The landmarks committee of Community Board 1 will meet November 17, 2010 to vote on a bold and unusual proposed addition to 187 Franklin Street in the TriBeCa West Historical District.
An article by Carl Glassman in today's edition of the TriBeCa Trib said that at a recent meeting some committee members were rather flabbergasted and "searched for words to describe Jeremy Edmiston's proposed redesign of the building."
It said that Noel Jefferson said "It looks like Star Wars and Mardi Gras combined," and Susan Cole said that she could not "keep her eyes off it, it's quite fascinating."
The Landmarks Preservation Commission will hold a hearing on the application next month.
"Now a squat, three-story single-family home," the article continued, "Edmiston wants to add two stories, which would bring it to the height of its neighboring buildings. He said the current structure only dates to the early 1990s and the Land¿marks Commission has already determined that it can be demolished."
The article said that "Edmiston said his clients want more sunlight than their windows - all facing north - can provide," adding that "he said they need added privacy, too, with the TriBeCa Film Center across the narrow street from them."
None of the windows in Edmiston's design face at a 90 degree angle to the street. Instead, they are recessed and angled at 30 degrees east and west, catching more sun in the morning and late afternoon - and no straight-on views into his clients' home.
The plan also calls for four rather organically shaped deep and dark-colored and tilting balconies that seem to drunkenly tie together multi-colored "vines" on the facade.
Edmiston is a principal in the firm of SystemArchitects.
In a statement to the Trib, the building's owners of 13 years, who asked not to be identified, said they were planning an addition to the building because they have "outgrown" their space, adding that they "love the community" and "wanted to add on in a manner that contributes to the neighborhood and complements the beautiful TriBeCa heritage."
An article by Carl Glassman in today's edition of the TriBeCa Trib said that at a recent meeting some committee members were rather flabbergasted and "searched for words to describe Jeremy Edmiston's proposed redesign of the building."
It said that Noel Jefferson said "It looks like Star Wars and Mardi Gras combined," and Susan Cole said that she could not "keep her eyes off it, it's quite fascinating."
The Landmarks Preservation Commission will hold a hearing on the application next month.
"Now a squat, three-story single-family home," the article continued, "Edmiston wants to add two stories, which would bring it to the height of its neighboring buildings. He said the current structure only dates to the early 1990s and the Land¿marks Commission has already determined that it can be demolished."
The article said that "Edmiston said his clients want more sunlight than their windows - all facing north - can provide," adding that "he said they need added privacy, too, with the TriBeCa Film Center across the narrow street from them."
None of the windows in Edmiston's design face at a 90 degree angle to the street. Instead, they are recessed and angled at 30 degrees east and west, catching more sun in the morning and late afternoon - and no straight-on views into his clients' home.
The plan also calls for four rather organically shaped deep and dark-colored and tilting balconies that seem to drunkenly tie together multi-colored "vines" on the facade.
Edmiston is a principal in the firm of SystemArchitects.
In a statement to the Trib, the building's owners of 13 years, who asked not to be identified, said they were planning an addition to the building because they have "outgrown" their space, adding that they "love the community" and "wanted to add on in a manner that contributes to the neighborhood and complements the beautiful TriBeCa heritage."
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
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