From left: Andrew Berman, Alicia Hurley and NYU

The Landmarks Preservation Commission approved the New York University Silver Towers landscaping plan yesterday in a unanimous vote, the school announced last night. The plan, which includes a dog run, toddler park and increased vegetation in the area, was seen as an olive branch to community activists who have opposed the school’s 2031 expansion program. But Andrew Berman, executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, said that many in the community are further angered by the landscaping plan. “In their new location, the playground and dog run will interfere with what is now the pristine view of Picasso’s Sylvette sculpture,” Berman said. TRD [more]

NYU’s Alicia Hurley and a rendering of the proposed fourth tower (building in the middle)

“Overtaxing,” “disturbing,” “untenable” and “a misfit for the community” were some of the choice words used last night by Greenwich Village residents to describe New York University’s expansion plans, particularly the school’s proposal to build a 38-story [more]

NYU’s Alicia Hurley and a rendering of the proposed fourth tower (building in the middle)

“Overtaxing,” “disturbing,” “untenable” and “a misfit for the community” were some of the choice words used last night by Greenwich Village residents to describe New York University’s expansion plans, particularly the school’s proposal to build a 38-story [more]

New York University dropped in on Community Board 3’s zoning committee meeting last night, but according to EV Grieve, the school’s representatives had little to say about how its 6 million-square-foot expansion plan might affect the East Village. Alicia Hurley, NYU’s vice president for government relations and community engagement, reiterated that much of the expansion would be focused elsewhere, like in Washington Square Park and Governors Island. But as the blogger pointed out, there’s still about 700,00 square feet of expansion unaccounted for per the current proposal. [more]

On the same night of New York University’s neighborhood barbecue celebrating the
completion of its newest dorm, community activists are meeting to voice
their opposition to the school’s overall expansion plans. Andrew
Berman, executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for
Historic Preservation, said the goals of tonight’s meeting are to
educate the public about NYU’s plans, discuss how it will affect the
neighborhood and mobilize people to push the university to expand
outside of Greenwich Village. “The bottom line is we need to make NYU look outside of our neighborhood,” Berman said. “It cannot accommodate their growth.” [more]