Simeon Bankoff is a

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

preservation activist. He served as Executive Director of the

Historic Districts Council The Historic Districts Council (HDC) is a New York City-based 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that serves as the advocate for New York City's historic buildings, neighborhoods, and public spaces. HDC'YouTube channelprovides a large catalog of free w ...

, a

, USA, not-for-profit organization, from November 2000 through 2021. During his tenure, he positioned the Historic Districts Council at the forefront of numerous historic preservation campaigns, including the drive to save the formerly industrial neighborhoods of Brooklyn’s waterfront, the protection of Lower Manhattan’s unprotected historic buildings, fighting out-of-scale development along Central Park and advocating for the preservation of low-density historic neighborhoods in Queens. He also led HDC's involvement in campaigns to preserve a number of individual buildings, such as the Trylon Theater in Queens, 2 Columbus Circle in Manhattan and the Lady Moody House in Brooklyn. In addition to helping communities throughout the five boroughs, he has also helped HDC promote legislation to help preserve New York’s unprotected historic buildings as well as producing regular educational programs on history and preservation in New York City. Previous to becoming Executive Director of the Historic Districts Council, Bankoff worked for a number of other historic preservation organizations in New York City, including the

Historic House Trust The Historic House Trust of New York City was formed in 1989 as a public-private partnership with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation to preserve the historic houses located within New York City parks, although most of the houses ...

where he worked to acquire 18th and 19th Century farmhouses for the city, and the New York Landmarks Preservation Foundation, where he helped initiate the Cultural Medallions plaque program which commemorate the residences of notable New Yorkers such as Jack Kerouac,

Frank O'Hara Francis Russell "Frank" O'Hara (March 27, 1926 – July 25, 1966) was an American writer, poet, and art critic. A curator at the Museum of Modern Art, O'Hara became prominent in New York City's art world. O'Hara is regarded as a leading figure i ...

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...

and

Edna St. Vincent Millay Edna St. Vincent Millay (February 22, 1892 – October 19, 1950) was an American lyrical poet and playwright. Millay was a renowned social figure and noted feminist in New York City during the Roaring Twenties and beyond. She wrote much of he ...

. A lifelong resident of Brooklyn, Bankoff holds a BA from Sarah Lawrence College and a MS in Historic Preservation from Pratt Institute.

References

External links

"Answers About Preserving New York’s Neighborhoods, Part 3", ''THE NEW YORK TIMES'', March 27, 2009
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bankoff, Simeon 1970 births Living people Activists from New York City Sarah Lawrence College alumni Pratt Institute alumni