Stay of Execution on MacDonough Street
The second hearing about the future of 329 and 331 MacDonough Street, the two Stuyvesant Heights brownstones threatened with demolition after the collapse of a party wall last week, was held yesterday afternoon at 360 Adams Street. Here’s a report we received from a resident of the block: The Judge called in the lawyers and…
The second hearing about the future of 329 and 331 MacDonough Street, the two Stuyvesant Heights brownstones threatened with demolition after the collapse of a party wall last week, was held yesterday afternoon at 360 Adams Street. Here’s a report we received from a resident of the block:
The Judge called in the lawyers and engineers leaving the public in the hall to wonder what was happening. After an hour the public was allowed in and told that the engineers would have until Wednesday Jan. 27th to present a plan to save the properties. Mrs. Prince, the owner of 331 MacDonough St., has retained a lawyer and engineer in the hopes of saving her property. The Judge has told the public that he is aware of their concerns but, the issue will be resolved by the engineers and our presence in court on the 27th will not be necessary.
Meanwhile, we also contact the Landmarks Preservation Commission to get a better sense of their position and ability to act as advocates for preservation in this case. Here’s the response we got:
Members of our staff have visited the site, and are communicating extensively with the Department of Buildings about these important buildings. Under the Landmarks Law, no Landmarks approval is needed for measures the Department of Buildings must take to address public safety issues. We are advocating for saving as much of the buildings as is safely possible, while deferring to the Department’s engineering knowledge and experience in public safety matters. Landmarks and Buildings have a long history of working together to save historic buildings, and this case is no exception.
We’re also curious to hear how active a role (if any) Councilman Al Vann, who owns a house on the historic block, has taken in the situation. Can anyone tell us?
MacDonough Street Update 1/25/10 [Brownstoner]
Wall Collapse, Vacate Order, Maybe Demo on MacDonough [Brownstoner]
FSRG;
Are you an engineer? (Not asking that in a snarky way, just curious about your background). Actually, if you are, I’d be overjoyed that there is another engineer in PS 🙂
“There are already a lot of steel frame buildings in NY that have required significant structural replacement of decaying steel.”
A lot??? I am not aware of this fact. Would you please cite a few examples?
pig3 – did you say you were a engineer?????
We are NOT talking about useful life we are talking about structural strength and stability.
Steel is far from the perfect building material. It rusts. Not great in a fire. There are already a lot of steel frame buildings in NY that have required significant structural replacement of decaying steel. There are no steel contructed townhouses old enough to say for sure that they are stronger and better built. We have to wait about 80 years for that.
“masonary buildings there, including row houses, have been standing for twice, sometimes three times as long as ours have here.”
Well, I think that is essentially due to the fact that people weren’t building permanent structures here during that time frame (I dont consider longhuts and teepes to be comparative)
A” Due to the evidence of SO many older buildings, both ancient and merely 19th century, I don’t see how anyone can argue that they didn’t build to last back then”
Who said they didnt “build to last back then” – what was said is that todays buildings are structurally stronger (and more stable) than those buildings. Come back in 500 years, assuming society stays stable enough and our current methods of living are still in use (as opposed to some Jetsons like stuff) I promise you many of our buildings, skyscrapers and fedders apartments will still be going strong.
In the country, a stone house is always worth more than a comparable frame due to the aesthetics.
MM-DIBS – Virtually any construction will last forever if it is continually maintained – hell a teepee will last forever too, if you oil and replace the broken skins as they wear out. But in sterms of strength and stability, a properly built modern frame construction building is more stable and stronger than the equivalent building built using traditional techniques.
Yes, Cities in Europe often have 15th century buildings in use – but they really dont answer the question regarding “structural strength” because many have been essentially rebuilt many many times and at a minimum they have received constant maintenance.
That was probably my bad, dibs. I asked fsrg to explain (as did pig three) exactly what he was referring to when he said new construction was inherently stronger. Since he didn’t specify residential or commercial, and never answered either one of us, i just took a more general take on is new better than old. NOT comparing skyscraper construction with brownstone construction- just new vs old. Which he obviously did not understand.
benson, did you see the simulated collapse of that building in Venice in “Casino Royale?”