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The Sun has an article about how advocates for the Landmarks Preservation Commission are pushing the city for an extra $300,000 in funds this year. The LPC is one of only five city agencies that’s not supposed to face budget cuts amidst nearly universal belt-tightening; their piece of the pie in FY ’08 was $4.3 million. Still, preservationists are advocating for 300K on top of that, the same increase they got last year. (The Council has voted to give the LPC annual boosts of 250K or 300K since 2006). Advocates for the LPC say that the development-boom hangover has left the agency needing more money and manpower than ever, and they point to the fact the money they’ve received has been put to good use, as evidenced by the 26 individual landmarks and four historic districts designated last year. “Without having this enhanced survey capacity, a lot of the work that it does evaluating landmarks and historic districts will be very negatively impacted,” says Historic Districts Council President Simeon Bankoff. With the mayor calling for $1.3 billion in budget cuts, though, not everyone on the Council is sympathetic to the LPC’s plight. “My colleagues are seeking that money for preservation just like I am seeking approximately $450 million for education,” says Council Member Robert Jackson, the chairman of the education committee. “Education has been cut, and so our children are receiving inadequate education. And to me that is much more important than landmarking.”
In Time of Cuts, Extra Funds Sought by Preservationists [NY Sun]
Landmarks Preservation Commission Woefully Underfunded [Brownstoner]


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