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Landmarks
281 Park Avenue South, the Fotografiska Museum application to install a canopy for the Verōnika Restaurant at this site
At the regularly scheduled monthly Community Board Five meeting on Thursday, October 13, 2022, the following resolution passed with a vote of 34 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstaining:
WHEREAS, 281 Park Avenue South (the “Applicant”) is a six-story building located on the corner of Park Avenue South and East 22nd Street; and
WHEREAS, Robert Williams Gibson and Edward J. Neville Stent completed construction of the Flemish-style building in 1894; and
WHEREAS, Its steel-framed construction and Medieval sheathing signifies the 19th Century’s commitment to technology and appreciation for historical association; and
WHEREAS, Formerly known as the Church Missions House, so named because it was the headquarters of the Episcopal Church’s Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society for much of the 20th century and designated a New York City Landmark on September 11, 1979; and
WHEREAS, The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982; and
WHEREAS, The Applicant applied to install a canopy for a restaurant referred to as “Verōnika” (the “Restaurant”) but had in fact already installed said canopy, by drilling at least ten (10) bolts into the building façade to install a sloped canopy with LED lighting, tassels and signage (the “Canopy”) during or about May 2022 without a permit from the Landmarks Preservation Commission (“LPC”); and
WHEREAS, Therefore, the Applicant is seeking instead to legalize the Canopy already installed; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five recognizes that the Applicant desires to install exterior signage in an effort to attract more business for the Restaurant; and
WHEREAS, The design and installation of such Canopy is not contextual nor harmonious with the building, proportions and historical significance of the building; and
WHEREAS, The installation was done in a detrimental way to the existing fabric of the building; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five recommends denial of the application and further, asks that the Applicant work with LPC to remove the canopy and considers alternate exterior discreet signage for the Restaurant appropriate for the individual landmark.