December 12, 2002

John Sexton
President, New York University
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012

Dear President Sexton,

We would first like to welcome you to your new position as New York University President. We look forward to working with you in this new capacity, and congratulate you on your elevation to this esteemed position entailing such great responsibility.

As you know, NYU’s development plans in Greenwich Village are of great interest, and often of great concern, to us. In the past, the University has not always been very forthcoming with the community about building plans which have an enormous impact upon residents’ lives, nor has it been as sensitive or thoughtful in its planning as we would like to see. We sincerely hope that this can change, or at least improve, under your leadership. While we are all very fond of and respect the professionalism of the NYU Government and Community Relations staff, they can only reflect and convey the highest levels of the NYU administration’s planning policies.

Recent reports about possible NYU building expansion certainly give us pause. There have been reports that NYU is seeking to purchase the federal rowhouses at 125-131 MacDougal Street, adjacent to the Provincetown Playhouse which NYU already owns. We would be adamantly opposed to any plan by NYU to tear down or significantly modify any of these buildings (including the Playhouse), and ask that you share with us any plans NYU currently has for the site and commit to sharing any plans NYU may consider as they develop. You should be aware that this block is part of the proposed South Village Historic District, the designation of which we intend to zealously pursue, and work on which is already progressing with the Landmarks Preservation Commission. Additionally, it must be noted that 125-131 MacDougal Street are among the oldest surviving federal rowhouses in Greenwich Village, and their destruction or compromise would be seen as an enormous affront to the Greenwich Village community, and to preservation in New York City in general. We thus strongly urge you to share any current or future plans with us for this site, and avoid any situation which would further engender great enmity between NYU and the community or so damage the neighborhood’s historic resources.

Beyond that, we think it would be helpful to meet with you to have a general discussion about NYU building plans, and hopefully work toward establishing a healthier and more productive dialogue about planning and preservation in Greenwich Village. If you contact the office of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation at 212/475-9585, they would be happy to arrange a mutually agreeable meeting time.

We look forward to hearing back from you at your earliest possible convenience.

Sincerely,

Thomas K. Duane, State Senator
Christine Quinn, Council Member
Alan J. Gerson, Council Member
Andrew Berman, Executive Director

Cc: New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission
Community Board #2