Strand Would Be Destroyed By City's Protection, Owner Says

EAST VILLAGE, NY — The city may landmark the East Village building that houses the iconic Strand Bookstore — but the bookseller is against it.

Strand's building, 826-28 Broadway, is being considered for landmark status by the city's Landmark Preservation Commission, but the owner opposes the designation because of the pile of red tape she'd have to cut through to make changes to the store, she said at a Tuesday commission hearing.

"Please do not destroy Strand by adding more bureaucracy and unnecessary expenses and restrictions slowing us down, just when we need to be our most competitive," the building and bookstore's owner Nancy Bass Wyden said at a hearing packed with supporters donning Strand T-shirts, totes and buttons.

"In an attempt to preserve history, you very well may end up destroying a piece of the city.”

The Strand's building, which opened its doors in 1927 by Benjamin Bass, is among seven Broadway properties up for landmark status due to a City Council-brokered deal that approved the 21-story Union Square Tech Training Center.

Local Councilwoman Carlina Rivera and preservationists held the position that land use protections should accompany the project to shield the surrounding neighborhoods from a wave of high-rise development, but the City Council approved the project without sweeping protections.

Instead, Rivera was able to secure a handful of protective measures from the city, including reviewing seven Broadway buildings for landmark status.

Strand Bookstore's 828 Broadway building was designed in 1902 by renowned architect William H. Birkmire — who has ten landmarked buildings in the city. (Photo courtesy of Caroline Spivack/Patch)

The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation has long urged the city to establish a historic district in the area south of Union Square that would protect some 200 buildings, and again called for such a designation on Tuesday.

"Landmarking this and a hand-full of non-endangered buildings fails to acknowledge or protect the whole [neighborhood] story that is so critical to New York," said Andrew Berman, the executive director of the Greenwich Village Society.

"I strongly urge you to consider a more holistic approach, one which truly protects the rich and varied resources of this area and one which prioritizes those that face the most immediate potential danger."

Wyden's building has no air rights and she says she has no intention of selling the building valued at $31 million by the city in January, she said.

Instead she aims to pass it down to her children so that a fourth generation can run the bookstore, which has operated on the Broadway corner since 1956 with some 2.5 million books and 238 employees.

Strand's general manager and vice president echoed Wyden's concerns and pointed to building regulations that already make changes to the store a hassle, he said at the Tuesday hearing.

"Changes to lighting, signage, doorways and other interior and exterior features are already carefully and heavily regulated, and we simply cannot afford the potential for additional expenses," said Edward Sutton.

"While we respect the work of the LPC, we have grave concerns that landmarking our building will result in the undoing of an already iconic and important living New York institution."

The Landmarks Preservation Commission pushed back on those concerns and said in a statement that the panel is sympathetic to Strand's concerns.

“The Landmarks Preservation Commission will continue to work with the owner of 826 Broadway, home to the Strand bookstore, to address [Wyden] concerns and ensure that this cultural institution endures," said commission spokeswoman Zodet Negrón, which says the agency plans to host another hearing on 826 Broadway in response to Wyden's request for more time.

"LPC successfully regulates thousands of buildings with commercial storefronts across the city and we are sympathetic and responsive to their needs.”

The landmarking proposal comes on the heels of the announcement that Amazon — the bane of every brick-and-mortar bookstore's existence — is locating half of its second headquarters in Long Island City, after city and state officials gifted the e-commerce giant $2.5 billion in taxpayer subsidies.

“Unlike Amazon, we have never asked for taxpayer-funded subsidies, tax breaks or special favors,” Wyden said. "But we do want the government to spare us new changes on our business that already operates on a tight margin."

Strand Bookstore on Broadway and E. 12th Street in the East Village (Photo courtesy of Rob Kim/Getty Images)