15G walls for posh CarranzaCarra officeoffi
Schools chief’s ‘ivory tower’ high life
Mr. Chancellor, tear down this wall!
The city gave schools boss Richard Carranza a new enclosed office in a beautifully ornate wing — fit for a king — on an upper floor of the old Tweed Courthouse that serves as Department of Education headquarters.
The DOE said it cost about $15,000 for labor and materials to build “partitions” around Carranza’s spacious new office, saying he needed extra security.
The DOE refused to let a reporter see it.
Before erecting the barriers — which witnesses called a wall — the DOE did not seek the advice of the Landmarks Preservation Commission, saying it was unnecessary. The commission designated the historic building’s interior a protected city landmark in 1984.
Carranza’s private office takes up a big corner of the palatial, 2,060-square foot, third-floor mezzanine, The Post learned.
Councilman Joe Borelli (R-SI), an education committee member, rapped the fancy digs: “This is someone literally isolating himself in an ivory tower. Just looking at the space, it seems that it’s finally equal to the grand opinion that Chancellor Carranza has about himself.”
But City Hall cited concern over Carranza’s safety, saying the NYPD last September assigned its Threat Assessment and Protection Unit to conduct a security assessment on Carranza for the DOE. The NYPD was concerned that the chancellor’s former office was located on the ground floor, directly inside the front door — where all visitors go through metal detectors — and visible through windows in the lobby, officials said. “In terms of threat mitigation, the location offered minimal ability to maintain access control for the chief executive of the DOE,” an NYPD spokesperson told The Post by e-mail Saturday.
Before Carranza, chancellors — such as Dennis Walcott (inset below) sat in small Room 152 on the first floor, which had an adjacent enclosed conference room, or in the open-space third-floor “bullpen,” side-by-side with staffers.
Carranza moved his office several levels up this month, with aides saying the embattled educator has received “threats.”
The chancellor and his top aides, who sit nearby, displaced staffers formerly assigned to the aborted Renewal program to fix failing schools.
The mezzanine features a vaulted ceiling, towering cream-and-red brick arches, sculptured columns, marble tile floors and intricate chandeliers, records and a photo provided by John G. Waite Associates, architects on the renovation, show.
A landmark expert frowned at the lax oversight. “Given the beauty of the room and importance of the building, it would have been appropriate to ask the LPC for guidance,” said Peg Breen, head of the nonprofit New York Landmarks Conservancy.
A landmark designation means any renovation requires an application to ensure work does not alter or damage historic features.
In 2002, Mayor Mike Bloomberg moved Chancellor Joel Klein and other educrats into the building at 52 Chambers St., next door to City Hall.
“The NYPD had security concerns about [Carranza’s] previous office, and this space allows for additional security measures,” said spokeswoman Miranda Barbot.