De Niro Begs for Penthouse Mercy
Tribeca colonist Robert De Niro testified before the Landmarks Preservation Commission yesterday in a bid to save the penthouse of his Greenwich Hotel—which has come under fire for being bigger, more unwieldy, and all-around less Tribeca-like than the one he'd said he would build—from the wrecking ball. "If there are any minor little mistakes, my apologies for it," Bobby told the Commission at a public hearing as he sought retroactive approval for the amped-up penthouse. De Niro & Co. also enlisted a few boldfaced supporters to testify on his behalf, like fellow Tribeca resident Ed Burns, who spoke as though the 88-room lodging (with rooms starting at $525 a night) were an aesthetic achievement on the scale Bruneschelli's Dome: "The building is beautiful and, for me as a layperson, architecturally beautiful." If the Landmarks Commission ultimately rules in De Niro's favor, maybe he'll treat its members to a free dinner at the hotel's restaurant, Ago—although that might be more of a punishment than a reward, come to think of it.