Friday, January 22, 2021, 10AM

Advisory: Elected officials fight to protect Upper Manhattan house linked to Underground Railroad
Aries Dela Cruz | adelacruz@manhattanbp.nyc.gov | 917.960.1187

Historic home once owned by abolitionists in Washington Heights is in danger of being demolished

NEW YORK -- On Friday, January 22, 2021 at 10AM outside of 857 Riverside Drive (159th Street) Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer, State Senator Robert Jackson, Assembly Member Al Taylor, Council Member Mark Levine, other elected officials and the Upper Riverside Residents Alliance will call on the city to reverse their decision to reject landmark status for 857 Riverside Drive, and to stay the demolition permit for the property until the status is clear.

Upper Manhattan already suffers from a lack of representation in the city's historic landmark designations, and sites linked to the Underground Railroad and the abolition movement are rare in the city. As the New York Times reported last week, "Of more than 37,000 city properties with landmark protection, just 17 sites are related to abolitionism or the Underground Railroad, the network of Black and white activists who helped enslaved African-Americans flee north to freedom before the Civil War. Only two such protected sites are in Manhattan, none above 29th Street." 

857 Riverside Drive is the last link to Underground Railroad conductor and abolitionist minister Dennis Harris and is in danger of being demolished as the owner filed for a demolition permit to construct a 13-story residential building on the property. The Landmarks Preservation Commission insists that 857 Riverside Drive lacks historical architectural integrity because of changes to the building even though architectural significance has been overlooked in the past for other sites.
Elected officials want to draw attention to the city's systemic bias when it comes to designating landmark status in communities and neighborhoods of color. Many historic buildings in Harlem and Washington Heights have fallen into ruin because property owners often lack the significant funds needed to restore or maintain them, whereas other sites have more funds to maintain expensive repairs and preserve architectural details.