City unveils plan to demolish Greenwich Village’s Tony Dapolito rec center, dubbed ‘outrageous’ by preservationists

City officials on Wednesday unveiled updated plans to demolish the landmarked Tony Dapolito Recreation Center in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village and replace it with a new outdoor aquatics facility, drawing sharp criticism from preservationists who say the city is disregarding years of widespread community opposition.

As part of a broader $164 million plan to revitalize the Clarkson Street corridor, the city said it intends to tear down the long-closed recreation center at 1 Clarkson St. and construct a modern outdoor pool complex on the site. A separate indoor recreation facility is planned across the street at 388 Hudson St., within a new affordable housing development.

In the announcement, Mayor Eric Adams and Parks Commissioner Iris Rodriguez-Rosa said the city is committed to exploring ways to honor the site’s history by preserving artist Keith Haring’s iconic mural inside and potentially reusing elements of the building’s exterior along Seventh Avenue and Clarkson Street.

The plans follow years of advocacy from community groups and preservationists urging the city to restore and reopen the center, which has been closed since the pandemic due to structural issues.

Village Preservation, which has led the campaign to save the building, described the newly unveiled proposal as “outrageous.”

Andrew Berman, executive director of Village Preservation, told amNewYork the plan reflects how “tone deaf and removed from reality” the mayor has become. He said the group intends to oppose the proposal “every step of the way” until the building is restored and reopened.

“Thousands of New Yorkers have called upon him to save the Center rather than demolish it, as have scores of community and preservation organizations from across Manhattan, New York City, and even New York State,” Berman said. “It’s outrageous that the Mayor continues to sit on $120 million in funds previously allocated to repair the Center and instead wants to move ahead with these demolition plans.”

The Tony Dapolito Pool in Greenwich Village has been closed for the past five years due to structural issues that arose during renovations.Photo by Max Parrott

An aerial rendering shows the city’s proposed $164 million revitalization plan for the Clarkson Street corridor, including a new outdoor aquatics facility on the site of the Tony Dapolito Recreation Center and an indoor recreation center across the street at 388 Hudson St.Photo by NYC Parks

Ahead of the unveiling, Village Preservation and more than 40 organizations penned a July 22 letter to the mayor and Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, urging the city to restore the building, calling it “much-beloved” and “landmarked.” The groups argued the facility’s deterioration was due to years of deferred maintenance and neglect.

During a presentation to Community Board 2 Parks Committee meeting Tuesday night, city officials said it is still “early days” in the process and that planners are continuing to explore which parts of the 2010-designated landmark could be preserved or reused, though preservationists present were not sold.

The group said it hopes to block demolition when the project goes before the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), which must approve any proposal involving a designated landmark. On its website, the group raised concerns about the commission’s independence, writing that because LPC members are appointed by the mayor, it “may simply do his bidding.” The city has not yet submitted an application to the commission.

“But this is unlikely to happen before the end of the year, and who the Mayor will be at that time very much remains to be seen,” the group wrote.

While the city has launched an online public input portal to gather feedback on recreational programming, Village Preservation criticized the process for omitting restoration of the building as an option.

The city has not announced a timeline for construction but said community input will help guide the next phase of design.