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A controversial Port
Authority plan to build additional exits for two West
Village PATH stations is on hold for at least a year,
community leaders say. The plan includes building an
exit opposite the Lucille Lortel Theatre, an idea
which the Lucille Lortel Foundation, owner and
operator of the legendary venue, believes may
jeopardize its viability.
The Lortel is the only
theatrical venue in the path of what project
detractors call an ill-conceived expansion of the PATH
system. Its proponents, however, call it a necessary
evil: With each of those two PATH stations offering a
single means of entrance and egress-and with ridership
up sharply since the World Trade Center PATH station
was destroyed after Sept. 11-there are fears that the
stations loom as attractive terrorist targets.
As reported in the July
5 issue of Back Stage, Shawn Willett, program
coordinator for the Lucille Lortel Foundation,
characterized the organization as
"distressed" over the plan, which includes
digging a 74-foot trench on the corner of Christopher
Street and Bedford Street. Another exit is slotted for
a patch of land on Christopher Street, near Waverly
Place.
"Our position is
that while we understand the need for more safety and
new exits, we don't think the Port Authority has
explored all the options they could have,"
Willett said. The organization believes that any
construction will make it "difficult" to
make productions work, since theatre access will be
limited and noise will inevitably be heard at
different times of the day. "There won't be noise
at night unless there's construction, but we're
concerned about noise during matinees and during
anytime there's a rehearsal at the theatre."
In addition, he says,
"the exit creates another problem-it'll become a
meeting place for people, so more noise. Another
concern is that we'll be losing space to load in
sets-the difficulty there is that many of the
companies coming to the Lortel are nonprofit and can't
afford the additional manpower necessary to get around
that."
The PATH plan ignited a
Stonewall-style firestorm among celebrities.
Playwrights Edward Albee and Tony Kushner;
"Hairspray" star Harvey
Fierstein; comedienne Margaret
Cho; choreographer Bill T. Jones; and writers
Edmund White, Rita Mae Brown, and Martin Duberman all
signed a petition decrying the plan to "alter the
character of the Stonewall Historic District."
The petition accused
the Port Authority of operating without being
"subject to any review under either historic
preservation or environmental laws" and refusing
"to consider realistic alternatives to the
entrances." Yet because the Port Authority
applied to the Federal Emergency Management Agency ( news
- web
sites) (FEMA) to fund the $29.6 million project,
it has been told by the agency to abide by its rules,
including committing to an Environmental Impact Study
(EIS) before the project can commence.
According to a letter
sent by Councilwoman Christine Quinn to the Lortel
Foundation-and obtained by Back Stage-the EIS would
examine the construction's "possible effects on
the environment, the historic district, businesses,
and traffic," including "public input and
involvement," thus enabling the Lortel Foundation
to state its concerns. Quinn's letter also notes,
"construction on the projects cannot be completed
in the early to mid 2003 timeframe."
For now, Willett says
the Lortel Foundation's "position is that we're
still very concerned. After all, if the Port Authority
can find a way to fund this without going through FEMA,
they can just do so without an Environmental Impact
Study. The Port Authority has a lot of power and a lot
of clout and they can just turn around tomorrow and
have a different story about how 'aware' they are of
community opposition. For now, it sounds like they're
concerned-let's just hope it stays that way."
-- Leonard Jacobs
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