Certificate of Appropriateness Testimony
HDC feels clearing the site should be a last resort. We appreciate Madsen Consulting Engineering’s independent assessment of the facade, which found the structure to be globally stable, and recommended continued investigation into whether the facade can be further stabilized and remediated. We agree that continued investigation might allow some or all of this facade to be preserved and we urge the LPC and applicant to follow through on the recommendations and work with an engineering firm with extensive preservation experience to further explore how this facade can be retained and incorporated into Middle Collegiate’s plans.
HDC also believes that any demolition should be accompanied by a proposed design for a new building on the site, rather than leaving this site vacant for an unknown amount of time. We look forward to seeing Middle Collegiate’s plans for a new church at 112 Second Avenue, and hope that after further investigation, some part of the facade may be retained, restored and incorporated into a new piece of architecture. We note that some of the most creative modern ecclesiastical structures, such as Paul Rudolph’s First Church in Boston, are built by salvaging and incorporating the remaining elements of fire-damaged churches.
Determination: No action