The Landmarks Preservation Commission under Mayor de Blasio's watch

In the Daily News today, Eric Uhlfelder — author of “The Origins of Modern Architecture” — contributes an opinion piece titled De Blasio vs. NYC’s historic buildings.

As he writes, even properties within historic districts are at risk of redevelopement ... and "the Landmarks Preservation Commission, the last line of defense for protecting historic New York, is rolling over rather than pushing back."

Two key players are responsible for LPC contradicting its own mandate: Chairwoman Meenakshi Srinivasan — who openly questions the LPC’s right to tell architects what to do — and Mayor de Blasio, who is promoting redevelopment at the cost of the city’s architectural heritage.

A recent study commissioned by the New York Landmarks Conservancy showed the Landmarks Commission in a typical year approved more than 99.5% of all applications in historic districts.

De Blasio named Srinivasan chair of the LPC in 2014 after her stint as chair and commissioner of the Board of Standards and Appeals, "an agency known for granting zoning variances to expand development rights."

In the East Village, Uhlfelder notes how "the LPC ignored requests by preservationists to landmark a group of Beaux-Arts apartment buildings, permitting development of a new graceless hotel." This would be the incoming Moxy hotel on 11th Street between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue.