Audrey Wachs explores the Landmarks Preservation Commission’s decision to preserve and honor the Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue in the Lower East Side.
“On Tuesday the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) debated how to preserve a Manhattan synagogue gutted by fire earlier this year. Instead of approving the owner’s request to demolish the building entirely, the commission agreed that important parts of the structure should be salvaged, where possible.
The building in question is the Beth Hamerdash Hagodol, at 60 Norfolk Street on the Lower East Side. The modified Gothic Revival–style structure was built in 1850 as a Baptist church and converted to a synagogue in 1885. Home to a Russian Jewish Orthodox congregation for more than a century but vacant since 2007, it was one of the first structures added to New York’s landmark list, in 1967…
At the meeting, the commissioners decided to preserve, where feasible, the building’s most important elements, but did not vote up/down on the owner’s demolition bid. Instead, LPC general council Mark Silberman was asked to draft a resolution on the project that modified the owner’s request. The resolution states that parts of the building need to be removed for safety reasons, especially around the north, south, and west facades, while retaining as much material as possible, with significant architectural features salvaged. The whole process will be overseen on-site by the LPC’s engineers. It was approved yesterday afternoon.” – Audrey Wachs
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Landmarks Approves Partial eDmolition of Lower East Side Synagogue Destroyed by Fire, The Architect’s Newspaper