Committee To Save St. Paul’s Falls Short

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Committee To Save St. Paul’s Falls Short

Written by Dave Gil de Rubio, dgilderubio@antonnews.com Friday, 04 January 2013 00:00

The latest chapter in the ongoing saga that is the fight over the fate of the former St. Paul’s school took a southward turn for preservationists. By a tally of five to three, the Garden City Board of Trustees voted to accept the findings of a forensic architect hired by the village to review an $8.2 million proposal submitted by the Committee to Save St. Paul’s (CSSP) with help from the Garden City Historical Society. Don Erwin, principal in the architecture/engineering firm of Erwin & Bielinski, conducted the study and drew up the report that found the committee’s proposal and estimate falling short on a number of levels.

“I don’t believe it would be feasible to occupy the building for that [estimate],” Erwin said. “That price [of $8.2 million] is underestimated and there needs to be additional work along with the simple issue of overcoming the building’s safety issues, which are out of everybody’s control. [That’s] really up to the building inspectors and other parties.”

Don Erwin, R.A., principal in Erwin-Bielinski PLLC The CSSP proposed restoring the first floor and chapel, and closing off the remainder of the building as a means of deferring a full-on restoration of the entire structure.

According to Erwin, among the problems presented by the current structure are:

An antiquated design that doesn’t meet current building codes

An anachronistic footprint characterized by small rooms and odd-shaped corridors that are an irregular fit for contemporary usage

Major safety flaws

Most problematic are aspects of the structure’s inherent design, he said, and it would cost on the order of $40 million to make St. Paul’s suitable for occupancy.

“The outside walls are actually hollow and would create smoke tunnels if a fire were to develop, it would envelop the entire building,” Erwin said. “The entire roof is made of wood and we know that’s a difficult mix—wood floors and a wood roof in a masonry building with no means of egress. It’s unfortunately a poisonous mix that’s sitting there and to truly address that would be very, very expensive.”

In Erwin’s opinion, money used in a partial restoration would be wasted as work done on the primary level would be ripped out once St. Paul’s was wholly redone.

Mayor Don Brudie inquired as to whether $8.2 million was a fair amount for the work proposed. Erwin said he didn’t think it was feasible.

Code compliance, or St. Paul’s lack of it according to the report, was a major sticking point.

A letter written by Michael Filippon, the superintendent of the village’s building department read in part, “…I found the reports to be extremely thorough and display a full understanding of the underlying principles of building codes, which are designed to ensure the safety of people entering the building. I would go so far as to say that with the passage of time, cost estimates will likely be even higher. In conclusion, I concur with the findings of the report that partial use of the building without significant remediation to the entire building, is not only impractical, but would not achieve code compliance.”

The Erwin & Bielinksi report also offered options for what to do with St. Paul’s (see sidebar) that ranged from $17.2 million to well over $100 million.

With the presentation of the report, Trustee Brian Daughney proposed accepting the report’s results and rejecting the CSSP plan with Trustees Daughney, Dennis Donnelly, Laurence Quinn, Nicholas Episcopia and John DeMaro voting affirmatively and Mayor Brudie and deputy Mayors John Watras and Andrew Cavanaugh casting negative votes. In casting his vote, the mayor made clear his concerns regarding the potential demolition of St. Paul’s.

“This is an iconic building. It’s an asset to the village. It’s something that if you take it down, you cannot put it back up,” he said. “Once it’s gone, you couldn’t even rebuild it for the four to six million dollars it would cost to take it down. You couldn’t put the building back for that cost. So this has to be something that’s considered very carefully and very seriously before we make any move on this.”

The next meeting of the Garden City Board of Trustees will be on Thursday, Jan. 10 at 8 p.m.

News

Friendship Circle Luncheon Turns 10

Thursday, 23 May 2013 00:00

Kroplick and Kammerer honored

On May 8, more than 500 fashionably dressed women converged on the Garden City Hotel for the Sid Jacobson JCC’s tenth annual Friendship Circle Luncheon. Notable celebrities on hand were Good Day New York co-host Rosanna Scotto, who was also the event’s MC, and singer/actress Megan Hilty from the Broadway play Wicked and NBC’s hit drama Smash, who entertained the ladies with her favorite songs from both shows.

The Friendship Circle Luncheon was started 10 years ago by Denise Silverberg, as a way to raise money for programs providing support for adults in their 30s, 40 s and 50s that are afflicted by Alzheimer’s. Silverberg’s mother has the disease, so she understands firsthand the role of a caregiver and the stresses involved in taking care of someone who has it.

Revised HUB Transportation Study

Thursday, 23 May 2013 00:00

Deputy Mayor Nicholas Episcopia attended the HUB Stakeholders Meeting held by Nassau County’s consultants on the Transportation Project. He was joined by EPOA President Judy Courtney, Vice President Chris Mullaney, and Director Leo Stimmler, as well as William Bellmer, a member of the Garden City Planning Commission, Dorothy Episcopia, past EPOA president, and former mayor Robert Rothschild. Bob Schoelle and Brian Ridgeway attended the afternoon session. Garden City is a stakeholder because a large portion of the village lies within the defined HUB area.

As presented, the currently preferred alternative transportation plan appears reasonable and eliminates the construction of a light rail system that would run from the Mineola Station, south behind Arthur Street, and east along the spur adjacent to St. James Street South, as was initially proposed. Nonetheless, as we have consistently done over the years, we will continue to monitor plans for the transportation project and strongly express our opinion if we believe any aspect of this project would be detrimental to the quality of life in Garden City.

Sports

Almost Perfect

Thursday, 23 May 2013 00:00

Boys JV lacrosse team goes undefeated

The Garden City JV lacrosse team finished the year with a stellar 14-0-1 record. Led by Head Coach Tom Flatley and Assistant Coach Brett Hepworth, the Trojans overpowered most of their opponents with explosive offensive bursts, tough-nosed gritty defense, and rock-solid goaltending. The offense averaged over 15 goals per game, while the defense allowed just over three goals per game.

The season commenced with a hard fought, triple overtime thriller against Syosset that ended in a 7-7 tie. As the team became more cohesive, most of the next few opponents, including Hewlett, Lynbrook, Carey, Roslyn, Kellenberg, and others, found themselves overmatched against this Trojan team. However, that did not dissuade Ward Melville from putting forth an inspired effort on their home turf for three quarters, before finally falling to Garden City 12-7.

Playing With A Big Stick

Thursday, 16 May 2013 00:00

Defense keys successful lacrosse seasons

The boys and girls high school teams are both rolling and have their sights set on a long run in the playoffs. Both team have faced a number of formidable opponents throughout the season and have successfully navigated their schedules. One thing that has been consistent for both teams has been that their defenses have had to stand tall at key times and shut down very active offenses. Both Coach Finnell and Coach Chapman have made sure that the non-league schedules of their teams will ensure that their teams are prepared for whatever the playoffs can throw at them.

After going the full season last year undefeated, the boys team has three blemishes on their record with losses to powerhouses Ward Melville, Manhasset and LaSalle of PA. With a 9-3 record the Trojans are looking to wrap up the number two seed in the playoffs to force a rematch of the Manhasset game in the County finals. The boys have excelled defensively only allowing 4.25 goals against per game. And if you remove those three tough losses the goals against average drops to 3.1.