Preservationists listen in on the hearing. Photo by James Kelleher.

Proposed preservation of the East Village meets a vocal audience

The city’s preservationists came together in City Hall Tuesday when they made their voices heard at a Landmark Preservation Commission public hearing regarding proposed preservation designation for parts of the East Village.

The proposal includes many historical, albeit dated, buildings like the Congregation Meseritz Synagogue and Max D. Raskin Center, both on East 6th, Duo Multicultural Center on East 4th, and the popular ale house on East 7th, McSorley’s.

In all, the proposal covers protects 330 buildings, the NY Times says.

Alongside many of the neighborhood’s foreign residents, who cite the area’s “contextual architecture” and storied past, representatives from the offices of State Senator Tom Duane, State Senator Daniel Squadron, and Councilman Rosie Mendez strongly supported the LPC’s effort.

As expected, local clergy were the opposition’s loudest voices, saying their groups would be put under extreme financial strains if their buildings were landmarked.

One member of the parish went as far as labeling the landmarking a sin.

The meeting was another stop in the LPC’s “extensive correspondence” with local voices, and there is no ETA for the committee’s decision.

Photo by Shawn Hoke

By Paul Bisceglio

Never fear, New York. In the words of McSorley’s Old Ale House’s facebook page, the city’s oldest continually operated saloon “aint going anywhere.”

Rumor spread on Monday that McSorley’s was on its way out when Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York posted the following report from an artist friend who went to the 7th St. alehouse to photograph it:

“There were about 4 or 5 guys out front in a group and one off to the side. The guy to the side asked me why I was taking photos of the place. He said that he was the owner of the building and had been trying hard to sell the place. Said he was tired of the city and wanted to move up to Albany.”

Jeremiah Moss, who runs the blog, posted the story on the McSorley’s Old Ale House facebook page with the note “Say it ain’t so.” To the relief of the alehouse’s many devotees, McSorley’s responded that it wasn’t.

McSorley’s “liked” Moss’s post and wrote, “No worries. We, and especially Matty [owner Matthew Maher], aint going anywhere. Especially not to Albany.

McSorley’s has been a downtown staple since 1854, and its old-timey charm, celebrity patrons and unique history have inspired works by numerous artists and writers, including the poem “I was sitting in mcsorleys” by E. E. Cummings, the painting “McSorely’s Bar” by John Sloan and several New Yorker articles by Joseph Mitchell.

Vanishing New York noted that the alehouse’s closure would not have been entirely unexpected. McSorley’s has wrestled with city regulations in recent years that banned its resident cat and forced them to clear dust off the delicate wishbones that hang above its bar.

Who the person actually was who said that McSorley’s was being sold and why he said it has yet to be uncovered. Stay tuned for details.