Civic Council Resolution

Be it Resolved...

At its October 2007 meeting, the Civic Council officially launched an effort to assess the feasibility of expanding the Park Slope Historic District, frozen in its current boundaries since 1973.  (The 1973 Historic Designation report, written by a Civic Council committee chaired by the late Evelyn Ortner, may be downloaded online.)

Trustees passed this resolution:

• Whereas the Park Slope Civic Council exists to promote the well being and betterment of the Park Slope community, and to promote the beautification of the Park Slope community; and
• Whereas Park Slope contains improvements which have a special character or special historical and aesthetic interest and value, and represent one or more periods or styles of architecture typical of one or more eras in the history of the city, and cause such area, by reason of such factors, to constitute a distinct section of the city; and
•  Whereas by saving what is meritorious from the past, we fulfill our portion of the stewardship we have inherited from those who came before and for those who come after; and in the process we make the city a more interesting and better place to live:
•  Now therefore be it resolved that the Park Slope Civic Council hereby commences an assessment of Park Slope lying outside the current Historic District boundaries, toward the goal of seeking Historic District designation for areas deemed appropriate...

Wherefrom the Whereases: PSCC Trustee and Secretary David Alquist, a member of the Historic District Committee, explained that the first “whereas” in the accompanying resolution was drawn from language in the PSCC bylaws; the second from the legislation that created the Landmarks Preservation Commission; and the third from the introduction to a book published by the Historic Districts Council, Creating an Historic District: A Guide for Neighborhoods.