Preservation

Politicians are once again pushing for the preservation of Admirals Row, with Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez writing a letter to Army Secretary John McHugh requesting that the National Guard “immediately” hand the property over to the city, according to an article in today’s Wall Street Journal. The letter, which was also signed by Sen. Charles E. Schumer, Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand, and Rep. Edolphus Towns, follows news that the National Guard had determined that the Timber Shed and Building B—the two Admirals Row properties that were supposed to be preserved as part of the Navy Yard Development Corp’s designs for the site—had deteriorated beyond the point of no return. The letter also says that the $2 million allocated to the Army Corps of Engineers a couple years ago for the preservation of the buildings should immediately be used to try and stabilize Building B. In March, Schumer and Gillibrand wrote a letter to McHugh requesting that Navy Yard officials be allowed on the site to try and make emergency repairs to the Timber Shed and Building B. The Army has said that it has to go through the proper paces of environmental and historic review before transferring Admirals Row to the city, which is then expected to hand the property over to the Navy Yard Development Corp.
Plea for Navy Yard Fix [WSJ]
Fed Agency: Admirals Row Situation ‘Inexplicable’ [Brownstoner]
None of Admiral’s Row Buildings Salvageable? [Brownstoner]

In a letter dated yesterday, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, a federal agency that’s acted as a consultant to the Army National Guard with reference to Admirals Row, said the agency is “troubled by the recent turn of events” at the row, particularly the National Guard’s recent assertion that Building B cannot be stabilized. The letter has some strong words about how “it is inexplicable that the NY District did not complete the stabilization of Building B” before this winter and notes that the National Guard transferred $2 million to the guard’s NY District two years ago “for the express purpose of stabilizing Building B and the Timber Shed.” (The district has also said that the Timber Shed, the Admirals Row structure aside from Building B that was supposed to be preserved, has deteriorated beyond repair.) Click through to read the letter in its entirety.
Letter via HDC’s Facebook. (more…)

The Times has an update on the frustrating saga involving the will-it-or-won’t-it happen preservation of a couple Admiral’s Row buildings at the Navy Yard. The story notes that the National Guard, which has control of Admiral’s Row until a historical and environmental review is complete and it can be transfered to the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation, won’t allow the Navy Yard corporation to make even minimal efforts to try and preserve the buildings. Here’s the rub: “The National Guard has not even permitted the Navy Yard corporation to enter the grounds for such elementary and relatively inexpensive measures as boarding up the broken doors and windows of the timber shed and Quarters B with plywood or covering them with tarpaulins to protect them from rain and snow. The Guard contends that any efforts to sustain the building could endanger workers.” The Navy Yard corporation and preservationists are, of course, frustrated by the National Guard’s stance. The article says it’s unclear when the necessary reviews of the site will be complete so that it can finally be transfered. Last month a bunch of politicians and Community Board 2 called for Navy Yard officials to have access to Admiral’s Row in order to make emergency repairs to the two buildings, but that appears to have come to nought.
A Battle Over Preservation in a Strip Once Worthy of Admirals [NY Times]
CB2 Also Calls for Timber Shed Preservation [Brownstoner]
Preservation Groups Sound Admirals Row Alarm [Brownstoner]
Is Admiral’s Row Timber Shed Beyond Repair? [Brownstoner]
BREAKING: Admiral’s Row Renderings Released [Brownstoner]
Timber Shed Gets Reinforced [Brownstoner]
Timber Shed Might Not Be Saved After All [Brownstoner]
It’s Curtains for Most of Admiral’s Row [Brownstoner]

Earlier this week Sens. Schumer and Gillibrand wrote to Secretary of the Army John McHugh saying that Navy Yard officials should be allowed to have access to Admiral’s Row in order to make emergency repairs to the Timber Shed and Building B, and yesterday Community Board 2 joined the chorus. According to City Room, CB Chairman John Dew sent a letter to the army outlining “the board’s disappointment that there are no plans in the document to stabilize the Timber Shed, the last structure of its type in the United States.” Last month there was word that the army had determined that the Timber Shed was beyond repair and should be demolished despite plans to preserve the structure and Building B if the Navy Yard ends up redeveloping the site. The City Room story notes that the likely transfer of Admiral’s Row to the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation still needs to be agreed upon in writing by the National Guard Bureau, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historical Preservation, and after that the site still needs to go through an environmental review that probably won’t be finished until September.
CB2 Weighs in on Admirals Row Preservation [The Local]
Sens. Schumer & Gillibrand Pitch in to Save Admiral’s Row’ Buildings [Daily News]
Photo by Barry Yanowitz.

Although the Timber Shed and Building B are set to be preserved and restored by the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation, the transfer of Admirals Row from the U.S. Army National Guard Bureau could take a year or more. Given the Federal Government’s track record of inaction in recent decades, two New York City preservation groups are calling for special measures to be taken to ensure that the buildings don’t decay beyond the point of no return in the meantime. The Municipal Art Society is deeply concerned that a heavy snow this winter could cause irreparable damage to the Timber Shed, said Vin Cipolla, president of MAS. The Timber Shed, which once housed wooden ship masts, is the only remaining building of its type in the nation, and it is of exceptional national significance. Once stabilized, the building is imminently reusable and would contribute tremendously to the sense of place and urban design of this development project. The New York Landmarks Conservancy couldn’t agree more. “The National Guard has been woefully negligent of its duty and promises to stabilize and preserve the Timber Shed,” said Peg Breen, the Conservancy’s president. “Now that preservation engineer Robert Silman has determined that the building can be stabilized and eventually reused,” she added,” the National Guard must protect the Shed from potential damage this winter.”