FRIENDS' Testimony:

FRIENDS objects to this master plan application, as it significantly compromises the historical configuration of the building’s retail base and its cohesive neo-Georgian character. The proposed masonry openings at the retail floor introduce an excessive degree of glazing, fundamentally altering the base’s solid-to-void pattern in favor of too much void. The 2013 alteration already expanded street-level glazing by raising the second-floor slab; this proposal compounds that intervention. The result further erodes the historic rhythm that defines the building’s base.

The replacement of casement windows on the second and third floors with single-pane units creates a visual disconnect that undermines Kenneth Norton’s cohesive neo-Georgian design, as the proposed units fail to relate to the prevailing casement fenestration across the rest of the façade. This change separates the base from the upper floors and contradicts the building’s original architectural intent by removing significant character-defining features of the mid-century structure. The Committee also questions the necessity of replacing historic spandrel panels with replicated nickel units and wonders why the original material cannot be maintained.

While FRIENDS does not typically oppose the removal of Madison Avenue awnings, we are concerned by the proposal to eliminate them across the full block from 61st to 62nd Street. Removing these features over such a broad frontage—at a time of intensifying urban heat island effects—would reduce passive solar shading, increasing cooling loads. Several Committee members consider the loss of this shading to be environmentally irresponsible.

For these reasons, FRIENDS urges the Commission to deny this application in order to protect the Carlton House’s distinctive character. We ask the applicant to develop a revised design that minimizes the removal of limestone, historic spandrel panels, and original window fabric, while improving energy performance without compromising the architectural integrity of the façade.

LPC Hearing: April 7, 2026