DAYLIGHT: THE NEW YORK LANDMARKS CONSERVANCY’S 25th ANNUAL CHAIRMAN’S AWARD LUNCHEON MOST SUCCESSFUL EVER RAISING OVER $200,000 IN THE 40TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ORGANIZATION Tuesday, May 7, 2013 at The Metropolitan Club
Congratulations to all
Honorees!
Individual awards went to John Belle, Norton Garfinkle, John J. Kerr, Jr., Stephen S. Lash, Donald Oresman, Frank J. Sciame, Jr., and Stuart N. Siegel.
On the occasion of its 40th Anniversary, The New York Landmarks Conservancy honored its former and current board leadership with the 2013 Chairman’s Award on Tuesday, May 7, 2013 at a luncheon at The Metropolitan Club. The award recognizes exceptional business leaders that have demonstrated their dedication to protecting New York’s rich architectural heritage.
“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to honor our past and present board chairs,” said Mover and Shaker Peg Breen, President of The New York Landmarks Conservancy. “These individuals have guided the Conservancy with a steady hand and a keen eye, and each has played a fundamental role in our recognition as one of the country’s preeminent preservation organizations.”
The Conservancy’s singular mission for four decades has been the protection of New York’s built environment from the iconic buildings that define the City’s spectacular skyline to the diverse neighborhoods where New Yorkers live, work and play.
Whom You Know was honored to cover another milestone event for the New York Landmarks Conservancy's banner year, and we were delighted to see Mover and Shaker Elizabeth Ann Kivlan, Donald Tober, Joan Gerner, Jim McKenna, Robert Masucci, Kevin Pierce, Bruce Jabbonsky, Mysore Nagarja, and Shi-Jia Chen.
A gathering of more than 260 enjoyed a celebratory lunch at the landmark Metropolitan Club at East 60th Street and Fifth Avenue.
The Landmarks Conservancy inaugurated the Chairman’s Award in 1988 to recognize exceptional business leaders and companies that have demonstrated their dedication to protecting New York’s rich architectural heritage.
Joan Davidson, a loyal friend and early patron, helped Conservancy President Peg Breen present the awards. Joan leads the Furthermore Foundation, which supports publications focusing on the City, art and architecture.
City Council members Gail Brewer and Jessica Lappin as well as Landmarks Preservation Chairman Robert Tierney, Landmarks Commissioners Fred Bland, Diana Chapin, Joan Gerner, Michael Goldblum, Margery Perlmutter, and Roberta Washington were among some of the City officials in attendance. Former presidents of the Conservancy, Laurie Beckelman and Susan Henshaw Jones were also present to lend their support and thanks.
The Honorees are:
Stuart N. Siegel, Chairman of the Board, 1998-2001, 2009-2013
Stuart is the founder and principal of Ore Hill Advisors where he counsels corporate clients, private equity investors, family businesses and family offices seeking assistance with strategic analysis and implementation of brand extension, business re-engineering and succession planning. Prior to founding Ore Hill Advisors, Stuart held executive positions with Sotheby’s International Realty during a 25 year career and then Brunello Development Corp., a Ferragmo family investment vehicle. He is past President of the University of Virginia School of Architecture Foundation Board.
Frank J. Sciame, Jr., Chairman of the Board, 2006-2008
Frank established F. J. Sciame Construction in 1975 and Sciame Development in 1996. The firm has been entrusted with some of the metropolitan area's most noteworthy projects. They include: Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum; Pratt Institute; New Victory Theater; Central Synagogue; Harvard Club; Lycée Français; New York Public Library; The Seamen’s Church Institute; The Mark Hotel; Cooper Square Hotel; New Museum of Contemporary Art; Museum of Arts and Design; Museum of the Moving Image, Guggenheim Museum; Cooper Union – New Academic Building; Four Freedoms Park on Roosevelt Island; and numerous projects for universities including New York University, Columbia and Princeton.
John J. Kerr, Jr., Esq., Chairman of the Board, 2002-2005
Jack’s affiliation with the Landmarks Conservancy dates from 1975 when he worked as a summer associate at Cahill, Gordon & Reindel and helped prepare an amicus brief on behalf of the Conservancy and the Municipal Art Society in the Grand Central Terminal Case that was eventually decided by the U.S. Supreme Court. After joining Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, he became counsel to the Conservancy and represented it in numerous historic preservation cases including the St. Bartholomew’s Church case, the St. Paul and St. Andrew’s Church case, and the New Jersey v. New York dispute on the jurisdiction of Ellis Island.
Donald Oresman, Esq., Chairman of the Board, 1995-1998
Donald served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Paramount Communications, a publishing and entertainment company, from December 1983 until his retirement in March 1994. Prior to joining Paramount, Donald was a partner at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. His distinguished career there spanned several decades in which he represented major corporate clients in the areas of federal securities law, mergers and acquisitions and other general corporate matters.
Stephen S. Lash, Chairman of the Board, 1992-1994
Stephen joined Christie's in 1976 to help the firm launch auctions in New York and now serves as Chairman Emeritus of Christie’s Americas. He was a mayoral appointee on the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. Stephen is on the Board of Trustees of the Museum of the City of New York, the Preservation League of New York State and the Park Avenue Armory. He is co-chairman of the American Friends of the Israel Museum and a member of the Board of Overseers at the Peabody Essex Museum.
Norton Garfinkle, Chairman of the Board, 1992
Norton is Chairman of the Future of American Democracy Foundation, a partnership with Yale University Press and the Yale Center for International and Area Studies. He is a former Chairman of the George Washington University Institute for Communitarian Policy Studies and former Chairman and President of the National Hospice Foundation. Norton is the author of The American Dream vs. the Gospel of Wealth: The Fight for a Productive Middle-Class Economy.
John Belle, FAIA, RIBA, Chairman of the Board, 1991-1992
A founding partner of the award-winning firm Beyer Blinder Belle, John has directed the revitalization of some of architecture’s most important historic icons, including Ellis Island, Grand Central Terminal and the Delaware Aqueduct, all of which received the nation's highest award for public architecture, the Presidential Design Award. He has lectured around the world and served a four-year term on the Commission of Fine Arts in Washington, DC. John was the recipient of the Conservancy’s 2012 Lucy G. Moses Preservation Leadership Award.
About the Landmarks Conservancy
The New York Landmarks Conservancy has led the effort to preserve and protect New York City’s architectural legacy for 40 years. Since its founding, the Landmarks Conservancy has loaned and granted more than $40 million, which has leveraged more than $1 billion in 1,550 restoration projects throughout New York, revitalizing communities, providing economic stimulus and supporting local jobs. The Conservancy has also provided countless hours of pro bono technical assistance to building owners, both nonprofit organizations and individuals. The Conservancy’s work has saved more than a thousand buildings across the City and State, protecting New York’s distinctive cultural heritage for residents and visitors alike today, and for future generations. For more information, please visit www.nylandmarks.org.
