square Park; and

WHEREAS, The applicant refused to move the event to the North Plaza; and

WHEREAS, The proposed event known as the Tour to the East, is to occur on Sunday October 28, 2007, with set-up time beginning at 8:00 AM, clean-up time to be completed at 8:00 PM, and will include live song and dance performances beginning at 12:30 PM ending at 5:00 PM; and

WHEREAS, The event is free of charge to spectators and participants, however, the applicant is benefiting from event sponsorship, which will be prominently displayed on banners; and

WHEREAS, The applicant, a for profit publication, will also be benefiting from significant fees ($2,500. per booth) paid by the proposed 60 vendors selling merchandise at this event; and

WHEREAS, The proposed 60 vendors makes this event too large for the proposed area; and

WHEREAS, The Epoch Times, a for profit publication, has applied over the past year for permits for street fairs and has received approval for one of these events already within CB#5; and

WHEREAS, In our October 1, 2007 Parks Committee meeting scheduled to review this application, Community Board Five was informed that this application was approved; and

WHEREAS, Although Community Board Five is in favor of cultural and educational events, we must acknowledge that these attract a large volume of participants, and that this does negatively impact the grounds of the South Plaza; and

WHEREAS, Community Board Five has repeatedly expressed our concerns against the commercialization of our park spaces; and

WHEREAS, Community Board Five takes its role in the review of applications for parks events seriously, we find it objectionable that this application was approved before we could vote on this; therefore be it

RESOLVED, Community Board Five is opposed to the Tour to the East event being conducted in the South Plaza of Union Square Park on Sunday October 28, 2007.

WHEREAS, The Central Park Conservancy is in the process of restoring the shoreline and landscape at the 72nd Street Lake area and is proposing to replace eight missing cast iron urns that existed historically at Bow Bridge; and

WHEREAS, Historic photographs show the urns in place at the bridge for about 60 years, from the time the bridge was built in 1860 until about 1920; and

WHEREAS, One original urn, now in storage, will be used as a model for the reproductions to be made of cast iron to match the originals at a cost of $100,000; and

WHEREAS, The replacement urns will be well secured to prevent vandalism or theft and they will be used for planting of seasonal flowers; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends approval of the restoration of the eight cast iron urns.

WHEREAS, 5 West 36th Street Restaurant Corp. is applying for an on-premises liquor license for the premises at 11-13 West 32nd Street – 5th Floor; and

WHEREAS, The premises, with 5000 square feet and a total capacity of 110 will be operating from 5:00 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. Saturday – Wednesday, and 5:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. Thursday and Friday as a karaoke bar with eight separate private rooms off the main bar; and

 WHEREAS, There is concern regarding the size of this operation (5000 square feet) that could accommodate a much larger number of patrons; and

WHEREAS, There are two other operations with liquor licenses already in the same building (one is a Karaoke bar) and numerous liquor license establishments on this heavily congested block; and

WHEREAS, The increase of patrons from yet another liquor establishment impacts a changing neighborhood, i.e., a new residential building of approximately 38 floors around the corner on 5th Avenue, between 32nd and 33rd; and

WHEREAS, There are safety concerns since the building (office building) was not intended to accommodate an operation of this nature, i.e., smokers having to leave premises, ability to vacate the premises should there be a fire, etc.); therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends denial of the on-premises liquor license for 5 West 36th Restaurant Corp, located at 11-13 West 32nd Street, for the above stated reasons and concerns.

WHEREAS, Fat 2 Muscle, LLC, d/b/a "The Irish Poets Society," located at 13 East 17th Street has applied for an on-premises liquor license; and

WHEREAS, This establishment will be a restaurant of 2000 square feet, with a capacity of 178 and hours of operation:  Sun – Tues 11:30 a.m. – 2 a.m and Wed – Sat    11:30 a.m. – 4 a.m. and will have only quiet background music; and

WHEREAS, The owners have assured CB5 that they will not be requesting a cabaret license and therefore will have no dancing and will not be operating as a club, and will not operate or request a sidewalk café permit now or in the future; and

WHEREAS, The owners have successfully owned and operated Papillion Bistro & Bar, located at 22 E 54th Street in Manhattan (in CB 5's District); and

WHEREAS, These applicants are aware that this location falls within the Ladies Mile Historic District and understand that no alteration can be made to the exterior (including signage, windows, roof, doors, lighting, etc.) without the approval from the Landmarks Preservation Commission; and

WHEREAS, The applicants agree to incorporate the above conditions into the liquor license application method of operation and will submit to CB5, a copy of the final application to the State Liquor Authority; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends approval of an on-premises liquor license for Fat 2 Muscle, LLC, d/b/a "The Irish Poets Society," located at 13 East 17th Street, with the above conditions as part of the method of operation of the applicants' New York State Liquor Authority Application.

WHEREAS, Sheesan Restaurant 26th, LLC, is applying for a hotel liquor license in the Holiday Inn located at 121-125 West 26th Street; and

WHEREAS, The premises will have a total capacity of 174 within three separate operating areas, ( i.e., waiting area, bar area and restaurant); and

WHEREAS, The square footage of the combined three areas is 1900; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Sam Chang (Sheesan Restaurant 26th, LLC) will operate a hotel bar and restaurant (with room service) as the tenant of MMG Hotel Associates LLC (landlord/Holiday Inn); and

WHEREAS, Sheesan Restaurant 26th, LLC is required to operate a restaurant as a condition to its Franchise Agreement with Holiday Inn, which requires having a restaurant on the premises (mainly for guests of the Holiday Inn); and

WHEREAS, The hours of operation of the bar/restaurant will be from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m (usually closing at midnight); and

WHEREAS, The restaurant area will have no doors or windows that can be left open now or in the future; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Chang, who successfully operates many establishments in the country, in particular the JFK Holiday Inn and JFK Sheraton, has assured CB5 that he will not request a cabaret license and therefore will not be operating as a club and will not operate or request a sidewalk café permit now or in the future: and 

WHEREAS, Mr. Chang agrees to inform CB5 if and when the Franchise Agreement becomes in any way inoperable or is otherwise assigned or transferred, or the terms of the Franchise Agreement change with respect to how the restaurant/bar may operate; and

WHEREAS, The applicant agrees to incorporate the above conditions into the liquor license application method of operation and will submit to CB5, a copy of the final application to the State Liquor Authority; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That Community Board Five recommends approval of the hotel liquor license for Sheesan Restaurant 26th, LLC, located at 125 West 26th Street, with the above conditions as part of the method of operation of the applicant's New York State Liquor Authority Application.

WHEREAS, The Wingate by Wyndham Hotel at 235 West 35th Street has requested a hardship waiver so that a No Standing sign may be placed in front of the hotel; and

WHEREAS, The proposed No Standing zone would be 20 linear feet along the curb; and

WHEREAS, The proposed No Standing zone would allow for safe loading and unloading of hotel guests and their luggage and likely reduce the amount of double parking in the area; and

WHEREAS, The Department of Transportation automatically permits a No Standing zone for a hotel in this area if the hotel has at least 100 rooms; and

WHEREAS, The Wingate by Wyndham Hotel has 96 rooms; and

WHEREAS, The No Standing zone would likely improve traffic conditions in the area; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the Department of Transportation should institute a “No Standing” zone of 20 feet at 235 West 35th Street.

The above resolution recommending approval with a vote of 29 in favor, 0 opposed, 1 abstention.