A brief history of the lost Mineral Springs Pavilion in Central Park

Central Park, Dept. of Parks and Recreation, LPC, Scenic Landmark, UWS

by Megan Fitzpatrick The Mineral Springs building is a 1950s design which currently houses La Pain Quotidien. Its name derives from the original 19th-century pavilion that sold park goers mineral water. The immediate need for publicly accessible mineral water came...

The UWS shows up to celebrate Hannah Arendt on her birthday!

Riverside Drive, Unsung Heroes, UWS, walking tour

by Megan Fitzpatrick This past Saturday, LANDMARK WEST! was invited to attend an event at 370 Riverside Drive to celebrate not only the birthday of Hannah Arendt, but to see the recently installed medallion honoring her memory and work while she lived in the...

72nd Street is His Middle Name

UWS, West 72nd Street

By Claudie Benjamin When Jonah [72nd Street] Phillips, owner with his father Alan of Pastrami Queen at 138 W. 72nd, starts talking about traditional Jewish Kosher Deli foods, he turns theatrical, using the inflection of immigrants who spoke Yiddish and settled in the...

UWSider Téa Leoni’s UNICEF Halloween

UWS

by Claudie Banjamin Remember knocking and shouting “Trick Or Treat for UNICEF!”?  That tradition began on Halloween 1950–children could not only enjoy dressing up and amassing a huge haul of candy, but also bring along little orange cardboard...

Architect Robert Arthur King’s Favorite UWS Stonecarvings

architecture, Upper West Side, UWS

By Claudie Benjamin It’s hard to imagine anyone more engaging and informed than Robert Arthur King, FIAA, Architect, on the subject of the stone carvings that ornament the facades of Upper West Side brownstones built between 1870-1930. Actually, King’s...

Objects Desired, Bought & Sold

UWS

An UWS Highlight by Claudie Benjamin John Koch, a long-time specialist in buying and selling the contents of estates, has a deep love and affinity for the Upper West Side.  He admits, “I literally have to be dragged away to cross the park.”  He...