Borough President questions how the DOE can move forward without a review process

Many local residents may be  surprised, as was the Manhattan Borough President, to discover that the Department of Education (DOE) is planning to destroy some local school buildings.

The DOE has plans to completely demolish three schools, on the Upper East Side and the Upper West Side: the School of Technical Co-Op Education on East 96th Street between First and Second Avenues, P.S. 191 on Amsterdam and 61st Street, and P.S. 199 on West 70th Street and West End Avenue.

The redevelopment plan, created by the DOE, along with the New York School Construction Authority and the New York City Educational Construction Fund, has left the public in the dark. Parents, teachers and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer have been up in arms because the DOE has not provided the public with any information on the redesign of these schools. According to Stringer, the DOE owns these parcels of land, so they are not subject to the uniform land use review process, or a public review of the land use. These questions might remain unanswered.

“These agencies should contact the schools and parents immediately and answer their questions,” said Stringer, who sent a letter to the DOE about the issue. “What is their timeline for prospective development? What is the neighborhood impact? What are their plans? We need to have a discussion.”

Stringer said that he is just as much in the dark about the proposal as the school districts themselves. “And I’m the borough president!” he said.“We have to be mindful that major development would increase traffic, impact the character of the neighborhood and add a new population to area that already lacks school seats,” said Stringer.

The borough president said that these schools in particular are experiencing major overcrowding, and that school overpopulation is something that both he and the DOE have been trying to curb. This, he said, is probably why they are looking to redesign the schools. However, he emphasized, that until there is some transparency, they will not know for sure.

Another mystery that parents may be wondering about is why demolish these schools in the first place? In total, the city has spent almost $21,000,000 improving and refurbishing these schools, including exterior repairs for P.S. 191 and capital improvements for P.S. 199 and the School for Cooperative Technical Education.

“We have already contributed major capital dollars to these schools, so why are we investing all of this money to completely rebuild the schools?” said Stringer.

The DOE has yet to respond to Stringer’s letter requesting more information, as well as answers for the community.

Last Sunday, in the early morning, a 48-year-old woman from New Jersey was walking along West End Avenue when a young man approached her from behind, grabbed her and ripped her purse from her shoulder. The perp took off running, but a doorman at a nearby building saw the entire incident and chased him and another teenager who joined him in running. The doorman was able to chase the two thieves, who were 18 and 16 years old, into his building’s courtyard, where they dropped the purse before being apprehended by police and arrested. The woman’s purse, which contained $75 in cash and several credit cards, was returned to her, thanks to the valiant doorman looking out for his neighborhood.

Senior Swindle

As financial crimes and scams are on the rise, checking one’s bank statements often has become more of a necessity than ever before. A 74-year-old Upper West Side resident learned that the hard way when he received a statement from Chase Bank informing him of several suspicious withdrawals. An unknown person had taken a total of $21,896 from the man’s checking and savings accounts in three separate incidents and had apparently used the money to pay Sears and Capitol One credit card bills taken out in the victim’s name, unbeknownst to him.

Cleaning Up Jewelry

A local woman reported to police that she suspected two men whom she had hired to clean her carpets had also absconded with some pricey jewelry. The woman said that the two men from a local carpet cleaning service had come to her home on West 81st Street last Tuesday, and on Wednesday, she discovered she was missing two items that had been in a jewelry box in her bedroom, where one of the men had been working. The victim had an appraisal report for her diamond tennis bracelet, valuing it at $8,387, and a store receipt for her gold crystal necklace, showing she had paid $9,587 for it. Police have not made any arrests yet.

Roomies Scammed

Two people living at the same West End Avenue address filed separate police reports last week to report that they had both been ripped off. Each told police that an unknown person had stolen, forged and cashed two checks from their respective accounts. The man reported that two consecutive checks from his Citibank account for $2,760 and $3,200 were written and cashed at an unknown location without his knowledge. The woman reported that two consecutive checks for $2,600 and $3,225 from her Chase account met the same fate. Police reports did not specify any suspects or say whether the police are looking for one person.

Persistence Doesn’t Pay

Last Friday, a 14-year-old boy was walking from a bus stop toward West 81st Street when two unknown men approached him and asked him for the time. When the boy responded, the men asked to see his phone, and the boy responded that he didn’t have one and kept walking. The men followed him, putting their arms around him in a not-too-friendly way and quietly informing their target that one of them had a gun and another had a knife. When they again demanded the boy’s phone as well as his wallet, the victim was forced to empty his pockets to prove that he did not, in fact, have either and that they had picked the wrong person to rob. The perps finally got the message and left the boy alone.

Michael Bacon on a musical life and playing in the band with his movie star brother

When Michael Bacon isn’t rollerblading in Riverside Park, he can be found in his studio on West End Avenue making music with his brother Kevin. Their band, The Bacon Brothers, is playing a show at City Winery April 25 and 26.

Besides playing music, Michael Bacon writes the scores for documentaries, including an upcoming HBO project on Richard Nixon. He also wrote the music for the feature film Downtown Express, which is coming to New York in mid-April.

You grew up in Philadelphia?
My parents were urban pioneer types. They wanted to raise their kids in the city rather than the suburbs, which most people didn’t really approve of. My dad’s family has a long historical connection to Philly. We actually grew up right in the middle of the city. My mother is from New York City.

When did you know you wanted to be a musician?
I didn’t think, until I went to college, that it was possible—it wasn’t a profession most people went into. Then the late ’60s came and the philosophy was “do your own thing.” I just said, “This is what I like to do, so I’m going to try it.”

Which musicians inspire you?
It’s hard to answer that question because I’m not just a rock ‘n’ roll musician; I’m also classically trained and I love folk music. My favorite musicians might not even be rock bands. I was brought up with The Beatles and The Stones, Gordon Lightfoot, Joni Mitchell, Pete Seeger—but also Stravinsky and Bach. We had a very eclectic upbringing. My parents just loved the arts and they loved music. They never played, but they certainly encouraged any kind of creative expression in the kids.

How did you start working with Kevin?
He played percussion in my band when he was about 14. I was out of college by then and in a group that played around Philadelphia. That group broke up and I was playing by myself with a backup band, and he was in that band. My brother and I used to write a lot together, but since Kevin’s skill level has gone up, he doesn’t really need me. He has his own studio. But the band is a good excuse for us to hang out. We spend a lot more time together than if we didn’t have the band; we’re busy and we have families.

Who are the other members of The Bacon Brothers and how did you find them?
When I first came to New York in the early ’80s and started to score films, I met a group of musicians who did sessions for me. They worked for the folk singer Tom Rush. When I opened for Rush in Philly, I saw them perform and was impressed with the way they backed up an acoustic singer. When Kevin and I decided to put the band together, I immediately thought of them.

What is your educational background?
I never took formal music classes until 13 years ago—I just had lessons and studied privately. Around ’92, I went back to Lehman College in the Bronx. One of the teachers there is John Corigliano, an amazing Academy Award-winning composer. I really went there to study with him and got my degree finally after all those years.

What projects are you involved with currently?
I’m writing the music for an HBO program about Richard Nixon called Nixon: In His Own Words. It’s extremely challenging. They only have interviews, so the music becomes very important in telling the story. It’s all put together with pre-existing footage. They release a certain amount of Nixon tapes every once in a while and there was a just a new batch let out. This is the third one I’ve done. The first one was Teddy Kennedy, then Gloria Steinem. I also have a feature film that I was composer and music director for which is coming to New York City on April 20 called Downtown Express; it tells the love story of a concert violinist at Juilliard and a street musician.

You work with your wife and your brother. What is the key to successfully working with family?
Whatever negatives are outweighed by trust. My brother and I have a business together and my wife is a partner in it as well. You begin with a level of trust and you’re at a much better starting point. My wife Betsy and I have worked together for 18 years. She does all the day-today management of the film scoring and the band, and is also the prime critic of my work. When I’m in a jam, I rely on her ears.

When did you know Kevin was going to be famous?
He was in Animal House first and then had to go back and work in a restaurant. Then he got the part in Diner. It really was a very successful alternative, indie
kind of movie. That’s when he really started taking off.

How did you end up on the Upper West Side?
When we first came to New York in the ’80s, it was almost impossible to even get an apartment. My brother was living on 88th Street and an apartment came open above him. Once you settle in a certain neighborhood, you connect with it and really don’t want to leave. I love the Upper West Side; it’s just gotten better and better.

What are your favorite places in your neighborhood?
The Riverside Park jogging trail. I rollerblade, so going up and down there is an amazing gift. We live on West End Avenue so we feel like we live on the beach, especially in the summer. And of course we are right between that and Central Park, and 10 minutes from Lincoln Center.

For more on Michael Bacon’s work, visit
www.michaelbaconmusic.com or www.baconbros.com.

The Landmark Preservation Commission spoke with property owners in Morningside Heights about a potential historic district in the area Monday, Sept. 20, at Riverside Church

This is a crucial but informal part of the landmark designation process, similar to a recent meeting of property owners about preserving West End Avenue buildings.

Walter South, who heads the Morningside Heights Historic District Committee, was miffed that the Landmarks Preservation Commission never notified the local community board on which he serves. Still, South was nonetheless pleased the commission was moving forward on a proposal he has pursued since 1996.

“We have a number of institutions in the area that have been expanding and insisting they need more space for so-called academic purposes,” South said, making a thinly veiled swipe at Columbia University.

Columbia already demolished brownstones on West 115th Street between Amsterdam Avenue and Morningside Drive.

Another threat to the unique architecture of Morningside Heights buildings are owners that strip off ornamentation rather than make repairs, South argued.

“The area is losing a lot of its architectural distinction,” South said. “Cornices have been removed from buildings.”

The Landmark Preservation Commission was scheduled to meet with West End Avenue property owners Wednesday, Sept. 15, about the designation of hundreds of buildings.

The meeting, which at press time was scheduled for 6 p.m. at P.S. 75, is an informal but crucial part of the landmark designation process. The meeting is to inform property owners of the added regulation that comes with landmark designation.

The year-old proposal would landmark 745 buildings on West End Avenue between West 70th Street and West 109th Street, including many side streets. “With a few exemptions, virtually everything is included,” said Richard Emery, the founder and president of a nonprofit West End Preservation Society. “This is a remarkable and far more ambitious landmarking than we have ever contemplated.”

The West End Preservation Society submitted the request to the Landmark Preservation Commission after a Columbia University professor, Andrew Dolkart, conducted a 260-page study of the avenue’s architecture.

“West End Avenue is the longest stretch of pre-war buildings that’s basically unbroken,” Emery said.

The commission is considering a plan that would extend existing Upper West Side landmark districts, according to Elisabeth de Bourbon, a commission spokesperson.

“Many of them would be extended to include the 745 buildings we believe are deserving of designation,” de Bourbon said.

The Upper West Side has seven historic districts, but only a few cover buildings on the avenue. The Riverside-West End Historic District is the largest, covering seven blocks of West End Avenue from West 87th Street to West 94th. The districts were created to preserve the distinct residential buildings constructed in the late-19th and early-20th century.

“The buildings that are worthy of designation are a natural extension of the existing districts,” de Bourbon said.

The West End Avenue proposal will officially move through the designation process next month, when the commission votes to schedule a public hearing.

Update:

The Landmark Preservation Commission released a draft of the proposed West End Avenue historic district expansion:

West End Avenu Study Areas _ALL_20100916