Village Preservation has been waging a campaign to get the City to finally repair and restore the landmarked 34½ East 12th Street, built in 1855 as the city’s first school and high school for girls. Shrouded by scaffolding for nearly 20 years, it’s been in a state of increasing disrepair and decay, with the NYPD and the Police Athletic League, the building’s occupants, taking no visible action to fix or even for the most part utilize the building. We have enlisted the aid of Community Board 2 and City Councilmember Harvey Epstein to push the City to make repairs and have a conversation about the building’s future and best use. 

In response, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch recently wrote Councilmember Epstein, acknowledging the deteriorated conditions of the building and the need for repairs. She said the NYPD is requesting capital funding for facade repair work in the upcoming city budget, and if received, hopes to see work begin in fiscal year 2030 (July 1, 2029–June 30, 2030) and be completed within two years. 

While we’re glad that the City has finally acknowledged the dismal state of the building and the need to address it, this letter and commitment barely scratch the surface of what is needed here. It’s unclear what the requested funding would (or wouldn’t) cover in terms of the building’s needs, and why work wouldn’t even be able to begin for a minimum of two years at best. There’s also no explanation for why the building has sat in this condition for almost two decades (which would illuminate what the issues are that led to its current state and how we can ensure they are addressed moving forward), no discussion of the building’s future use, and no willingness to meet with local stakeholders to discuss all these questions. This is far from an acceptable response from the new administration. 

We are working with Councilmember Epstein to try to ensure that the requested funds are allocated, but we also are continuing to demand further answers from the administration about the condition and fate of this important, long-neglected local landmark.  

TO HELP: