The genuinely historic Florent, in the now-historic meatpacking district.Photo: Getty Images
The meatpacking district has joined the state and national registries of historic places, proudly taking its place alongside lesser Manhattan peers like Trinity Church and the Dakota. That’s right, the whole club-infested, beer-drenched, hair-gel-slicked shebang — not just the formerly cute cobblestone square at Gansevoort and Ninth but all the way from Hudson Street to Washington and from Horatio Street to West 15th — is now historic. In state officials’ defense, the district was nominated for the designation in 2001, when it was slightly less repulsive. And historic status is good news inasmuch as it means the neighborhood’s safe from more new megaconstruction. It also means tax breaks for the area building owners (Soho House has got to be hurting for one) and state-funded renovation-rehabilitation grants. We’d like some money to rehab the Hotel Gansevoort into something resembling presentability.
