The Alternate Proposal for the Greenwich Village Historic District
Evelyn G. Haynes (1909–2001) was a dedicated preservationist and early member of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. Her family donated a collection of her records to Village Preservation, which are now available on our website. We recently reorganized the second part of her collection. This part includes information on the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District, including an alternate proposal, which would have designated 18 separate districts, rather than one contiguous one, as was done.
This proposal would have excluded significant pieces of the neighborhood. Haynes’ archive includes a number of statements that members of the public gave against this proposal, which thankfully, never happened. When the district was designated in 1969, it was the single larger more comprehensive district.
It is still interesting to look at the proposal for the 18 separate districts, as it sheds light on an overlooked aspect of landmark protections; the regulation of new building construction. Several of the areas not included in the proposal to have 18 separate districts were of less historical significance than their surroundings. Consequently, many of these have since been redeveloped, either replaced with new buildings, or expanded. Since these sites were included in the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District, these plans required permission from the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), typically resulting in something more contextually appropriate. Today we will take a look at some of these sites, using the information from Village Preservation’s report, “New Buildings Proposed for Construction in the Greenwich Village Historic District”.
Sixth Avenue
The proposal to have 18 separate districts omitted several block fronts along Sixth Avenue. This includes the east side of the two blocks along Sixth Avenue from West 4th Street to Waverly Place, both of which have since been redeveloped.
One of these developments is 126 Waverly Place, which occupies the entire block front between Washington Place and Waverly Place. Constructed in 1985, this building replaced a parking lot.
One block South, the corner of Sixth Avenue and Washington Place was redeveloped in 2004. While 88 Washington Place was technically permitted as an alteration, no trace of the pre-existing two-story commercial building remains on the exterior, and thus for all intents and purposes this six-story mixed-use building is a new building. It was designed by SLCE Architects.
Seventh Avenue South
Significant chunks of buildings along Seventh Avenue South were also excluded from the proposal for the 18 separate historic districts.
Since the district’s 1969 designation, several new developments have occurred along Seventh Avenue South. One of them being 115-125 7th Avenue South.
Designed by Gruzen Partnership, 115-125 7th Avenue South was approved by LPC c.1990 and constructed between 1990 and 1994. This building replaced a large one-story building constructed in 1923 and pictured below.
West 11th Street
Several buildings along West 11th Street near Seventh Avenue South were included in the proposal to have 18 separate districts.
When the district was designated in 1969, much of this area was used by St. Vincent’s Hospital. This included 133-141 West 11th Street, which at the time of the district’s designation in 1969, was the site of the Cronin Building, built in 1961 and designed by Eggers and Higgins.
In 2016, the building was demolished and replaced by a row of townhouses designed by FX Fowle.
The row offers a modern interpretation of the classic Greenwich Village rowhouse that would have undoubtably looked different had the Cronin Building not be included in the 1969 Greenwich Village Historic District.