West Park Presbyterian saga stirs fears of future demolitions

A battle over whether to demolish the landmarked West Park Presbyterian Church in the Upper West Side has regained traction.

The clash kicked off over a year ago when the struggling church at West 86th Street and Amsterdam Avenue struck a deal with Alchemy Properties to raze the church if granted a demolition permit under a rarely used hardship application.

Quickly, activists and community members expressed concerns about the proposed demolition, which would replace the church with a luxury condominium no larger than 120,000 square feet with a 10,000-square-foot worship space for the church.

Activists and community members also fear the demolition could put numerous other landmarks in financial distress at risk. However, the hardship application that is pending approval from the Landmark Commission is seldom applied since the law has a rigorous standard. Since it was established in 1965, the demolition application for landmarks in distress has been considered only 19 times, and typically declined.

“Not only would it set an unjust precedent that these historic buildings could be demolished, but it would also erase a piece of history in our own backyard,” said Debby Hirshman, the Executive Director for Center At West Park, who has advocated against demolishing the church.

The LPC designated the church a landmark 13 years ago, describing it as “one of the Upper West Side’s most important buildings,” but West Park hasn’t been the same for some time.

Activists, who included celebrities like Actors Mark Ruffalo and Wendell Pierce, filmmaker Kenneth Lonergan, rapper Common and local politicians touted the church’s history, with some warning of what demolishing the church could mean for future landmarks in financial distress, during a public hearing before the LPC last week.

Common spoke about the church’s civil rights history, while others mentioned its historical significance and role as an arts space in the community.

Councilmember Gale Brewer, who was also in attendance, and represents the Upper West Side, has opposed the church’s demolition since plans to sell the church were first considered. Brewer acknowledged how rare hardship applications are but still has concerns over what demolishing West Park could mean for other landmarked buildings.

“Hardship applications are uncommon, and that’s a good thing,” Brewer said in a statement to The Real Deal. “Granting this hardship application would set a legal precedent that could lead to the demolition of hundreds of landmarked structures. Imagine how tragic it would be if New York City’s historical treasures were judged on their ability to turn a profit.”

It’s unclear that the LPC decision would set a legal precedent, but in 2021, the commission green lit a mixed-use project in the South Seaport Historic District that faced years of battling. The commission ultimately said yes to the project when Howard Hughes agreed to provide $40 million for the development of the South Street Seaport Museum. 

Since the proposed project would offer the church 10,000 square feet of space to worship, perhaps other concessions could be made.

The 133-year-old building has poured in dollars for maintenance since receiving landmark status. However, it still racked up numerous fines and violations as its congregation dwindled to a dozen members, helping lead the church to seek a hardship application. 

The LPC plans to hold another public hearing about the church’s hardship application process.

“This precedent of having a hardship and declaring a church is in hardship is a dangerous one,” said Derrick Mcqueen, a Reverend Presbyterian Pastor in New York City, during the most recent public hearing.

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