Push for East Side historic status
A man walks past McSorley's Old Ale House in a area of the East Village that the city of New York wants to declare a historic district in New York City. (Jan. 24, 2012) Credit: Getty Images
McSorley's -- a saloon since 1854 -- and about 300 other buildings along Second Avenue and East Seventh Street have been included in the city Landmarks Preservation Commission's historic district proposal.
The plan would preserve the architectural integrity of the 19th century tenement buildings that tell the city's 200-year-old immigration story, according to Elisabeth de Bourbon, commission spokeswoman.
Like McSorley's, the buildings' architectural designs are either Italianate, Neo-Grec, Queen Anne, or Renaissance Revival.
The buildings "reflect the radical cultural changes this neighborhood has seen in the past century, from a German immigrant district, to the heart of the city's Jewish community, to a center of Latin American life and later to a bohemian artists' quarter," de Bourbon said.
A public hearing will be scheduled later this year before the commission votes on the proposal.
Out East Show: LI Aquarium, Patty's Berries and Bunches, Palmer Vineyards NewsdayTV's Doug Geed shows us some great spots 'Out East' to visit this summer.
Out East Show: LI Aquarium, Patty's Berries and Bunches, Palmer Vineyards NewsdayTV's Doug Geed shows us some great spots 'Out East' to visit this summer.
