Navigating Historic Districts: NYCityMap
NYCityMap is a user-friendly portal containing various ways to access the wealth of information it contains. Users can locate specific buildings – with links to relevant websites for each facility – as well as use it as an single-access entry point to find many of the numerous location-based applications on NYC.gov (including: online property, building, statistics, and census information). The maps can be navigated either by entering a specific address or by simply zooming and scrolling.
But it’s especially useful for something near and dear to our hearts here at GVSHP — figuring out whether or not a site is landmarked.
Knowing whether or not a site is covered by landmark designation can be important for a whole host of reasons. One recent example is if you see a favorite piece of architectural detail or a historic feature being removed from a building and you are wondering whether or not it is legal to do so, as many neighbors recently did with the arched entrance at One If By Land, Two If By Sea at 17 Barrow Street.
Fortunately that site is located within the Greenwich Village Historic District, and is thus covered by landmarks protections, and the architectural detail in question was not supposed to be removed without a public hearing and review process which never took place (GVSHP is pursuing ensuring that full violations are served in this case and that the violation is corrected).
GVSHP encourages the public to let us know if they see illegal work or landmarks violations taking place, so we can assist with getting it inspected and adjudicated by the City — click here to see how to report a landmarks violation.
But reporting a landmarks violation entails first confirming that the site is in fact covered by landmarks protections (if it’s not, removing an architectural detail or historic feature may require no special approval or review whatsoever), and our website connects you to the NYCityMap which shows historic district and landmark designations in our neighborhood. Once you’ve determined if a site is landmarked, you can, if appropriate, pursue reporting a violation for work not approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission.
Of course there’s much more you can do with CityMap, and a great deal more information you can find there.
The easiest way to use it is to search for a user defined location, typing criteria into a single search field. NYCityMap uses a variety of different locations types, including : Address, Place of Interest, Borough Block Lot (BBL), Intersection, Community District, City Council District, ZIP Code, Street between Intersections (blockface), Coordinates, Building Identification Number (BIN) and Neighborhood Name. Simply type in the specific location you are looking for, click Search and NYCityMap will attempt to match that with the information on the map.
Click here to read a past Off the Grid post for more information.