Breines, Simon 1906-2003

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BREINES, Simon 1906-2003

OBITUARY NOTICE—

See index for CA sketch: Born April 4, 1906, in Brooklyn, NY; died September 16, 2003, in Scarsdale, NY. Architect and author. Breines, a partner in the Pomerance & Breines firm, was known for his concern for architectural integrity and criticism of what he viewed to be hurried building projects in New York City. He graduated from the Pratt Institute with a degree in architecture in 1941, after which he embarked on a successful career in the field. Some of his projects include the Bronx Municipal Hospital Center, the Lexington School for the Deaf, the Rose F. Kennedy Research Center, the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and the Grand Concourse Public Library. When the Landmarks Conservancy of New York was founded, Breines served as the organization's first president. He advocated against the construction of what he considered to be oversized buildings on narrow streets, and he was for the creation of better public access for pedestrians. With regard to the latter, he wrote, with William J. Dean, The Pedestrian Revolution: Streets without Cars (1974). Breines was also the author of Architecture and Furniture of Alvar Aalto (1942) and, with John Dean, The Book of Houses (1946).

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Los Angeles Times, September 27, 2003, p. B21.

New York Times, September 25, 2003, p. C13.