New Proposal for Construction Next Door Threatens Merchant’s House Museum

Schematics showing proposed new building with Merchants House in front of (left image) and to the right of the proposed new building.

A new application filed with the Landmarks Preservation Commission for construction on the lot adjacent to the Merchants House Museum at 27 East 4th Street once again threatens the safety and integrity of one of New York’s first landmarks, a nationally-recognized piece of American history, and a vital and irreplaceable public educational and cultural resource. The new application for the 113 ft. tall building comes before the Landmarks Preservation Commission next Tuesday, and it’s critical that we tell the Commission not to approve any construction that would endanger this treasured piece of our history.

This is only the latest of several iterations of the plan for construction on this site in the NoHo Historic District Extension; we have helped defeat several prior ones. This latest version actually has a larger footprint than previous ones, and thus could present an even greater threat to the adjacent landmark, which has unique fragilities. As an interior landmark open to the public as a non-profit, publicly-funded educational and cultural institution, the especially-vulnerable interior of the building warrants a special level of care and protection, and is most likely to be damaged by large-scale construction next door.

In addition to writing to City officials, you can testify at the hearing next Tuesday via Zoom. The approximate time of the hearing (during the day) won’t be available until this Friday. If you are interested in participating, check our webpage here or click on the link at the bottom of that page if you want to be notified of hearing times and other information on the status of this application.

January 7, 2021