Park West Policy Forum in the News

Presidential Primary Day April 19, 2016

NY City Lens Reports on the Primary: A Diary

January 2016 Forum: Vision Zero Plans for Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues

Date: Thursday January 28, 2016
Time: 6:30 to 9:00 PM

Place: Red Oak Apartments 135 West 106th Street
between Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues

An Expert Panel drawn from the Upper West Side including transportation professionals, policy analysts, and Community Board Members from CB 9 and CB 12, will discuss this complex and controversial plan.

It is almost certain that everyone has heard or experienced the changes in our neighborhood road network and their design in the last several years. As you also have almost certainly heard there is significant debate about the details of this plan. Unfortunately, the process by which the plans have been developed and implemented have invited more partisan displays than sober policy discussions. We have invited qualified members of the community with opinions representing a variety of positions on the efforts to improve our streets for a thoughtful and open discussion. What is lost in this process has been the realization that our road network is a valuable asset and that any design must optimally exploit that resource for the city, it’s visitors and inhabitants. In this forum we hope to examine the many complicated trade offs between automobile congestion, parking, alternative forms of transit (eg. Bicycles ) and standard forms of mass transit and how a road design can best use our road network.

An independent road study conducted over several months has been completed by the Forum on the congestion and design issues for the super block on Columbus Ave. The study’s results will be presented and discussed. In addition, a preliminary study on Amsterdam Ave. has also been completed and it too will be presented for input and suggestions for further study.

Panelists:
Ethan Kent Senior Vice President Project for Public Spaces	Mark Lydon Director Street Plans Project	Mike Kodronsky International Transit and Development Program
Walter South Community Board 9	Martin Wallace Community Board 9	Richard Lewis Community Board 12	Yahhira Alonso Community Board 12

All Are Welcome.
Our Forums are held on the 4th Wednesday of each month. 
For further information: call 917-338-6415 or email PWPolicyForum@gmail.com

December 2015 Forum

Understanding Mayor DeBlasio’s Up-Zoning Plan

Date: Wednesday December 2, 2015:
Time: 6:30 to 9:00 PM
Place:  Red Oak Apartments 135 West 106th Street between Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues       

An Expert Panel drawn from the Upper West Side will explain this complex plan and answer your questions.

Page Crowley, Co-Chair Land Use Committee, CB7
Richard Lewis, Chair Housing Committee, CB12
Hon. Walter South,  Land Use Committee, CB9
Hon. Brad Taylor, Land Use Committee, CB9
Simon Thorsen, Housing Committee, CB9
Landmark West Representatives

It is almost certain that everyone has heard something about the Mayor’s proposal for the extensive overhaul of the zoning rules and property taxes for the entire City of New York.  As you also have almost certainly heard there is significant debate about the details of this plan.  Unfortunately, it is difficult for even the most sophisticated New Yorkers to follow the debate because of the complexities of our real estate market.  On one side it is said that the goal is to increase the supply of housing that includes the mandatory inclusion of affordable housing to provide for an economically integrated city.  Other voices point out that the plan will increase density but at the expense of affordable units.  Fortunately, we have a resource to help us understand this complex issue, our Community Board members with decades of experience on this topic.  Members of 3 west side boards will join us to share their insights into and assessments of the proposal.  This panel has over a century of combined experience in zoning and housing.

For further information: call 917-338-6415 or email PWPolicyForum@gmail.com

NYC Architects

Stories about notable NYC Architects past and present that have shaped our city.

Stanford White
Treasures of New York: Stanford White

Cass Gilbert

Rafael Guastavino

Palaces for the People: The Soaring Vaults of Guastavino on Exhibit at Museum of City of New York

Costas Kondylis
Treasures of New York: Building Stories
NY Times: Costas Kondylis

Philip Johnson

Trump Tries to Convert 50's Style Into 90's Gold; Makeover Starts on Columbus Circle Hotel

Rafael Vinoli

Rafael Viñoly on 432 Park Avenue in New York

 

Robert Stern

Unfashionably Fashionable

NY Times: Robert A.M. Stern

NY Yimby: Robert Stern

 

Skidmore Owings and Merrill

Google: skidmore owings & merrill buildings in nyc

 

Robert Moses
The Legacy of Robert Moses
A Conflicted Portrait of Robert Moses,'The Builder for Democracy'
Robert Moses: Long Island's Master Builder

Commentary on Architecture
42 Star Projects Transforming Architecture in New York City
Too Rich, Too Thin, Too Tall?
Architecture in the Age of Gehry

Development Stories

Video stories about development and construction, see what it takes to build tall:

New York City MegaCities
Amazing Secrets about New York City - Full Documentary
Bridges Of New York City
Treasures of New York: Hearst Tower
Ultimate Skyscraper NYC Megastructures National Geographic Documentary

Super Skyscrapers the Billionaire Building
One World Trade Center • Super Skyscrapers
Super Skyscrapers - The Leadenhall Building, London 2014
Vintage Manhattan Skyline

NYC Subways

NYC subways opened October 27, 1904.  Below are some articles and videos about the NYC subway.  Scheduled to open by  December of 2016, the Second Avenue subway is running into some rough spots and delays. 
 
New York City Subway Opens
 
New York City Subways
 
New York City Transit - History and Chronology
 
Build It Bigger: Rebuilding New York City's Subway
 
16 things you didn’t know about the NYC subway
 
New York Subway 1905

New Subway Line Is Chugging Along

Good and Bad News on Second Avenue Subway

Inside New York City's East Side Access, the biggest transportation project in America

The Launch Box

Baby, Baby, Where Did Our Love (or Second Avenue Subway Money) Go?

Why New York Subway Lines Are Missing Countdown Clocks
 
Google: nyc subway construction projects

NYC Affordable Housing Primer

Get ready for our upcoming meetings.  The following links will give you a broad sense of the issues and what is at stake in the battle for affordable housing.

Zoning for Quality and Affordability

Mandatory Inclusionary Housing                        

City pushing mandatory affordable housing plan

‘Mandatory Inclusionary Zoning’: The Dullest, Most Important Phrase in New York

Is Rent Control Good Policy?

Yes to Housing in Our Backyards

The NY Times Is Wrong On Affordable Housing

Op-Ed: Preservation Can Contribute To Affordability

How NYC Can Solve Its Affordable Housing Crisis 

The U.S. Cities With the Highest Levels of Income Segregation

There is no such thing as a city that has run out of room

Unlocking the Apartment 'Warehouse'

Open the Door to an Inclusive NYC

Lego City

NYCHA 75th Anniversary Special [WPIX]  

Google: mandatory inclusionary zoning