In wake of heightened scrutiny regarding the growing backlog of properties on its docket, the Landmarks Preservation Commission is set to finally make a decision on 95 properties across the city – including some that have awaited their fate for more than 50 years.
The properties in question include Brooklyn’s Greenwood Cemetery, the iconic Pepsi-Cola sign in Long Island City and Union Square Park in Manhattan. Landmarks expects to deal with lengthy list in one of three ways – prioritizing them for landmark designation, removing them from body’s calendar with a chance of reapplying in the future, or throwing them off the designation list entirely.
The agency is set to make its decision on the properties Feb. 23, according to Curbed. Landmarks decided to take action last summer on items that have been on its backlog since before 2010, with more than 85 percent of properties on the list having been on hold for over 20 years.
The backlog was subject to much scrutiny last year, with City Council members proposing a bill that would set a one-year deadline on the landmarking process for individual properties and a two-year deadline for neighborhoods and districts. The proposal led to increased tension between preservation groups and real estate interests. [Curbed] – Rey Mashayekhi