Nora Jones and the Wailing Wall of Cobble Hill

The Wailing Wall without windows.

The Wailing Wall with windows.

Amazingly there are people in Cobble Hill that prefer the wall without windows!

I am sure most are lawyers – people with no aesthetic sense. They feel rules are more important than beauty.

About two weeks ago there was a meeting with Councilman Lander and several Cobble Hill residents and the residents were upset that the City Landmarks Commission approved the windows in Nora Jones’s wall. I have been told that Jones wanted ten windows and the Commission approved seven. I think they should have approved all ten. The wall looks so much better with the windows.

However people being people complain and complain and complain; we know they never actually look because if they did they would admit the Wailing Wall looks better with windows. In fact a friend told me they were threatening to sue both the Landmarks Commissions and Nora Jones. Why Nora Jones?? Jones applied and received all the proper permits. I think Amity  Street has too many lawyers living on with too little work.

This is another reason Historical Status is bad for your neighborhood: Not only do you need to get City permission BUT it seems now you need to get your neighbor’s permission to make changes to your house. Suddenly you no longer own your home BUT a committee owns your home – of cause none of them will be chipping in any money.

BTW, Nora Jones’s new CD is great; I recommend it.

I ran into Michael Cassidy on Thursday; he wa just back from Fire Island preparing his to open his beach house. He mentioned that he has tried to get a copy of Brad Lander’s letter to Robert B. Tierney, Chairman of Landmarks Commission. It seems Brad Lander handed out a letter from Chairman Tierney replying to that letter at a meeting, and Mike wanted to see what the Lander’s letter had said. He has now requested the letter twice and has not even received a phone call back from Lander’s liaison, Michael Curtin. I encouraged Mike to sue for the letter under the New York State Freedom of Information Act.  I wonder is Lander in the wrong political party; this seems a Republican Party attitude and not the attitude of the Democratic Party I and Mike belong to.

A New York Post Article by Andrea Peyser

In the April 10 New York Post, Andrea Peyser had a piece about the landmarking of Carroll Gardens: ‘Mark’ of B’klyn’s Big, Bad Brother.  Our own John Esposito is quoted. The article can be found here.