RE: Request for Evaluation for the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary
Since 2022, our colleagues at Village Preservation have been requesting that the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission provide an evaluation of the historic New York Eye and Ear Infirmary. With the closure of Beth Israel Hospital, which operated the infirmary, it’s crucial that this historic institution is designated a landmark and saved from destruction. The League provided this letter of support echoing Village Preservation’s advocacy efforts. Click here for a PDF of the letter.
Hon. Sarah Carroll, Chair
New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission
1 Centre Street, 9th floor
New York, NY 10007
RE: Request for Evaluation for the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, 218 Second Avenue/216-222 Second Avenue/301-309 East 13th Street
Dear Chair Carroll:
The Preservation League of New York State writes in strong support of Village Preservation’s 2022 Request for Evaluation of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary at 218 Second Avenue/216-222 Second Avenue/301-309 East 13th Street. We urge the Landmarks Preservation Commission to swiftly designate this building as a New York City Landmark.
The building is architecturally significant as an intact example of late 19th century architecture in the East Village. Perhaps even more compelling is the building’s historic significance and its associations with Black history and disability history.
The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary as an institution became an icon of comprehensive and accessible care for the public, attracting Helen Keller to speak at the ribbon cutting for its final stage in 1903. In addition to providing trailblazing medical care for people with disabilities, it was also home to the first Black ophthalmologist in the U.S., Dr. David Kearny McDonogh, who was also the first formerly enslaved person in the country to earn a college degree.
Landmark designation of 218 Second Avenue would help preserve the stories of Black Americans and Americans with disabilities, two marginalized groups whose important stories and places have traditionally been excluded from local, state, and federal designation.
Sincerely,
Jay DiLorenzo
President