When wet snow falls windows along the front facade of the 136-year-old West Park Presbyterian Church stand open to the elements.
Pigeon droppings coat the front steps and portions of the public sidewalk in front of the Romanesque Revival Presbyterian church on the corner of Amsterdam Avenue at 86th Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City.
New York City Council Member Gale Brewer has raised serious concerns about the condition of the now-empty landmark, particularly during winter weather. In a January 14 letter to the Chair of the Presbytery’s West Park Administrative Commission, Brewer wrote, “I am concerned that the building will not be properly maintained when unoccupied,” and asked the Presbytery of New York City to confirm that it would continue maintaining both the interior and exterior of the building.
The Presbytery has claimed that maintaining the church is a “hardship” and has petitioned the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) for permission to demolish the building and replace it with market-rate housing.
The church is currently vacant because the Presbytery declined to renew leases with the nonprofit cultural organizations — and the African American congregation — that had occupied and activated the building for several years.
The Presbytery also refused to allow the nonprofit Center at West Park to fund restoration work that would have corrected violations and removed the long-standing sidewalk shed. Those improvements could have stabilized the building and reduced maintenance concerns historic preservation advocates say.
Brewer copied City housing and landmarks officials on her letter and said she previously asked LPC staff whether the Commission would monitor conditions at the church. She was told that such monitoring is not customary.
“Now LPC doesn’t even return my calls,” Brewer said.
The Landmarks Commission has not set a date to resume a hearing on the Presbytery’s hardship application. There is no guarantee that the Presbytery will be granted hardship.
If it isn’t, the Center at West Park, or other cultural organizations, may wish to continue offering artists and audiences the opportunity for lower-cost space and performances.
“Both the Mayor and the Governor have expressed concern about keeping artists and cultural institutions in the City,” The New York Landmarks Conservancy told supports last week. “The nonprofit Center at West Park was a good example of how to do that. The Center also subleased space to smaller non-profits and artists.”
The Council is join Council Member Brewer in urging the Landmarks Preservation Commission and other City agencies to require a clear maintenance plan from the Presbytery and to inspect the building to ensure that plan is being carried out.
“A landmark left vacant must not be allowed to deteriorate — especially while its fate is under review,” the Conservancy said.
Photos of the West Park Presbyterian Church provided by the New York Landmarks Conservancy.
Source link
