St. Paul's School preservation update: Donations boost momentum in Garden City

Work has begun and donations are flowing in to preserve St. Paul’s School, the mammoth historic landmark in the middle of Garden City that has spent more than three decades in limbo.

Earlier this month, two nonprofits announced large donations for the preservation efforts of the 19th century structure.

St. Paul’s Conservancy, formed in 2006 to help preserve the building, announced that Garden City residents Amy and Neil McGoldrick have pledged $250,000 to reinstall and restore the stained glass windows in the chapel.

A newer organization, the St. Paul's Landmark Society, announced it had raised $125,000 that it will give to the village for its overall preservation plans.

The building, and what to do with it, has been a main topic in Garden City for more than 30 years. The village trustee election in March served as a de facto referendum on whether to preserve it or demolish some or all of it. With a sweep by the preservationist faction, the village has begun a $10 million project   with a focus on making exterior repairs.

“What the village is trying to do with the help of donated services and philanthropic money is to beautify the exterior of the building and seal it, put a new roof on so that it can be maintained and preserved,” Mayor Ed Finneran said in an interview Thursday.

The plans leave the overall question of what to with the building to be resolved later.

Moving toward preservation

The High Victorian Gothic building was finished in 1883 and long operated as an Episcopal school before it closed in 1991. The village finalized purchasing it in 1993, and it was designated as parkland. While much of the site has long been used for recreation, the main building has been slowly deteriorating.

For years, residents and elected officials wrestled with the high cost of fully renovating and restoring the building versus demolishing it in part or whole. The new approach doesn’t try to solve the problem; instead, it aims to shore up the building to stop its deterioration.

Members of both organizations said that with demolition off the table, people are more willing to make donations for the structure.

“The momentum is clearly for the preservation of the building,” Finneran said.

The village board has accepted donations for services from Titan Industrial Services Corp. of Glendale valued at $20,000 for the removal of fire escapes, and a donation from Mineola-based Sivilli Landscape Contracting Corp., valued at $25,000, for clearing and removing growth. The vegetation clearing uncovered the cornerstone of the school, laid in 1879, Finneran said.

In 2024, Botti Studio of Architectural Arts Inc. removed 11 stained glass windows and one skylight from the chapel under a contract with the village and is storing them in its studio in Indiana.

“We'd like to see them back in their building on display the way they were when the building was new,” Peter Coll, co-chair of the conservancy, said in an interview.

Fellow co-chair Frank McDonough said they believed that some of the windows were designed by Cornelia Stewart, wife of Garden City’s founder, Alexander Stewart, and some are believed to have been produced by Tiffany Studios.

As for the donors: “They've been longtime residents of Garden City and believe that the building is iconic and want to see it preserved, renovated, and put back to use,” McDonough said. 

McDonough said the work on the roof and brick work will likely be completed before the village has the stained glass windows reinstalled. Optimistically, McDonough said, the stained glass could be reinstalled next year or in 2028.

'Small, manageable projects'

McDonough said fundraising, which includes small donations in a “buy-a-brick" campaign, is easier now that demolition is off the table. “There were people who were reluctant to make a commitment pledge when they didn't know how the money was going to be spent," he said. 

John Reilly, chair of the St. Paul’s Landmark Society, which formed earlier this year, said fundraising the first $125,000 for the village started out quietly, targeting a small number of donors.

While the first check for the village is dedicated for the broad preservation, Reilly said, future fundraisers will focus on specific projects, like installing security cameras or new windows.

“Our mission is to fully fund projects; small, manageable projects,” Reilly said. The goal is “protecting the building without placing a financial burden on residents.”

“It's going to take several years for us to really work our way up to see what kind of philanthropic money we can attract,” Reilly said.