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Landmarks

March 2012, Landmarks Committee

183 Madison Avenue, AKA 181-183 Madison Avenue, 44-46 East 34th Street and 31 East 33rd Street, Madison Belmont Building, Certificate of Appropriateness for Storefront Modifications

WHEREAS, The Madison Belmont Building, 183 Madison Avenue, AKA 181-183 Madison Avenue, 44-46 East 34^th Street and 31 East 33^rd Street, has been an individual and first floor interior landmark since September 2011; and

WHEREAS, The Belmont was built in 1924-25 and designed by Warren & Wetmore (Grand Central Station, among others) and in the designation report for the Belmont the Landmarks Preservation Commission stated that:

                        ...the Madison Belmont Building is a unique, transitional style

                        building that includes classical ornament derived from the

                        Renaissance executed in an unusual, highly-stylized manner,

                        combining it with one of the earliest New York examples of Art

                        Deco designs applied to architecture... [and] also reflects the

                        contributions of Parisian Edgar Brandt, master iron smith in the

                        Art Deco style...The three-story base of this building is quite distinct

                        from the upper floors.  Faced with granite, the lower floors are almost

                        completely filled by large display windows....[T]he display windows

                        are highlighted by Brandt's unique iron and gilded bronze frames

                        that rise uninterrupted for the first three floors.  Brandt also created

                        unusual iron gates with geometric motifs beneath the large first

                        floor windows ...; and

WHEREAS, The proposed alterations involve creating two ADA compliant entrances in the 34^th Street façade in Bay 2 (east end) and Bay 6 (west end) by replacing the existing bays with frameless power-assisted glass doors, recessed four feet, and matching the adjacent hardware and decorative trim, with bronze circular handles and bronze lettering over the doors; and

WHEREAS, All of the removed materials (including the removed metal scrollwork, along the base of the façade) will be stored on site for possible future re-use; and

WHEREAS, The Applicant didn't provide to CB5 a rendering of what the 34^th Street façade would look like with the two new doors and also didn't provide samples of the materials to be used; and

WHEREAS, Without a detailed rendering of the proposed 34^th Street façade, and a review of the proposed materials, it is not possible to determine whether the modifications are appropriate for this landmarked building; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, CB5 recommends denial of a Certificate of Appropriateness for the storefront modifications to the Madison Belmont Building, 183 Madison Avenue, AKA 181-183 Madison Avenue, 44-46 East 34^th Street and 31 East 33^rd Street.

The above resolution passed by a vote of 29 in favor; 2 opposed; 1 abstaining.