(Editor's Note: An article on the public forum for possible private uses for St. Paul's will appear in next week's issue.)

With phrases like "Save St. Paul's" and "Preserve Garden City's Historic Gem" being muttered by many village residents these days, village officials have a chance to apply for grants to do just that. The Preservation League of New York, which pledges to work with local partners to provide legal assistance, technical services and funding to eliminate threats to statewide historic properties in danger of disappearing, recently released its 2003 "Seven to Save" list.

"Seven to Save" is a published annual listing of the seven most endangered properties in New York State. The league focuses attention on these threatened historic resources and offers realistic solutions for protecting them. "St. Paul's School had historically been a tremendous asset to the Village of Garden City and can be again in the future," Garden City resident Robert Alvey, who is pushing the village to take advantage of this program, said in a recent letter to the Life.

Through its Preserve New York grant program, the league offers direct project assistance to non-profit organizations and municipalities. Since 1993, the league has awarded over $1 million to more than 275 local preservation projects throughout the state. The league's investment has leveraged over $2 million in cash and in-kind support for these projects.

According to Village Administrator Robert Schoelle, Jr., Garden City officials are currently trying to schedule a meeting to discuss funding to apply for grants to preserve the building. The following, as described on the league's website, are included on the Seven to Save List for 2003:

* St. Paul's, built in 1883 in Garden City. Active as a school for 90 years, the Episcopal Diocese sold the property, including the school and 48 acres, to the village in 1993. While the village uses the land as playing fields, the school itself has been in danger of being demolished due to a lack of local commitment to developing a viable reuse plan. To "save" the building, it will be necessary to convince a broad array of community stakeholders that it is architecturally and economically feasible to reuse St. Paul's School in ways that respect its outstanding High Victorian Gothic design. Listed on the National Register (1978), neglect, possible demolition and vacancy threaten its very existence.

* The Buffalo Central Terminal, an art deco railroad station complex built in 1929 as the passenger station for the New York Central Railroad and later Amtrak. A 271-foot office tower dominates the steel and brick station. Deterioration and vandalism have resulted in the decline of the complex, which has been vacant since 1979. "Saving" the former station at this stage will mean stabilizing the structure and finding a suitable adaptive use that not only results in the rehabilitation of the landmark station, but serves as a catalyst for the revitalization of Buffalo's East Side neighborhood.

* The proposed John Street/Maiden Lane Historic District and proposed Greenwich Street South Historic District in lower Manhattan. The area is a 3-D record of the city's birth and growth into the financial capital of the world and includes federal era residences, "Old Law" tenements, former stables and early 20th century commercial buildings. Plans for revitalization following the attack on the World Trade Center include a new MTA transportation hub and commercial and residential developments, which some say could threaten the preservation of historic resources. Threat: Demolition, inappropriate redevelopment.

* Two Columbus Circle, which represents a milestone in the modern architecture movement. Edward Durell Stone's 1964 museum for Huntington Hartford's art collection broke ground as arguably one of the first post-modern building designs. Current plans for adaptive use would significantly reconfigure the interior and completely replace the building's marble façade. A "save" would result in a modified design that would have less impact on the exterior of the building and respect its historic integrity. Threat: Inappropriate alterations.

* Washington Place, the second oldest private square (1838) in the United States, the first being Gramercy Park in New York City, is located in Troy. Years of advocacy by the local neighborhood association has brought new owners to the park neighborhood. However, several of the original, 10 Greek Revival-style townhouses located at the south end of the park suffer from abandonment and neglect; one building is only a stabilized façade. Passage of a state historic home tax credit would aid reinvestment in Washington Place and other urban and rural historic neighborhoods across New York State by offering an incentive for economic reinvestment in residential properties and neighborhood renewal. Threat: Further deterioration and disinvestment.

* The Seneca County Courthouse Complex, three adjacent Greek Revival style buildings with their distinctive porticos, have served as courthouse, municipal offices and museum. Consolidation and reduction in municipal services have resulted in excess office space and the buildings face deterioration without new uses. Affectionately known as the "Three Bears," all are in need of rehabilitation. A "save" requires a realistic reuse and management plan that preserves the buildings and enhances their downtown setting in this small Finger Lakes village. Threat: underutilization and/or vacancy of historic public buildings.

* Statewide: Visual Impacts on Cultural and Scenic Resources from Commercial Scale Wind Energy Development in NYS. Threat: considered an essential component of New York State's efforts to develop and promote renewable energy resources, commercial-scale wind energy projects, if not carefully sited, will have significant visual intrusions on historic, cultural and scenic resources in New York State. To counter the threat of poorly sited facilities, the league will be developing wind energy siting criteria that will protect historic, cultural and scenic resources from inappropriately sited wind projects.

Visit www.preservenys.org/seventosave2003.htm for more information.