Public views new designs for the Lollipop building.While preservation groups were still threatening lawsuits, the museum of Arts and Design was getting ready for the renovation of 2 Columbus Circle Columbus Circle, named for Christopher Columbus, is a major landmark and point of attraction in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Completed in 1905 and renovated a century later, it is located at the intersection of Broadway, Central Park West, Central Park South (59th last week, planning to move into its new home within a two-year period. The Museum has also released renderings of the new designs for the building, which would add windows to the structure and renovate its terracotta facade. But even though the Museum's architect, Brad Cloepfil Brad Cloepfil (1957 - ) is an American architect and principal of Allied Works Architecture of Portland, Oregon. Cloepfil is the designer of the 2003 Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, and in November 2006 was chosen to design Denver's Clyfford Still Museum. , of Allied Works Architecture, plans to preserve the original shape of the structure, the historic preservation Historic preservation is the act of maintaining and repairing existing historic materials and the retention of a property's form as it has evolved over time. When considering the United States Department of Interior's interpretation: "Preservation calls for the existing form, community is not happy about the changes. Landmark West, for one, is threatening the City with more lawsuits after losing two rounds in court already. The group insists that the sale of the building to the Museum of Arts & Design did not follow proper procedures and that the Landmarks Preservation Commission was obligated ob·li·gate tr.v. ob·li·gat·ed, ob·li·gat·ing, ob·li·gates 1. To bind, compel, or constrain by a social, legal, or moral tie. See Synonyms at force. 2. To cause to be grateful or indebted; oblige. to hold a hearing to determine whether 2 Columbus Circle merited landmark status. The Commission has refused requests for a hearing, noting that the building did not meet landmark criteria. According to Simeon Bankoff, executive director of the Historic Districts Council, there were no compelling reasons for the new design. "It's completely unnecessary," Bankoff noted. "It's a building that had been built as a museum and none of the preservationists say that the interior spaces cannot be reworked. The building is a landmark, regardless of whether or not it is designated, it is a very significant building that all New Yorkers know, it deserves to have a hearing and this [project] has been railroaded through by the previous administration and this administration has continued encroaching on the public debate." Meanwhile, museum officials seemed unperturbed by the threats of new litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. . Holly Hotchner, the Museum's director, has dismissed claims that the Museum's purchase was in any way illegal and expressed full satisfaction with Brad Cloepfil's work. Commenting on the current exhibition of the new designs at the New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Center of Architecture, she said: "We are thrilled with the design for our new home and are grateful to the AIA AIA - Application Integration Architecture New York Chapter for allowing us to share it with the public in this special way." 2 Columbus Circle has been at the center of a passionate preservation battle since 2002, when the Museum of Arts & Design entered into contract with the City to purchase the building for $17 million. Designed by Edward Durell Stone Noun 1. Edward Durell Stone - United States architect (1902-1978) Stone in the 1960's, 2 Columbus Circle currently features a windowless facade and lollipop-shaped marble columns. In the past, the building has been used to store a private art collection and as home of the New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. Department of Cultural Affairs, but it has been sitting empty ever since the City vacated the premises in 1998. According to the preservationists, the sole fact that Stone, a noted modernist architect, designed the building should make it eligible for landmark status. Proponents of redesign, on the other hand, insist that 2 Columbus Circle is plain ugly and should not be preserved simply because it is old. |
|
||||||||||||||||

Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion