Flashback
Rents up in ’72; Lee
over Diether in ’77
Exactly fi ve years later, on Feb.
3, 1977, The Villager reported
that Community Board 2 rejected
one of its own in selecting
its fi rst district manager.
In a rare roll-call vote, the
board chose Rita Lee, who
lived in northern Manhattan.
She was chosen over
Doris Diether, who had
chaired the board’s Zoning
Committee for the previous
13 years.
At the time, the district
manager position was a new
post, created to apply pressure
for improved city services
for the local area.
“This is the kind of community
where I’d like to work nine-tofi
ve and fi ve-to-twelve to preserve,”
Lee told the board.
She said it was important to rely on
volunteers for getting projects done when
city agencies didn’t deliver.
“You have to be imaginative in helping people,”
she said.
Lee retired in 1996.
PHOTO BY THE VILLAGER
Rita Lee came
from northern
Manhattan but
she won the job
for C.B. 2 district
manager.
MAKE A SPLASH!
The BMCC swimming pool has been renovated
and is ready to welcome community
swimmers, ages 18 and up.
Entrances:
199 Chambers Street & 77 Harrison Street
Fees and Registration:
BMCC Athletic Department at (212) 220-8260
Continuing Education at (212) 346-8410
www.campusce.net/bmccpool
BY GABE HERMAN
Page One of The Villager on Feb. 3, 1972, included an
article about local businesses struggling to survive
against rising commercial rents.
Carol Blaine Fashions at 403 Sixth Ave., and Dini’s
Gifts and Cards at 407 Sixth Ave., were closing due to
rents nearly doubling, according to the businesses. And
Balducci’s Market at 1 Greenwich Ave. was relocating because
its rent rose from $19,000 to $40,000 per year.
The article, by Marc Cottone, said, “This latest development
in a Village trend begun in 1960 on MacDougal and
Bleecker Sts. is seen by many Villagers as a refl ection of a
city-wide trend begun more than a decade ago with urban
renewal programs.”
Also on Page One was a summary of a “raucous” City
Planning Commission hearing at which Villagers demanded
“restoration” of the area’s historic character, and community
input on government projects.
The article said most objections focused on the growing
“honky-tonk” atmosphere at Eighth St. and Sixth Ave.
Villagers wanted restrictive zoning to get rid of fast-food
establishments and tourist businesses that “cater to transients.”
Also at the hearing, Soho artists called for restrictive
zoning in their neighborhood to prevent an infl ux of large
industry and tourist establishments.
20 April 11, 2019 TVG Schneps Media
/bmccpool
/bmccpool