South Village district’s time has finally come

Volume One, Issue 17, January 19 - 25, 2007

There is a movement afoot in Greenwich Village that Chelsea residents can identify with. It is the recent proposal for a South Village Historic District, sponsored by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation.

The proposal, first broached three years ago, has been a long time coming, forced into the background by other pressing matters such as the extension of the Greenwich Village Historic District. In addition, G.V.S.H.P. needed the time to research the history of each of the district’s 800 buildings in order to compile a comprehensive designation report.

But with the current construction boom showing no signs of abating, it is high time that the proposed South Village district — an ax-shaped area extending south from Washington Square to Watts St. in Soho — be earmarked as such by the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission.

Several examples of destruction point to the need for action. In 2001, the historic Poe House and Judson Church House, adjacent structures at W. Third and Thompson Sts., were razed to make room for New York University School of Law’s sprawling barn-shaped high-rise. “Nevermore” would Villagers enjoy the tranquil, low-scale ambiance of this corner, featuring Judson Church House’s beautiful backyard, with its stately trees.

More recently, the Tunnel Garage, at Broome and Thompson Sts., was razed last year. Built in anticipation of the Holland Tunnel’s construction, it sported unique terra-cotta lettering and a plaque displaying a 1920s automobile.

The move by G.V.S.H.P. to prevent further architectural losses is laudable under the circumstances, as overdevelopment continues to afflict Downtown Manhattan neighborhoods.

Residents of Chelsea remember well their own fight to save the neighborhood’s crown jewel, the Chelsea Historic District, from the march of “progress.” The 1970 designation (and 1980 extension) not only protected and helped revitalize an area of important historical significance but preserved the neighborhood’s core, saving charming 19th-century buildings from the wrecking ball and preventing towering glass condos from encroaching on the area.

Fortunately, the proposed South Village district still features many distinguished buildings, including two magnificent churches (Our Lady of Pompei and St. Anthony of Padua) and a noteworthy residential building at 39 Washington Square, known in its day as a “French flat,” a step up from a tenement geared toward the middle-class.

Most French flats were located north of the square, however. The South Village district is unique because it would be the city’s first tenement-based historic district. The neighborhood has a rich working-class and immigrant history, having been a major portal for 19th-century Italian immigrants.

Other notable structures include the former Mills House, at 160 Bleecker St. Currently The Atrium apartment building, it was an example of so-called reform housing that functioned as a 10-story residence for single men, featuring 1,500 bedroom cubicles, each 5 feet by 7 feet with its own window.

Also in the study area is the handsome Tony Dapolito Recreation Center at 1 Clarkson St., which was designed in 1906 and catered to the neighborhood’s working-class immigrants. Across Clarkson St. is the C.B.J. Snyder–designed P.S. 95, today the City As School.

While there is a place for development and innovative architecture in our Downtown neighborhoods, G.V.S.H.P.’s report makes an irrefutable case for designating the South Village a historic district. Landmarking the area represents another way to preserve important history while protecting Greenwich Village from the destructive effects of overdevelopment.