The Landmarks Preservation Commission may have voted to approve a request to reduce the lot around the Coignet Stone building on the Whole Foods site in Gowanus, but a prominent preservation organization is protesting the decision. The Historic Districts Council had the following to say about the matter in an email blast that went out yesterday: “This proposal is an effort [for Whole Foods] to avoid the normal Landmarks Preservation Commission review process. The owners of the Coignet Building should be required to present plans at a public hearing to show how their proposal relates to the designated property. Otherwise, this will point the way for all who want to build upon a landmarked site and avoid LPC oversight.” The proposal still has to be approved by the City Planning Commission and then the City Council Subcommittee on Landmarks, which should happen within the next couple months. Meanwhile, HDC started a petition asking for “proper protection” for the Coignet Stone building and a public hearing about the request to reduce the lot size.
LPC Approves Reduction of Coignet Stone Lot [Brownstoner]
Preservationists: Don’t Shrink Gowanus Landmark’s Lot [Brownstoner]
LPC Hearing on Reduction of Gowanus Building’s Lot [Brownstoner] GMAP


What's Your Take? Leave a Comment

  1. stargazer, it is an all-concrete building. It can’t burn down.
    One of the reasons it was designated a landmark is because it is the earliest known all-concrete building in New York CIty. It was built in 1872 and was part of a 5-acre factory that produced something called Coignet stone. Invented in France by someone named Francois Coignet, the product was an early type of cast concrete. The little building was meant to showcase the company’s product.
    It is all concrete…..like your head.

  2. The building is protected. This is an attempt to derail whole goods with groundless arguments using legitimate organizations backed by people with economic interest in stopping the whole foods project. This property will be reborn thanks to whole foods.

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