2005/06/15 Council Agenda Packet

G ! legiti .rv:.{��ate Broadway, y, off-Broadway, and off-off-Broadway theaters _,.erate within a few blocks, as well as businesses ranging from major law firms (at Worldwide Plaza) to child care centers. Junior High School 17, with more than 700 children, is located a half a block away, on West 47th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues. In addition proposed "porno palace" is within 100 feet of a church. your Community Board No.'4 strongly urges you to reconsider the proposed use of your building, Rowan Murphy; Assistant Director of Common Ground Communl �- of The Times Square; an affordable housing � (CGC),- operator g program in what was formerly the Times �. Square ,Hotel at -25 W.43:S - - z treet: Ji (Testimony before Manhattan Borough President's hearing, -October, 1993) ~� .CGC: acquired TheTimes = �... L y. - ..;, •�- - � :::; -`-.:.,. � .:.,... _ ;_ , , Square in March of 1991: , -At that time, there 12VaS one adult !ise establishment on the south side Of W. 43rd Street, across from our building. The block, at that time, had a growing reputation as a "safe corridor," as the result of intensive efforts by the Mayor's Office of Midtown Enforcement, Midtown South, and local businesses to increase community policing and security awareness. In September of '92, two additional adult use establishments opened, the 24-hour "Playpen" and "Malebox" located directly across from our front entrance. For the 364 individuals who iive at,The Times Square, and our staff, this concentration of uses has meant a steadily deteriorating 43rd Street. Before the Malebox and Playpen quality tenants life on could enjoy sitting In the lobby or mezzanine during the evening, strolling to the corner for coffee or lingering on the steps for some fresh air. , Now, the street Is a gathering place for prostitutes and others Involved In. Illegal activities. Patrons for the adult use establishments harass and intimidate our elderly tenants, in particular. Patrons use our service entrance as.a -urinal on a regular basis.* Our security staff is hassled when attempting to keep our entrance clear of loiterers from these establishments. The street is now ugly and Intimidating at night, discouraging use of the lobby and mezzanine by our tenants and creating noise problems for tenants living at the front of the building overlooking 43rd Street. The concentration of adult uses on West 43rd Street gives the block a very different appearance and feeling than it had when a single establishment existed there. EVER00237 51