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Landmarks
11 East 26th Street (Madison Square North Historic District) Application The Museum Of Mathematics For A New Storefront
WHEREAS, 11 East 26th Street, between Fifth and Madison Avenues, is a 21 story 1912-1913 era neo-Gothic building located in the Madison Square North Historic District, facing Madison Square Park, which is immediately across the street to the south; and
WHEREAS, Its new ground floor tenant, the Museum of Mathematics, is leasing the premises which runs through-block to 6 East 27th Street for ten years and has applied to NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) for approval of a new storefront; and
WHEREAS, The proposed renovations include installation of a large glass rectangular window, with a layer of reflective film placed between the two glass window plates for illumination purposes, surrounded by a strip of bronze ribbon going around the glass; and
WHEREAS, The name of the Museum would be placed in the stone panel above the storefront, portions of the stonework adjacent to the glass window to the left and the right are to be restored and some minor renovation work would also be done on the West 27th Street facade; and
WHEREAS, The Applicant is proposing to have a modern glass door entrance to the Museum, completely different from the two other doorways to the building; and
WHEREAS, CB5 finds that the large, modern storefront and doorway concept is not in keeping with neo-Gothic design of the building nor the character of the Historic District and, clearly, the Applicant wishes to capitalize on exposing as much of the interior as possible to obtain high visibility to attract future patrons; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, CB5 recommends denial of the Application for the new storefront and doorway for 11 East 26th Street in the Madison Square North Historic District, since it is deemed too modern in its design and materials and incompatible with the rest of the Historic District.
The above resolution passed by a vote of 33 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstaining.