Brooklyn School Just Became An Official NYC Landmark—Here’s Why It Matters

BROOKLYN, NY — A century‑old schoolhouse in Boerum Hill has officially joined New York City’s pantheon of protected landmarks.

On Tuesday, the Landmarks Preservation Commission unanimously designated the three‑story Romanesque Revival building that houses Public School 15 Annex as an individual landmark.

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The decision cited the school’s deep ties to the neighborhood’s immigrant history, tracing back to its construction in 1889 to serve Brooklyn’s growing population, including its expanding immigrant community.

In the 1920s, the Annex became home to the influential Girls’ Continuation School, a pioneering institution that expanded educational, economic and social opportunities for young women, many of whom were first‑ and second‑generation Americans from Lithuania, Italy, Poland, Ireland and the Netherlands.

"For more than a century, the PS 15 Annex has stood in the heart of Downtown Brooklyn as a community anchor, making it well deserving of landmark designation," said Alloy CEO Jared Della Valle. "The PS 15 Annex is an important symbol of public education in New York City and deserves to be protected for generations to come."

Later on Tuesday, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) designated three buildings as individual landmarks, underscoring each site’s role in the city’s long history of immigration.

Alongside the Public School 15 Annex, the Church of Saint Mary on the Lower East Side and the Lithuanian Alliance Building in Chelsea were added to the roster, bringing the number of city‑protected historic buildings and sites to more than 38,500.

“Immigrants built New York City, Their stories live in every block, every neighborhood, every corner of the five boroughs," Mayor Zohran Mamdani said. "Today, I’m proud to recognize three more sites that carry that legacy forward—places that, for generations, have opened their doors to newcomers and helped define what it means to belong in the greatest city in the world.”

New York City Councilmember Lincoln Restler spoke to the future of the site, where the parcel housing Public School 15 and the Annex was recently included in a controversial rezoning for the new mega‑development at 80 Flatbush Avenue by Alloy.

As part of the project, which is primarily made up of residential towers, the development will include a mix of uses, with both affordable and market‑rate homes.

“I am grateful that we are preserving the stunning facade of the Public School 15 Annex,” Restler said. “The creative reuse of this site to meet our housing crisis while protecting this architectural gem is a win for our community."