China Oceanwide Holdings could erect a supertall tower at 80 South St., just outside the South Street Seaport Historic District.

The SS United States, now docked in Philadelphia.

 DESIGNER OF LOWER MANHATTAN STORM PROTECTION SELECTED;
77 GREENWICH ST. TOWER HITS A SNAG; DISABILITY LAWSUITS     

The lobby of the landmarked Woolworth building at 233 Broadway. The ceiling is decorated with tiles infused with gold leaf. The Tort Division of New York City's Law Department is planning to lease the fifth floor. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

"Duo led by major engineering firm picked to design lower Manhattan storm-protection system," Crain's New York Business, 2/10/16. "Construction and engineering company AECOM, along with design firm Dewberry, were selected by the city on Wednesday to design a sprawling series of resiliency measures aimed at protecting lower Manhattan from future flooding and rising sea levels," says Crain's New York Business. "The project was first envisioned in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, which flooded areas of lower Manhattan and caused billions of dollars of damage. AECOM and Dewberry will design ways to mitigate the impact of a similar surge while enhancing the waterfront for downtown's growing collection of businesses, residents and visitors by integrating the system within existing green spaces, paths and landscaping. The two firms responded to a request for proposals issued by the Economic Development Corp. to procure a designer for the water-deterrent measures. During a board meeting on Wednesday, the EDC named the pair, which put in a bid for about $6 million to prepare the design." For the complete article, click here.

Community Board applications up: Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer announced on Feb. 12 that 785 New Yorkers have applied for membership on Manhattan's 12 community boards in the 2016 appointment round - a 9 percent increase over 2015. Of this year's applications, 527 were from applicants not currently serving on Community Boards, a 12 percent increase over 2015.

Brewer praised the applicants for being "ready to volunteer their time, their energy, and their skills to help our borough and our city. Community Boards are the front line in the fight for affordable housing and quality of life in our neighborhoods. When our boards' applicant pool grows larger and more diverse, all our neighborhoods benefit."

The applications will be reviewed by the Borough President's staff and a panel of independent screeners. In February and March, Brewer's office will host multiple group interview sessions, evaluating applicants in group discussion and problem-solving exercises.

All community board members are appointed to staggered two-year terms, with half selected by the Borough President and half by the City Council members representing each community board district. There are 300 seats available across Manhattan each year, plus any additional vacancies. The 2016 round of appointments will be announced early in April.

"Judge Plans to Unseal Secret Papers in Sheldon Silver's Case," New York Times, 2/11/16. "With the conviction of Sheldon Silver, the former speaker of the State Assembly, all that seemed left for the judge was a defense motion for a new trial and Mr. Silver's sentencing, both of which are pending," says The New York Times. "But there has long been an aspect of the case that Mr. Silver's lawyers have strenuously fought to keep secret. From the tidbits of information gleaned at a hearing on Thursday in Federal District Court in Manhattan, it appeared that prosecutors had argued last fall - in a closed hearing and in sealed court papers - to be able to use certain evidence against Mr. Silver at trial. His lawyers appear to have vigorously objected and the matter ultimately did not surface at trial. Mr. Silver, 71, a Democrat, was convicted on Nov. 30, 2015, of charges that included honest services fraud, extortion and money laundering." For the complete article, click here.

"Silverstein talks 2 WTC, languishing luxury market," The Real Deal, 2/12/16. "When Larry Silverstein saw the design for 2 World Trade Center, he did not respond positively, especially given the site's history," says The Real Deal. Silverstein said during the Anchin Construction and Development Forum on Feb. 11 that the building looked like it was going to fall over.  "The 84-year-old eventually warmed to Bjarke Ingels' design - a series of stair-like boxes rising more than 80 stories tall - but in January, another crucial part of the building's future fell apart," The Real Deal continued. "After 15 to 16 months of discussions, the building's anchor tenant, News Corp., backed out." However, Silverstein was apparently undeterred by that setback, saying that he believed that "it won't take long for a replacement tenant to materialize." For the complete article, click here.

"Wheelchair user sues ferry service over Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island access," Crain's New York Business, 2/12/16. A new lawsuit "charges that one of the two bidders for the city's citywide ferry service, San Francisco-based Hornblower Cruises & Events, does not provide wheelchair users adequate access to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island," says Crain's New York Business. "David Heard, a United Spinal Association staffer and Queens resident who uses a wheelchair, filed a lawsuit in New York federal court Thursday saying that Statue Cruises, a Hornblower affiliate contracted by the National Parks Service to ferry visitors across New York Bay, violates the American Disabilities Act." For the complete article, click here.

"Glenwood Management, Developer Cited in Corruption Cases, Settles Disability Lawsuit," New York Times, 2/12/16. "Glenwood Management, a politically influential developer of luxury high-rise apartment buildings in Manhattan that figured in two recent public corruption trials, has agreed to settle a civil rights lawsuit that claimed three of its residential complexes violated the Fair Housing Act's requirements for people with disabilities," says The New York Times. "The settlement was detailed in a consent decree approved on Thursday by Judge J. Paul Oetken of Federal District Court in Manhattan." According to The Times, "One of the buildings is Liberty Plaza, a 287-unit complex at 10 Liberty Street in the Financial District that Glenwood says was the first high-rise rental building constructed in Lower Manhattan after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks. It was designed and constructed with many inaccessible features, Mr. Bharara's office said, like a lack of space in bathrooms and kitchens for people in wheelchairs, and bathroom configurations that prevented the installation of "grab bars." For the complete article, click here.

"South Street Seaport Museum Ready for First Exhibition Since Hurricane Sandy," New York Times, 2/16/16. "The South Street Seaport Museum is set to open its first exhibition since 2012, when Hurricane Sandy destroyed its electrical system and computer network, left oily residue on the premises and created yet another hurdle for an institution that had experienced years of difficulties," says The New York Times. "The exhibition, 'Street of Ships: The Port and Its People,' which is scheduled to open on the museum's ground floor on March 16, will include art and artifacts from the museum's permanent collections related to the 19th-century history of the Port of New York, once the world's busiest shipping hub." Jonathan Boulware, the museum's executive director, called the exhibition "an important step forward." For the complete article, click here.

"NYC Law rules in favor of Woolworth Building for new digs," The Real Deal, 2/16/16. "The New York City Law Department is slated to take 32,000 square feet of office space at the iconic Woolworth Building in the Financial District," says the The Real Deal. "The department's Tort Division will occupy the entire fifth floor at the 57-story skyscraper at 233 Broadway, according to data via the Department of City Planning's land use application tracking system. While the city has yet to sign a lease, it is understood to have agreed to a deal that will see the tort division expand beyond the Law Department's current space one block away, at SL Green Realty's 100 Church Street." For the complete article, click here.

"Landmarks Requires Rethink Of Cantilevered Mixed-Use Tower At 77 Greenwich Street," New York YIMBY, 2/17/16. "The proposed 500-foot-tall mixed-use building at 77 Greenwich Street (a.k.a. 42 Trinity Place) suffered a setback on Tuesday," says New York YIMBY. "The Landmarks Preservation Commission did not vote to approve its proposed cantilevered portions. The proposed 35-story tower being developed by Trinity Place Holdings, which would have 85 condominiums on its upper portion and a 476-seat public school and 7,000 square feet of retail on its base, is as-of-right, except that there are three cantilevered pieces that jut out over a city individual landmark, which means the LPC would have to approve of that cantilevered portion. That landmark is the Robert and Anne Dickey House at 67 Greenwich Street (a.k.a. 28-30 Trinity Place), with Edgar Street to its south. It was originally a three-and-a-half-story Federal style townhouse and was built between 1809 and 1810, with alterations in 1872 and a rear addition added in 1922." For the complete article with many photographs, click here.

Downtown bulletin board

Marti Cohen-Wolf and Percy Corcoran checking out books on March 13, 2010, the first day the Battery Park City Library opened.  (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)

In May of 2014, a piano mysteriously appeared on the naturally formed beach under the Brooklyn Bridge (and gradually deteriorated over the course of the summer). On Feb. 16, Community Board 1's Seaport/Civic Center committee heard from Graeme Birchall, president of the Downtown Boathouse, about how the beach could become a safe and viable public amenity. (Photo: Terese Loeb Kreuzer)