Historic Resources

There are already several sites and buildings along 14 Street and Union Square that have been listed on the National Register, and several that have been given landmark status by New York City’s Landmarks Preservation Commission. This chapter includes a comprehensive list of already designated historic resources, as well as our primary and secondary resources. We define primary resources as those that we are recommending for designation as New York City landmarks and for listing on the National Register.

Secondary resources are those that contribute to the character and understanding of 14th Street, but have either lost a measure of integrity or, in our opinion, do not merit individual designation at this time. Our criteria for selection of our primary resources are listed below.

National Register of Historic Places

Criteria: The quality of significance in American history, architecture, archaeology, engineering and culture is present in districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects that possess integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association and:

• A. That are associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history; or
• B. That are associated with the lives of persons significant in our past; or
• C. That embody the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction or that represent the work of a master, or that possess high artistic values, or that represent a significant and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction; or
• D. That have yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history.

New York City Landmarks

A New York City landmark is defined as “a building, property, or object that has been designated by the Landmarks Preservation Commission because it has a special character or special historical or aesthetic interest or value as part of the development, heritage, or cultural characteristics of the city, state, or nation. Landmarks are not always buildings. A landmark may be a bridge, a park, a water tower, a pier, a cemetery, a building lobby, a sidewalk clock, a fence, or even a tree. A property or object is eligible for landmark status when at least part of it is thirty years old or older.”

The LPC has four types of designations, individual landmarks, exterior and interior, scenic landmarks, and historic districts. They are defined as:

• 1. An individual landmark is a property, object, or building that has been designated by the Landmarks Commission. These properties or objects are also referred to as “exterior” landmarks because only their exterior features have been designated.
• 2. An interior landmark is an interior space that has been designated by the Landmarks Commission. Interior landmarks must be customarily accessible to the public.
• 3. A scenic landmark is a landscape feature or group of features that has been designated by the Landmarks Commission. Scenic landmarks must be situated on city-owned property.
• 4. An historic district is an area of the city designated by the Landmarks Commission that represents at least one period or style of architecture typical of one or more areas in the city’s history; as a result, the district has a distinct “sense of place”.