‘Judge Questions NYU Dorm’s Fairness’

In regard to “Judge Questions NYU Dorm’s Fairness” [Joseph Goldstein, New York, August 29, 2006], it’s high time that someone challenged the Alice-in-Wonderland logic of the City allowing air rights transfers from federal agencies when it has no power to prevent them from “double-dipping” and building again on sites, even after they have supposedly sold their air rights.

Voracious developers are more than happy to take these supposed air rights and build with them, without care for whether or not they will be used again by the Post Office. And the Post Office has shown time and time again little regard for obeying either local or federal laws regarding development in our communities.

Now we are told that even if the City cannot enforce development limitations against the Post Office in these air rights cases, the developers who bought the air rights — in this case Hudson Companies and NYU — will be able to enforce those restrictions. That’s like putting the proverbial foxes in charge of the chicken coop.

ANDREW BERMAN
Executive Director
Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation
New York, N.Y.

‘The Conan Show’

First off, Kudos to The New York Sun for going fee-free online.

Regarding “The Conan Show” by Jayanthi Daniel [Arts & Letters, August 28, 2006], I’d like to take a stab at explaining the inexplicable. Barry Manilow was the voice heard singing the American Bandstand theme. On Saturday afternoons for the ten year period from 1977-1987. Mr. Manilow also contributed lyrics to the song, aka “Bandstand Boogie,” which originally ran in instrumental form from 1954-1969. As such, he was probably a pretty good choice to perform on last night’s 58th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards.

JUSTIN RYAN
New York, N.Y.