September 10, 2017
Jamie Rogers
Board Chair
Manhattan Community Board No.3
59 East 4th Street
New York, NY 10003
Dear Mr. Rogers:
For years the East Village / Lower East Side has witnessed an accelerating loss of the low scale historic buildings, mom-and-pop stores, and affordable apartments that have always been a large part of its heart and soul. Recently we saw yet another example of this with the demolition of the wonderfully ornate historic residential buildings at 112-120 East 11th Street, which are now in the process of being replaced by a 12 story hotel. This is not the type of construction intended to benefit the community.
The mayor’s recent proposal for a tech hub along Third and Fourth Avenues and East 14th Street threatens to further intensify this trend by putting even more development pressure on our community.
I’m writing on behalf of Lower East Side Preservation Initiative (LESPI) to support Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation’s proposal to rezone Third and Fourth Avenues from C6-2A to C1-7A. This will help retain the neighborhood’s residential character, maintain our stock of affordable housing, and prevent the out-of-scale commercial development that will diminish the East Village / Lower East Side’s special character.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Richard D. Moses
President
cc: MyPhuong Chung, Manhattan Community Board No.3
Susan Stetzer, Manhattan Community Board No.3 sstetzer@cb3manhattan.org
