The Women’s City Club has long advocated for the preservation of New York City’s architectural and cultural heritage. On April 20, 2010, WCC member Laura Ludwig presented testimony at a City Council public hearing to support the designation of Manhattan’s West Park Presbyterian Church as a historical landmark. The West Park Presbyterian Church, located on the Upper West Side, was designated an Individual Landmark by the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) in January 2010. Now it must survive a final vote by the City Council in order to escape the risk of destruction that would come with the failure to grant it the protection of landmark status.
West Park Presbyterian Church (photo via Landmark West)
Originally built in the late 1880s, the Romanesque West Park Presbyterian features Lake Superior red stone trimmed with Longmeadow brownstone, a material used on no other known religious structures. Now in a state of disrepair, the church is closed and under imminent threat of demolition. According to the New York Post, one developer would like to fix the building and erect a condo tower on the site of what is now a small chapel in the church.
The community surrounding West Park has been advocating for its landmark designation for over 20 years. As a landmark, the church would be protected by a set of regulations designed to prevent the kinds of insensitive alteration or demolition that could destroy its historical integrity. Without the threat of intervention from developers, LPC could focus on its vision of reviving and re-opening the church. Opponents of landmark designation insist that the structure is a hopeless blight best torn down and replaced; however, the achievement of landmark status would be a significant asset in securing partners and funding for its restoration.
The WCC would like to see this beautiful historic building revived to its full potential for a functioning place of worship and believes this goal to be well within reach. First, the City must take the critical first step of committing to the church’s potential by formally recognizing West Park Presbyterian as the landmark that it is.
Post written by Clara Peterson
Tags: landmark, preservation
