New-York tribune., 1912-06-12
TO PRESERVE BUILDING
Municipal Art Commission Ap.
proves Offer Of Lenox Library.
ONLY ONE DISSENTING VOTE
Gift of Henry G. Frick Will Re-
place Arsenal as Park De-
partment Headquarters.

With only one dissenting vote the Mu-
ncipal Art Commission yesterday approved
| the plan Of Park Commissioner Stover TO
place the Lenox Library Building In Central
sark ss Park Department headquarters
| on the site OF the old Arsenal. In giving It's
! approval the commission said Mayor Gay
nor had accepted the gift Of the buildlns
, from its owner, Henry c. Frick and one OF
| the most important products OF the genius
! of Richard N. Hunt, ''one OF America
most distinguished architects would DC
saved thereby.
Every member Of the commission hau, IL
was declared, made personal trips to the
! park and TO the library with a view TO
rcking sites for IT, and had delibersted on
| II for DAYS. and II was decided the best
site was that now occupied by the Arsena':
! Park Commissioner Slower had snssesteo
several sites, among them being that no"
occupied by the sheepfold, another occu'
lied BY the conservatory abutting oeth
street and Central Park West, and still an
other north Of the 65th street transverse
road.
! Commissioner Slower came out OF tue
meeting with a beaming countenance' ac-
conpanted by Thomas Hastings, the srchl-
tect for Mr. Frck, and the latter $ rePfe
! sentative, F. B. Kinch. Mr.. Hastings snooA
the hand Of the Commissioner IN Nlso'ooS
! fashion BY way Of congratulatton
| AS Charles Downing Lay. the !andscdps
architect OF the Park Board, has declare'
limss,, IN favor OF placing the structure IN
| the park, there now is nothing 70 s'a t"o
progress Of the plan. Park Cofnlnlssio''..
| Stover Il Is expected, viii tm'heola'ei'
ask the Sinking Fund Commission 70 pro-
J vide temporary quarters for MS o.pai'
ment. II was said that work On the hufai'
would be begun at once. II VIII tahe az
least four months 70 take It down gut a
much shorter time 10 dcmolish the Arsehsi.
"The Arsenal will make good ming ioi
the reclamation work on Riverside DriVs'
| said Commissioner Slower.
Charles II. Russell cast the only negative
vote. Those who were In faVor u th7
urotect were the president OF the coninis
! alon Robert ". de Forest, X l. haiSe' ,
! Iobr Roaart. l. \. Phelps Stokes, frahcl'
g Jones Karl Bitter and Frank L. bsooo.'
7, tho statement regarding its action the
commission said
The members OF the Art S0tninISisiio, 49,,
! realize that there Is a strong puplic cp.'i al
! IN Ney York in favor OF preserving rei,,, =
| park for the original purposes 10 -
, II was established and TO "hlch ~ f,b Iii his
! devoted They are in sympathy WIN III III
viaw and II the present proJect lnNo'tssr 80
any greater occupation OF park space iU
| unitarian purposes than now exists IL
might easily reach diHeren,t soi s,rnnsiv
| that the Park Department REQUIRES ,t,a,,a nE
quarters and that these should cSnumu,
| 20 be. for practical reasons. IN 49,. uen, oan- q.
| park where they nave been LOT .a,,i 1 ,o
| ar.,iors mast He also calls attenuoh "
! he fact that by locating the Lemon ,.,, l..
brarv building where the Arsenal - ' for
ated and quite aside from any teasT' ~ tbe
nr.es-yire q building so Important III ~ ~
5eyeIonn,ent Of American architecture s i.s
i erection there Will only be superseoihe 0"7
unitarian building by another. ,,,,, IN
The Art Commission concurs "i,h mr. from n,
distinguishing the present appIicathion, baVe f.
! othsr plans for park occupancy tle' nav
/ been suggested IN recent years
r. "a believed that the library buildlne
can he taken down and made ready lor
Use within a year. and perhaps IN snort,
| .na.. y, time The course TO be foio"eu
,n ,,kiup the structure down. accoroihs
- NJ Hastings. will be that OF marking
a..h stone as II ia removed. so that IL can
be found afterward
|
az one Of the most marked OF his aonlinis-
,ra,,on. The Arsenal building has oeeh
n him a ramshackle structure. which was
not Mt 10 be standing I'm the park. IL i
overrun with rats, IL fire trap ana was
| condemned four years ago because OF 'ne
weakness Of its roof, which had to be re-
paired at much cost.
When asked about the Richard Hunt Me-
mortal. which now faces the library COM
missioner Slower said some site "ouiu
have TO be provided for It, because the IN
,ent,on was TO have It facing the archi-
,ect's masterpiece. Another matter 10 De
considered will be the housing or the
Weather Bureau. for which provisions
have not been made IN the library struct-
ure. The Commissioner says II no other
arrangement can he made 1t will be piaceu
I'm the belvdere tower.
The restaurant building and a comfort
station near the Arsenal will be taken out
of the park and provision made for them
in the structure. thus adding a large area
| N the mark.