By Gretchen Berger
The Center at West Park (CWP), a not-for-profit community performing arts center, said this month that it has secured $3.5 million in pledges to help save the landmarked, 132-year-old West-Park Presbyterian Church at West 86th Street and Amsterdam Avenue. The church has been at the center of months of debate over whether it should be preserved as a historic landmark or demolished to make way for a condo development that would include space for the church.
In its announcement, the CWP said the pledges were enough to buy the building from the West-Park congregation, which voted to sell the building last year after decades of declining membership and a shrinking stream of funds. The center, which is currently the building’s tenant, said that if it purchases the building, it would also launch a capital campaign to raise public and private funds to preserve and upgrade the building “as a vibrant and inclusive facility for the arts and culture” while retaining some space for the church.
The announcement did not say who had made the pledges. A request for comment from the church’s representative about the center’s offer went unanswered.
The building’s fate has been in limbo for several months and is set to be resolved by the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission when it meets to hear more testimony about the issue. The commission discussed the building’s fate this summer but has not set a date for its next meeting on West-Park. Meanwhile, the church filed a lawsuit in August aimed at evicting CWP. The church has argued that repairs and restoration of the red sandstone building would cost tens of millions of dollars that it cannot afford; it wants to sell the property to commercial developer Alchemy Properties. CWP says the church’s estimates are much higher than what would actually be needed. The landmarks commission has asked for an independent assessment of the claims before it makes its decision.
According to Michael Hiller, a preservationist attorney representing CWP, if the center purchases the church it would then seek to raise about $10 million for its restoration. CWP believes it can get strong financial backing from both the city and private donors. He said the plan also includes selling the building’s air rights — the unused development rights above the property — valued at just over $13 million. Proceeds from that sale would go to the church.
CWP has been West Park’s prime tenant since 2017. Its programs have supported numerous emerging and experimental artists, presenting more than 300 performances to more than 15,000 audience members, and offering affordable performance rental space. Support for preserving the building has come from local elected officials and community organizations, but others in the community have pointed out that past promises to rescue the badly deteriorated church have never turned into concrete, fully-financed plans.
This is a joke, right? Is it April Fool’s day already? Shame on anyone who believes this is the solution to the problem. Pledge does not mean money in the bank, Campaign to raise funds for restoration (minimum $10MM, likely much much more) a pipe dream.
Where is Gail Brewer who said it would be “easy” for her to raise the funds?
20 and many more years of more scaffolding.
That’s not enough to buy the building. Why on earth should the church low ball what they can get for the building? That is also not enough to fix the building.
They do realize right that they have no special rights to buy it at whatever price they set right?
Love it!
The proposed condo would destroy the views of adjacent buildings
There is no right to a view under NYS law.
I do love the argument that it would block someone’s right to views and light…..I’m fine with people making arguments for or against a certain action or inaction, but let’s do better with both our reasoning (in general) and our ability (in general) to engage in civil discourse. Amazing to me how, over time, we have lost our ability to hear each other and to truly understand what is important to each of the parties to a discussion/disagreement.
Views of… the scaffolding?
GOOD TO HEAR.
The building is unsalvagable. The church leaders made sure of that. Mold and mildew everywhere, rooms locked so people can’t see it is falling apart and piled with snow and leaves. We tried to save it before the current renter – who seems to have raised the $$$ but on a lease the church won’t renew. We spent a fortune and swept up buckets of rat crap only to get shafted by the owners. We spent a week and removed 30 years of oxide from the brass fixtures, only to let them turn black again. One room that was always padlocked was once left opened. It had a massage table with a knife on it. (There are photos.) The ‘artist’ that exhibited his paintings offered to paint all the females that walked in the room, in explicit nudes. There was a homeless cowboy who lived in the top floor and was always loaded. He claimed squatte’s rights, so he was a permanent fixture. It will collapse and kill someone, and everyone will play shocked. It is in THAT bad of condition. The ceiling lights need full rewiring. Surely the whole building does as it has flooded so many times. This is just off the top of my head. The Con at West Park
Overall this sounds like a terrific direction. As I read it, the Church gets $16M ($3.5M + $13M air rights) and whether $10M is enough to restore the building is only the buyers problem, so why question that? I can think of just one reason anyone would object to this without more facts than the article…and that’s a lost opportunity to make a lot of money. Just saying.
No – the Church gets only $3.5 million. The air rights – which are an even bigger pipe dream than CWP raising $10 million will never happen. The whole preservation effort has been driven by neighbors who don’t want a high rise. The air rights would in theory allow a high rise next to the church – I don’t see that happening…
It’s not remotely “only the buyer’s problem.” When the buyer can’t or won’t afford to restore and maintain it – as is the case with the current owner – it becomes OUR problem. As it has been for decades. A stain on our land, not a landmark.
Get. Rid. Of. It!!!!
I agree with the earlier comments. This is a weak proposal that will not work. There is a real lack of creativity here. The developer could plan a 4-5 story base that would have adequate space for both the church and the CWP, as well as a nice lobby and other condo amenities, topped by a slim tower that would not block the views from the windows on the sides of the adjacent buildings on Amsterdam and on 86th Street. Fair monetary compensation for all parties could be negotiated. Of course, the existing church would disappear, but that is inevitable.
Demolish it, and plant trees.
The most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.
For 35 years scaffolding trying to hold up this church.
Having spent 9 years on the building committee of the Landmarked Society for Ethical Culture, I can only advise that, due to permitting and building codes, construction in this city is always ten times more than you expect. The air right sale is also restricted by code to adjacent building site, or, for landmarked properties, only to sites across the intersection. In this case only to the SW and SE corners of Amsterdam and 86th. Not likely the Belnord is planning a major build out.
If the Presbytery had proposed building affordable housing on this site, I can only image what the community outburst would have been.
This building will never be viable unless an organization is willing to invest at least 20 million in complete renovation. The landmarking decision was totally inappropriate.
It’s time to stop this charade and let the congregation – who actually own the building (through the Presbytery) – make the decision. NO ONE ELSE has ANY right to determine the future of the building or the property. Period.
The religious group that owns this property is being shamefully negligent here. They have allowed this to happen. They have a responsibility to the community but are doing nothing here. It is very sad.
They said it would cost at least 50 million to make the building safe and habitable. Ridiculous.
WSR, please put Gail Brewer on the record on what she is actually willing to do, specifically how much money she can raise, and a firm timeline. Easy to raise the tens of millions of $$$ to repair the church? Okay, let’s see it. Otherwise, sell the property to Alchemy and put it back on the tax rolls. So far, she has been the District 6 council member and Manhattan BP for eight years, and now the D6 council member again. Results? Nothing for the church and nothing for the $50 million required to repair the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial at 89-90th and Riverside Drive. One of the gems of the City park system. Celebrates the war that ended slavery. She made promises about the Memorial years ago. Right now the Memorial has been fenced off for >4-5 years. Trees are growing out of the foundation stones. They will crack the foundation. The City will let that gem of a memorial deteriorate to the point of danger to pedestrians and then tear it down, a terrible loss to the community. Part of the retaining wall that separates the upper and lower levels of Riverside Park collapsed two or three years ago below Riverside and 85th. Nothing has been done to repair it. The Memorial and the retaining wall are the responsibility of the Riverside Park Conservancy, which has neither the money nor the personnel for the jobs, and the Dept. of Parks, and Council Member Gail Brewer. Right now Brewer’s website is circulating a ridiculous online petition to save the Memorial, as if to determine if there is any community support for the salvaging of the Memorial. Community Board 7? Where are they?
She’s on the record that “we’re buying a church.”
The details, you ask… well, use your imagination!