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Does This Elevation Get Architect’s Approval?


Good morning. Today is Monday. We will consider an architect who lent his license to a New York City developer to approve buildings he said he did not design. We will also look at whether to expect an economic payday from casinos.

Warren Schiffman said he retired as an architect in 2016.

Since then, his professional seal and signature have been used on the designs of three large-scale construction projects in New York City. One is a 642-foot hotel in the Hudson Yards development under construction.

Schiffman says he played no active role in the three projects. My colleague, Matthew Haag, writes that his argument raises questions about whether plans were approved without a registered architect, as required in New York State.

[The Hotel Is 642 Feet Tall. Its ‘Architect’ Says He Never Saw the Plans.]

A document obtained by The New York Times indicates that Schiffman’s credentials were used to forge his approval of building designs he had not reviewed.

The document is a contract that includes an eight-point agreement outlining how DSM Design Group, the design arm of the Marx Development Group, can continue to use his professional seal after he retires. Schiffman received a quarterly payment from the developer, which was significantly lower than normal – $175,000 over 10 years.

The contract, signed shortly before the Marx Development Team commenced the three projects, called for Schiffman to “provide your architectural seal and signature to the DSM Design Team upon request” and to “make every effort to make your best efforts.” effort to respond within 48 hours of any such request for the Service.” Schiffman said he was never asked to review any of the plans.

Construction experts in New York City say the allegations involving Schiffman and the Marx Development Team are unusual.

“Oh my god, that’s a new one,” said Steven Zirinsky, co-chair of the Building Standards Committee at the New York chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Officials at the city’s Building Department said they did not find any structural defects in the plans to build the Hudson Yards hotel. Preliminary records show that it reviewed the plans five times between 2018 and 2020, when they were approved. One of the other projects is a 126-room hotel near La Guardia Airport that was completed in 2019 and is currently being converted into a homeless shelter. Plans for the third project, a pair of high-rise apartment buildings in Queens, have yet to be approved.

Schiffman was stripped of his architecture license last month. Be part of a investigation by the state Department of Education, the body that oversees professional licensing, he admitted that he practiced architecture without permission to do so. Under state law, “unauthorized practice” of architecture may include practicing without a license or assisting an unauthorized person – for example, “allowing, assisting, or abetting a person unlicensed activities that require a license”.

In an interview, Schiffman said he gave up his driver’s license because of his age – he was in his 80s. He denied admitting to state investigators that he practiced without permission to do so. He said he renewed his license after retiring. But he also said he never completed the 36-hour course, a request for an extension.

He also denied that he had an agreement with the Marx Development Corporation, although later in the same interview he read several lines of the contract. He also admitted that he still receives payments from developers.

Marx did not return multiple calls and emails seeking comment. In recent months, the Marx Development Team has removed the name Schiffman from some of its projects and warned Department of Construction of the city that another licensed professional had taken his place.


Weather

Watch for a chance of showers and thunderstorms this morning. The rest of the day will be partly sunny with temperatures nearing the mid-80s. Tonight, mostly cloudy in the mid-60s.

PARKING OUTSIDE

Valid until June 20 (ie, June 12).


The casino industry has coveted New York City for years, and in April state lawmakers gave the green light to three downstairs casinos. Analysts say a new casino in the city could transform the national gambling landscape by tapping directly into the country’s largest market and its global appeal as a tourist destination calendar.

But evidence from other cities shows that casinos rarely deliver on their long-term economic promises. I asked Nicole Hong, who writes about the New York City economy, what to expect.

The premise of casino gambling is that it will create an economic breeze for New York City. It will be?

It’s too early to predict.

In the immediate future, the state will charge an upfront licensing fee of at least $500 million per casino. In terms of tax revenue, the state collects a large portion of the gambling revenue that casinos collect, and casinos can be taxed at a much higher rate than other businesses.

But the scale and sustainability of wind loads over the long term is an open question.

There are four casinos in upstate New York. Have they met the revenue goals they outlined in their license search?

Even before the pandemic, those casinos were underperforming compared to expectations. The state comptroller’s office found that in 2019, casinos contributed $188 million in gambling taxes to the state, two-thirds of what they had expected in the application. its license.

Part of the problem is that the Northeast is becoming oversaturated with casinos and all are competing for a similar clientele.

What about jobs? Casinos don’t create jobs?

Casinos come with employment, especially during the construction and opening phases. A single casino can employ thousands of people. But economists tell me that the work is often low-paying, which stifles the potential for real economic growth.

We also need to see how things change with the labor market during the pandemic. Across the country, many casinos have reported labor shortages, similar to the challenges faced by other hospitality businesses such as restaurants.

Where can we see the casino, and what is the schedule?

The favorites for two of the licenses are for “racinos” – the racetrack casino – in Queens and in Yonkers, NY

The real competition seems to be for the third license. By October, the state must appoint a commission that will manage the application process, so we may not know the exact locations until next year. But the lobbying frenzy has begun. The yards include portions of Manhattan’s waterfront, Times Square, Coney Island, and the area around Citi Field in Queens.


METROPOLITAN . Diary

Dear Diary:

I went to New York City last fall to attend a writing workshop with eight women from around the country. It was hosted by a famous author at her home in Washington Heights.

I reviewed a hotel on the Upper West Side. It’s hard to navigate the metro to 155, I think clicking “reservation” for a non-refundable room.

Harder than I expected.

Hoping a friendly expatriate would be nearby, I emailed the team, hoping to find a metro partner, only to receive some version of “I wish I could help” .

Then a woman who lives in Chelsea responded, offering to Citi Bike more than 50 blocks to go to my hotel and catch the subway with me from there.

I said I would wait with coffee and asked what kind she wanted.

When it’s bright, the weather is perfect for late September. I held each cup of coffee in my hand, while I waited outside the hotel. Careless, I took a sip from her cup, and then nervously greeted her with my confession.

Smiling softly, she lifted the cup to her lips and took a sip. We bustled past the busy 72nd Street station and down the steps to 1.

We were soon there, a cozy pre-war apartment filled with the scent of warm blueberry pies, the chatter of spirit women and the barking Newfoundland every time. there’s a boat going through the Hudson.

And, of course, there was a French press that topped our half-baked latte.

– Elizabeth Weiner

Illustrated by Agnes Lee. Send submissions here and Read more Metropolitan Diary here.




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