The Landmarks Preservation Commission voted 6 to 4 today to approve a hardship application by St. Vincent's Hospital to demolish the low-rise, Edward and Theresa O'Toole Medical Services Building on the west side of Seventh Avenue between 12th and 13th Streets as part of an ambitious expansion plan the hospital is undertaking with the Rudin Management Company that would also demolish some properties on the east side of the avenue and create several hundred new residential condominium units.

The hospital had argued that the nautically-styled O'Toole Building was the only site that made sense for a major expansion that will create a new curved tower about 300 feet high that will become a significant new landmark in the Greenwich Village Historic District in which the hospital is situated.

Alfred E. Smith IV, the head of the hospital, and William C. Rudin, the developer, issued a statement that said they were "very pleased that the Landmarks Preservation Commission today approved St. Vincent's hardship application, allowing us to take another step forward to building a 21st century, technologically advanced hospital for Manhattan's West Side and Downtown."

"We thank the Commissioners for their time and diligence in determining that St. Vincent's qualified for this rarely applied, but critically important exemption. We also are grateful to Chairman Robert Tierney for his leadership in this complex process, conducting an open, fair and transparent review of the hardship application," the statement continued, adding that "the lack of alternatives facing the hospital and the complications of constructing a new facility in a dense urban area made the case before the Commission challenging."

In a statement, Community Board 2 Chairman Brad Hoylman declared that "While many in the neighborhood will view today's decision as a setback, the public's efforts have not been in vain. Because of them and with the support of local elected officials and the LPC, the plan for the Rudin condominium project east of Seventh Avenue was altered significantly to include the preservation of four historic buildings. In addition, the Greenwich Village neighborhood will receive a new 560-seat primary school to help ease the classroom overcrowding crisis in our area. During the ULURP phase of this project, the community board plans to address other key issues raised by the public, such as the need for affordable housing, the creation of public open space on the triangle at Greenwich and Seventh Avenues, construction mitigation, the location of garages and sensible traffic patterns."

Tom Molner, chairman of Protect the Village Historic District, a community group opposed to the plan, issued a statement indicating it would appeal the ruling: "The Commission's ruling would not only do great damage to the Greenwich Village Historic District - it would open historic districts across the City to similar destructive inroads."

"We agree with the strong dissents from four Commissioners that an energetic and independent review of alternatives is needed here. We call upon our elected officials to step in and act. They should help our community to find a solution which will allow the hospital to modernize without destroying a Greenwich Village landmark and building a 300 foot high-rise tower in its place," Mr. Molner continued.

The Commission's decision authorizes St. Vincent's to demolish the Curran/O'Toole Building even though the Commissioners unanimously agreed last May that the structure is historically of significance and should not be razed.

Originally the headquarters of the National Maritime Union, and the one of the few remaining vestiges of an era when maritime commerce dominated the West Side, the Curran/O'Toole Building was designed by Albert Ledner, a student of Frank Lloyd Wright.

The new hospital tower would be designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners and FXFowle is designing the new residential buildings for the Rudin organization.