CB7 Asks LPC to Reject West Park’s “Hardship” App., Save Church
The decision by a CB7 committee recommending against a hardship finding from the Landmarks Preservation Commission, follows passionate testimony by various locals and politicians. They argue that selling the church to a luxury apartment developer would destroy part of the fabric of the Upper West Side.
| 03 Nov 2025 | 05:33
A Community Board 7 subcommittee signaled its opposition to the destruction of West Park Presbyterian Church on Oct. 29, via a resolution quibbling with the technical rationale for voiding its landmark status. (
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The church’s own congregation, which has shrunk significantly, is seeking to demolish the aging church— arguing that the cost of repairs exceeds what they can afford. (
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At a second October meeting jam-packed with testimony decrying the possible demolition of West Park Presbyterian Church, Community Board 7’s Preservation Committee all but implored the Landmarks Preservation Commission to save the historic building.
Specifically, the subcommittee is asking the LPC to reject the “hardship application” submitted by the W. 86th St. church’s congregation, which is seeking to sell the aging church to a luxury developer. If approved, the application would essentially circumvent the landmark protections that the 135 year-old Romanesque Revival building has in place, green-lighting its destruction.
Congregants argue the cost of repairing the church amount to an untenable $50 million, more than the proposed sale price of $30 million. They also note that the developer promised to carve out space in any new development, post-demolition, to continue worship services.
After a fairly lengthy court battle, the congregation evicted its flagship tenant—The Center at West Park—back in July, teeing up its current appeal to the LPC; any demolition can not move forward as long as any such entity still occupies the premises. Leases for some smaller remaining tenants expire later this year.
At the most recent CB7 meeting, on Oct. 29, board members appeared profoundly skeptical of the premise that the congregation will face doom if they can’t sell the church.
A majority of them decided that the congregation has failed to satisfy all four legal requirements that establish such hardship, namely the third one, which states: “The building is no longer ‘adequate, suitable, or appropriate’ for carrying out the current or historic charitable use.”
A majority of the committee, plus some non-committee CB7 members, then voted to issue a (non-binding) advisory resolution that more or less asks the LPC to reject the congregation’s hardship application.
The LPC is not technically bound by the CB7 resolution, which amounts to a firm suggestion that signals grassroots opposition to demolition of the church, and may still grant the hardship application to the congregants. Various politicians have also come out against the demolition, as well, such as local City Council Member Gale Brewer and U.S. Congressman Jerry Nadler.
Before the vote, local advocates also disputed the notion that the church was no longer fit for the congregation’s needs. Madelyn Paquette, the resident producer for the Center at West Park, pointed out that the congregation hosted its international music festival in the church’s sanctuary on Oct. 11.
“The idea that they’re arguing that the space can’t be used for its intended purpose, when members of their congregation are using it for its intended purpose, is hard for me to understand,” Paquette said.
Lisa Harrison, a longtime Upper West Side resident, said that she’s compelled to “reflect on how lucky we are to have this beautiful unique building” every time she walks by it. “The last thing we need is another luxury building full of condos,” she added.
Despite being kicked out of its home base, The Center at West Park has been determined to raise the necessary funds to repair the church, in the hope of subverting the congregation’s narrative that such a restoration is impossible.
They held a staged benefit reading of a Kenneth Lonergan play on Oct. 27 to that end, featuring prominent celebrities such as Matt Damon and Alec Baldwin, not to mention a post-reading discussion spearheaded by Lonergan himself.