Watch-Blog
Shiny Shoes
By Claudie Benjamin Shoe stores, shoe repair shops, and shoe shine boys are part of the urban lore of the Great Depression and the decades following. Shoes are a necessity of daily living and walking on pavement. A serious shine on one’s shoes (unless they are...
Birds, Cages, and Care
By Claudie Benjamin A recent online chat reads: “My house feels so empty and boring without Charlie and Lilly! I am going overseas to a family wedding and had to take them to the vets for boarding yesterday. I know they will be well looked after, but dammit I miss...
Hero in Troubled Times
By Claudie Benjamin Remarkable? Yes. Sadie Stewart Hobday was a public health pioneer who took the goal of doing good to heart. From what is known about her life, this Black woman from the South was undeterred by race-related barriers and ever-present currents of...
DCP Executive Director addresses CB7 Land Use
On May 21, Manhattan Community Board 7 held a Housing & Land Use Committee meeting. (LINK) Department of City Planning Executive Director Edith Hsu Chen first addressed the board for a discussion, explaining her department’s vision for a text...
You Never Know When You’ll Need to Pawn
By Claudie Benjamin What is the coolest thing you’ve ever brokered?” That’s a question pawnbroker Daniel Kalter is often asked. He said the answer has got to be “a vintage Rolls Royce.” Daniel kept the vehicle in his home garage until the owner, having paid his debt,...
Renewed hope for Metro Theater
By LANDMARK WEST! The Metro Theater’s recent acquisition signals the long-awaited revival of an UWS staple. But little is known about how long renovations will take to allow the public in once again, or what the renovated...
Faith-based housing bill could override local landmark laws
By LANDMARK WEST! A State-level bill titled the "Faith-Based Affordable Housing Act" has the potential to override local landmark laws protecting the architectural and cultural integrity of historic religious structures. This legislation would clear the way for...
Another building on Broadway slated for demolition
By LANDMARK WEST! Slated for demolition. Another non-landmarked building on Broadway is facing demolition after permits were recently filed to tear down 2160 Broadway by Brooklyn based developer Aleksandr Finkelshteyn....
How US Military Brought Latin to Jazz
By Claudie Benjamin Latin Music and its infusion into early Jazz arrived in New York City by design rather than by chance. Several well-documented migrations of Puerto Ricans to the Upper West Side’s San Juan Hill, and other blocks mainly occurred after WWII, in the...
NYS Preservation Organizations Speak Out
LW! and our colleagues speak out agains revisionist history in a letter initiated by the Preservation League of New York State. Full letter HERE. On February 13, the National Park Service removed all instances of the words Transgender and Queer from the Stonewall...
