Noho Gets Bigger, Windemere Is Warned

The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission today added onto the Noho Historic District, upping the number of protected buildings from 167 to 223. The new area is called NoHo Extension, which builds onto the NoHo and NoHo East historic districts. That's a lot of districts named Noho.

Meanwhile, the Landmarks Commission recently issued a press release saying, "A Manhattan Supreme Court justice today issued a preliminary injunction ordering the owners of the Windermere apartment complex to halt the deterioration of the vacant landmark, requiring them to bring the 127-year-old building into compliance with the City’s landmark regulations."

The Hell's Kitchen Windermere has been in a hell of a condition for some time. Such bad shape, in fact, that the City, which usually doesn't lift a finger to preserve landmarks, took its Japanese owner, Masako Yamagata of Toa Construction Co., to court.

"This decision should make it clear to every owner of landmarked properties that the Landmarks Commission will not abide the deliberate erosion of New York City’s historic fabric," said Commission Chairman Robert B. Tierney.

Uh-huh. Yeah, that's exactly what it will do. The owner lives in Japan.