Stonewall Inn, Designation Testimony – June 23, 2015

We do not need to state the many-layered importance of historic architecture to the urban experience in this forum, except to say that this agency’s hard work in designating buildings for their architectural merits has served to safeguard this vital aspect of the urban experience. However, sites designated principally for their cultural and historic value, such as the recent designation of Tammany Hall, are a rarer breed. Advocates across the city are constantly pushing for landmark status for sites of cultural and historical importance, including 40 and 42 Bowery, two Federal houses dating back to 1807, significant for their age, but also as the location where the politically charged and impactful Dead Rabbits Riot of 1857 began. Another such site is Tin Pan Alley, the birthplace of American popular music, whose merits, despite widespread public support, have not been recognized with landmark status as of yet.

In this 50^th anniversary year, the preservation community is often reflecting on ways to enhance and improve the scope of the Landmarks Law. Sites such as the Stonewall Inn, famous as the birthplace of the Gay Pride movement, are crucial to the story of our city. Protecting the physical spaces that embody history, like Stonewall, is a crucial, if less traditional, task with which the Landmarks Commission is charged. In a perfect world, the agency would also have the power to protect the characteristics that support and define the significance of such sites – like ensuring that the Stonewall Inn remains a public gathering place in perpetuity. Perhaps the strengthening of the law by introducing this type of regulation is something we can work toward and celebrate at the centennial of New York City’s Landmarks Law.