Broken windows at the St. Paul’s School building

Preservation Long Island, formerly SPLIA (the Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities) says it finds many faults with the concept of the sports and activity Centre at St. Paul’s for the defunct property and historic site in the heart of Garden City. St. Paul’s is one of almost 40 historic A.T. Stewart-era properties in the interior of the Village of Garden City, and it is the largest structure in Garden City which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

After she attended and asked questions about historic attributes at the initial public presentation on the the Centre at St. Paul’s concept on July 17, P.L.I.’s Preservation Director Sarah Kautz emailed The Garden City News in late August to announce a conclusion and statement from the collective board of her nonprofit group, which maintains its offices on Main Street in Cold Spring Harbor. A Facebook post from Preservation Long Island on Wednesday, August 29 announced their perspective with the following: “Municipally funded plans for destructive changes at Garden City, New York’s St. Paul’s School are proposed.”

Missing window at St. Paul’s

In their online bulletin, P.L.I. states that Before St. Paul’s School was listed as one of our Endangered Historic Places in 2010, Preservation Long Island worked to preserve the site in partnership with local advocates for nearly 10 years. Over this period, several ideas for historically sensitive rehabilitation were proposed. Unfortunately, village resources now appear solely dedicated to research and planning towards a project that explicitly calls for inappropriate and destructive changes to a significant American landmark.”

“The proposed changes to St. Paul’s School essentially amount to facadism, resulting in the demolition of more than half of the structure and complete loss of its distinctive E-shaped massing. Preservation Long Island is disappointed by the profoundly insensitive treatment proposed for one of Long Island’s most remarkable publicly owned historic resources.”

The 2010 listing of the former private school by Preservation Long Island (then-SPLIA) was updated earlier this year with the following note on the Board of Trustees’ 2017-2018 Priorities’ List, established in June 2017.

“In 2017, the Garden City Board of Trustees announced it would consider proposals to transform St. Paul’s School into a recreational facility, including indoor synthetic turf fields. Details are still pending, but it is not clear that a sports center is the best possible use for St. Paul’s School. Although it may be feasible for former industrial or commercial sites like Chelsea Piers, reuse as a sports complex may significantly compromise the distinctive history and architectural character of St. Paul’s School because it would likely require sacrificing a great deal of the building’s integrity. We recommend the Garden City Board of Trustees broaden the scope of potential reuse and seek feasibility studies for revitalizing St. Paul’s without sacrificing its integrity,” Preservation Long Island noted on August 29.

Preservation Long Island composed a graphic for its online update, circling historic elements and particularly those related to the chapel inside St. Paul’s to create a smorgasbord effect on the planned re-use of materials from brick to elements of the building, as detailed in July at the presentations.

“Chapel should be salvaged”

“We are especially surprised by the proposed destruction of St. Paul’s chapel and repurposing of salvaged chapel elements like pews for reuse as arena seating and custom-made stained glass featuring religious scenes for reuse as sports complex stairwell windows. As a historical sacred space, the chapel is one of the most important features of this National Register-listed property. Moreover, the chapel represents St. Paul’s conceptual heart and soul, reflecting the vision and religion of Mrs. Cornelia Mitchell Clinch Stewart (1802–1886), who commissioned the building as an Episcopal school for boys in memory of her husband, Alexander Turney Stewart (1803–1876), the founder of Garden City,” P.L.I. wrote on its website and social media last week.

Jeffrey Kroessler grew up and attended lower grades through high school in Garden City. He is the chair of the Preservation Committee of the City Club of New York and a professor at John Jay College.

Kroessler learned about the unveiling of a concept for St. Paul’s in July from his Garden City High School classmate, Robert Alvey. He knows much of St. Paul’s interior from its bygone era and discussions among the Garden City Historical Society and other friends and acquaintances he’s maintained over decades in his hometown. The concept for St. Paul’s, he says, is not a fair or sensible vision.

“It leaves one speechless that the Village of Garden City continues to reach for the most absurd solutions to a property that deserves so much better. I see their idea for the beautiful gem of a chapel inside St. Paul’s, with stunning stained-glass windows and an intact organ after all the years — I am looking at the gorgeous room and I wonder, who in Garden City thinks they are ‘on the side of the angels’ and deciding to demolish it? That is a gorgeous chapel right out of Oxford and Cambridge styles,” Kroessler said. He also commented on the chapel’s expensive Tiffany window, as reported previously in the News including in the (John Ellis) Kordes’ Korner in January 2018: “The stained glass windows were from Clayton Bell & Co. of London, England, as in the Cathedral. However, the window on the near left is a Tiffany window donated to the school. It depicts the conversion of St. Paul on the road to Damascus.”

Kroessler says he’s puzzled about plans for St. Paul’s not including a method of removing and selling the window to help pay for some of the construction and potential demolition.

“That (Tiffany window) is something really valuable, if not to the Village of Garden City then to someone who recognizes value when they see it. The village can advertise it to Antiques Roadshow (a PBS reality TV program for the past 22 years),” he said.

After reviewing the PowerPoint presented by Beyer, Blinder, Belle (BBB) in mid and late July and made reference to the Roman Coliseum images included in the visuals with the unveiling of the Centre at St. Paul’s.

“The Roman Coliseum is a ruin but it did not start out that way. It was made a ruin by the Vandals, Visigoths and the Huns. But here Garden City has the idea of taking a perfectly handsome Victorian building and let’s turn it into a ruin so we can then do something else to it. This is the most ludicrous proposal I have ever heard of, and I cannot imagine that the good citizens of Garden City would want to approve a multi-million dollar bond issue. The building would still not be on the tax rolls and generating anything, it would just be another major expense for the Village of Garden City. This makes no economic sense at the start, this concept, and it will make no economic sense going forward….how can the Board of Trustees sit and eight of them vote to force all the residents taxes to go up significantly to pay for this project? How will they tell residents that they and their children and future generations will be paying the astronomical prices through the bond issue,” Kroessler told the News.

No protection for listings

While he is aware that St. Paul’s being listed on the National Register of Historic Places offers no protection from demolition or other alterations regarding the site as public parkland. “The village is not putting any transportation funds into St. Paul’s although there are certain times when National Register listings do get in-place as criteria. Right now the village and St. Paul’s designation would go to the New York State Historic Preservation Office (NYSHPO) and have them see the proposal. Likely, the state office would ask Garden City to document what will be taken down or removed of the original St. Paul’s, but the NYSHPO people wouldn’t have an ability to tell the village not to knock it down,” he explains.

He is actively involved in a similar issue with a historic property in the Sunnyside area of Queens, where Kroessler now lives and has advocated for preservation in front of New York City government and the NYC Landmark Preservation Commission, the largest municipal preservation agency in the United States.

“I am confronting something in my neighborhood where New York City wants to demolish a building that is on the National Register but not on the NYC Landmarks designation, and the city designation would protect it. With the National Register listing, all New York City needs to do is go to Albany and get their permission on the design on what they want to have. Perhaps the Village of Garden City with St. Paul’s would just document everything that they destroy — it is unlikely the state presents any legal hurdle to Garden City,” he said.

Jennifer Betsworth of the New York State Historic Preservation Office’s Community Preservation Services Bureau, specifically its National Register Unit, spoke with The Garden City News in early August. She is in charge of State and National Registers of Historic Places programs for Nassau County and the following downstate counties: Bronx, Dutchess, Kings, New York (Manhattan), Queens, Richmond, Suffolk, Ulster. Her division of NYSHPO also assists communities and nonprofits in the identification of buildings that are potentially eligible for tax credit programs (in restoration efforts) and the processing of the program’s Part 1 applications. The Village of Garden City (trustees) and architects at Beyer, Blinder, Belle stated in July that tax credit applications and federal or state funding would not be in initial plans for a project at St. Paul’s.

In an email to the News the same week as Betsworth’s interview, Deputy Public Information Officer Dan Keefe of the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (including NYSHPO) followed up on her explanation and the potential involvement of the state regarding a St. Paul’s project:

“Under state and federal historic preservation laws, any project that requires approvals, permits, or funding by a state or federal agency must consult with our office if the project impacts properties that are listed on or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. Our office may provide recommendations to avoid or mitigate adverse impacts. If there is no state or federal involvement, municipalities may request that a project be reviewed by the office as part of the SEQRA (State Environmental Quality Review Act) process. Our comments under this review are advisory,” Keefe wrote.

Last month Betsworth told the News “the preservation piece” would be a designation from the local Landmarks’ committee, which in the case of St. Paul’s would equate to the Town of Hempstead Landmarks Preservation Commission.

“The National Register generally doesn’t protect any property from its owners. From time to time, there are properties and structures de-listed from the National Register however we (NYSHPO) does not generally go out and hunt for things to de-list, unless someone brings something to our attention, for example if a building (on the Register) has burnt down or if some building or place is incredibly altered — that does happen from time to time,” Betsworth said in a phone interview.

At the July 17 unveiling of the Centre at St. Paul’s complex, Trustee Louis Minuto offered his time and pocket money to make a trip down to Washington, D.C. and advocate for St. Paul’s to retain its National Register status. When Betsworth was informed of the trustee’s comment, she told the News: “our office (NYSHPO) or the National Parks Service would only be involved in a project related to a building that is listed on the National Register if there is state or federal funding, permitting or licensing involved in that project — otherwise we would not be involved. Going to Washington or advocating for National Register status would be very atypical. There would not be a reason to advocate to anyone at the National Parks Service for the village to undertake a project unless those (funding, permitting or licensing) were part of the plans,” Betsworth said.

Questions return on investment

Kroessler thought about the price tag bandied about at the July unveilings, about $45 to 80 million if all the facilities and structures are incorporated, and he said there would be no way to see a return on the total investment: “How much ice time for the one rink would the village have to rent to come up with $50 to $80 million? How many years will it take? Even at 18 hours a day, 364 days a year it is not close. Then you have the costs of upkeep — if you have to hire a private firm to run the facility then they would need to make a profit on it too. That building will rot and the hockey and sports facility overall would become obsolete before Garden City ever comes close to paying off the bonds. Many other places realize what a financial asset it is to the community to maintain its historic buildings — it makes them special. Garden City does not, and it was apparent the last time I drove in the village,” he said.

As he told the News in 2017 when exploring recreational uses for St. Paul’s was proposed (on the 2017-2018 Board of Trustees’ Priorities’ List) Kroessler believes the proper building to occur at St. Paul’s should be two-bedroom senior housing “empty-nest residences” — not assisted living of any kind, but comfortable and convenient luxury dwellings so Garden City’s residents can stay in the village after their children graduate, and they won’t have to care and upkeep a larger house.

“Those two-bedroom units could sell for $1.8 million apiece and we’d see no impacts on the school system. That project could be complete in five years, there could be a tax abatement or PILOT for phase in and after the first five to 10 years people would be paying taxes on their condominium residences in the village to the Village of Garden City. After 10 years there’s a sizable return on investment and in those 10 years the village would not be paying anything like the $50 to $80 million in bonds they would borrow for the Centre at St. Paul’s. Not considering housing for that target demographic is just wrong, and somehow having a huge sports facility that will necessitate paved parking and operate for 12 hours a day is less disruptive to Garden City than 20 two-bedroom units at St. Paul’s, contributing to the tax base of the village? Which is more disruptive?” Kroessler explained.

A more measurable investment in his opinion, is $15 million to $20 million and below, but he anticipated that the construction including some demolition work would not be covered by that amount, and such construction costs will not reflect interest on the bonds to cover it when debt service is calculated. Preservation Long Island Director Sarah Kautz told the News, based upon the July presentations her group anticipated a total approaching $120 million at the lowest. Kroessler says the astronomical cost could bankrupt the village, “no matter how rich it is.” The other costs preservationists bring up is the rate for the village to charge sports groups and youth leagues to use the facility, and weighing that against the amount the facility and sports venue firm would need to make. “What are the expenses and debt payments for this Centre? What teams will afford it more than once? You cannot expect the facility as proposed to be affordable to most tristate area youth teams — what are you left with? Will an adult league come in when people can join the Garden City Golf Club for better rates?” Kroessler said.

He thinks the concept of an enclosed multipurpose field is difficult to weigh as although the demand may remain high, as the village looks at the Community Park Multipurpose Field, for children and adolescents there is still substantial research suggesting playing on natural grass is better for their knees and joints.

“Absolutely no municipality that has built a large sports facility has shown a profit — arenas, stadiums and openair baseball fields — most places have preached themselves into bankruptcy. Bridgeport, Connecticut or Harrisburg, Pennsylvania for example — any of the towns that built huge sports centers see them now as money sponges. They do not generate the revenue that everyone claims they are going to generate.

The concept for St. Paul’s is personally offensive and Beyer, Blinder, Belle is one of the most respected architecture firms in all of New York City. Thornton Tomasetti is one of the best engineering firms. BBB is responsible for the restoration of Grand Central Terminal so they know how to restore. I find it offensive to study their presentation and they show us St. Paul’s rooms with peeling paint. Nobody has been inside of St. Paul’s for over 20 years so of course paint peels, and that plus the hole in the roof they presented just shows the severe lack of maintenance from its owners, the Village of Garden City. Who left the hole there? What else can this village do with the $80 million beyond an ice hockey rink, and another soccer field to add to the plenty fields Garden City already has?” Kroessler said.

After attending many New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission hearings, Kroessler says the public informational meetings, presentations and hearings “are not good enough.” He feels the plan for St. Paul’s would be, from a historic and a preservation perspective and as an investment, a white elephant in the offing that cannot pay for itself. “The Village of Garden City, if they want to take the proposal seriously, needs to put this in front of the voters and taxpayers and have them approve the issuing of bonds specifically for this project’s purpose. That bond issue would need to say how much they plan to do and how much the village plan to borrow. It is clear the trustees ‘do not trust’ what they are doing is the best for the village, otherwise it would go before the taxpaying citizens,” he said.

Public vote requested

He concluded the consideration of Garden City’s position on St. Paul’s with the responsibility of the Board of Trustees, elected to represent tax paying citizens in each of the four property owners’ associations: “are the Board of Trustees so unconfident in the support of their neighbors that they won’t hold another public vote on the future use of St. Paul’s? Do they not trust their neighbors and they feel as a Board they need to do it without their neighbors’ say-so, without endorsement of the community who puts them in office? On this matter it is rather a big deal, and if the Board can vote without the input and record of their neighbors then it is cowardice and arrogance on their part to not put this project before the voters in the village. It is also deceptive not to say what the total costs will be and where the money will come from,” he said.

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