Gottlieb getting active, but not on Dispensary
BY GABE HERMAN
Even as the Village changes all
around it, the historic Northern
Dispensary continues to sit
steadfast and vacant on its own triangular
island. The building has been
that way for decades, due to a restrictive
deed from the 19th century and
ownership by a real estate company
known for buying Downtown properties
and then sitting on them.
William Gottlieb Real Estate, however,
has been slightly more active recently,
developing some of its properties in
the Village and Meatpacking District.
Starting about six years ago, there have
even been internal renovations done on
the Northern Dispensary, at Waverly
Place and Christopher St. And it was
recently used for a fundraising event,
according to Andrew Berman, director
of the Greenwich Village Society for
Historic Preservation.
The Northern Dispensary opened in
1831 and included a deed that it must
be used for medical care for the “worthy
poor.” Further restrictions were
added by the Catholic Archdiocese of
New York, which bought the building
in 1990, before selling it to William
Gottlieb in 1998. Those prohibitions
include performing abortions and “any
obscene performances on the premises
or any obscene or pornographic purposes,”
according to The New York
Times.
The Dispensary, called “Northern”
because at the time it was in the city’s
upper reaches, for more than a century
treated patients as a medical clinic, including
Edgar Allan Poe in 1837 for a
head cold.
By the 1960s, it had transitioned into
a dental clinic. The clinic was sued in
the 1980s for refusing to treat a man
with AIDS. Financial trouble led to the
clinic’s closure, and the Archdiocese
planned to make it a facility for AIDS
patients, but some local residents disapproved
and the idea was scrapped.
That eventually led to the sale to William
The small triangular Northern Dispensary, located on an island just
east of Sheridan Square, has sat vacant for more than two decades.
Gottlieb in 1998 for $760,000.
The Dispensary has been vacant ever
since.
Gottlieb was known for eccentricities
like his shabby dress and driving a station
wagon with broken windows. He
bought up many properties but hardly
renovated any of them, and refused to
sell. He died in 1999, and around 100
buildings, with an estimated total value
of up to $1 billion, went to his sister
Mollie Bender, who was also reclusive
and did nothing with the properties.
Mollie died in 2007 and now her son
Neil Bender runs the company’s operations.
In recent years, the company has started
to act on some properties, though,
according to Berman of G.V.S.H.P. He
noted the company is redeveloping the
Keller Hotel, at Barrow and West Sts.,
which The Villager covered in 2017,
PHOTO BY GABE HERMAN
reporting how the project was facing
strong opposition from neighbors.
Gottlieb also owns the buildings on
the south side of Gansevoort St. in the
“Gansevoort Row” project. That project
— to raze parts of the commercial
block and rebuild it higher — faced
strong opposition, as well as a lawsuit.
Berman said the company has also received
approval from the Landmarks
Preservation Commission to develop a
new building at 540 Hudson St., near
Charles St., the location of Bill Gottlieb’s
former offi ce.
Berman said of the Gottlieb company’s
increased activity, “It’s been
building over the last several years. I
wouldn’t describe it necessarily as sudden,
but from a long period of zero activity,
they’ve defi nitely started to amp
up.”
Berman said plans for the landmarked
Northern Dispensary, however,
which is located in the Greenwich
Village Historic District, remain unknown.
“I know that they rented it out, for
one or two events,” he said, which he
thought might have been a fundraiser
for a nonprofi t of some kind. “We
haven’t seen many signs of activity
there in the last year or so.”
Two construction permits issued in
2013 remain posted on one of the Dispensary’s
windows, referring to repairs
of the chimney, and “roof renovations
consisting of roof replacement.”
“We know that a couple years ago
they hired somebody to take a look at
the building in terms of how structurally
sound it was,” said Berman, “and
it seems as though some efforts were
made to kind of make sure the building
was being physically maintained, which
is encouraging.”
Even nearby locals, including shop
owners along Christopher St., are perplexed
by the empty edifi ce. Across the
street, a woman working at Personal
Touch Cleaners said she knew nothing
about the place but had wondered why
it was empty.
A few doors down at clothing shop
Laina Jane, the eponymous owner
said she couldn’t remember the building
ever being occupied, despite her
owning the shop since 1988. She said
it would help the area if the structure
were put to some use.
“It’s such a waste,” Jane said.
William Gottlieb Real Estate did not
respond to requests for comment about
its plans for the Northern Dispensary.
Andrew Berman said of the Dispensary,
“It’s a very special building, it’s a
very historically signifi cant building.
We ideally would like it to be occupied
and used productively.”
Johnson is also public advocate for two months
BY GABE HERMAN
Corey Johnson can add the title of
public advocate to his impressive
résumé, though he will only
hold this role for the next two months.
By law, City Council Speaker Johnson
became the city’s public advocate
on Jan. 1, when Letitia James left the
post to become New York State Attorney
General. This past weekend, Mayor
Bill de Blasio set Feb. 26 as the date for
a special election for public advocate.
The nonpartisan race so far includes
more than 20 candidates and others exploring
a possible run.
Speaker Johnson tweeted on Dec.
31, “As of tomorrow, I will become the
Acting Public Advocate for NYC. I plan
to take this role and its responsibilities
seriously, because New Yorkers deserve
nothing less.”
Issues that Johnson plans to spotlight
as the city’s advocate include the state
of the subways, plus how well city agencies
respond to resident complaints
through the 311 system, according to
The New York Times. He then plans to
hold hearings as Council Speaker about
those 311 issues.
Johnson’s City Council Web page has
been updated to include his new temporary
position, and says, “The Public
Advocate acts as an ombudsperson for
all New Yorkers — a government offi -
cial who champions the public and ensures
government is responsive to their
needs.”
The public advocate is next in the
line of succession if the mayor can’t
fulfi ll his duties, and the position has
been a launching pad for its previous
occupants, including de Blasio, who
was advocate from 2010 through 2013
before becoming mayor.
The winner of the February special
election will serve as public advocate
for the rest of the year, and another
election next November will be held
to see who will serve the remainder of
James’s term, which runs to the end of
2021.
The special election may be the fi rst
to see new campaign fi nance regulations
that were passed by voters this
past November, which modifi ed the
amount of public funding each candidate
can get and the caps on individual
donations. The reforms were originally
supposed to take effect in 2021 but the
City Council passed legislation late last
month applying them to the upcoming
February special election.
Schneps Media TVG January 3, 2019 3