Landmarks Commission Proposes New Harlem Historic District

HARLEM, NY — The City Landmarks Preservation Commission voted Tuesday to consider creating a new historic district in Central Harlem.

The Central Harlem – West 130-132nd Street Historic District would extend landmark protection to row houses located on West 130th, 131st and 132nd street between Lenox Avenue and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard, according to the LPC.

The homes in this stretch of Central Harlem exemplify late 19th century row-house architecture and reflect Harlem's past. The area "is rich with significant African American cultural history, from the Harlem Renaissance to the Civil Rights movement," the LPC said in a press release.

The area within the new historic district remained primarily white until the 1920s, when middle-class black families began moving into Harlem, according to the LPC proposal. It was in the row houses that make up the proposed district that the 1963 March on Washington was organized, according to the LPC.

"The proposed Central Harlem West 130th-132nd Street Historic District is not only a significant enclave of residential architecture representative of Central Harlem’s first major phase of development, but a remarkable reminder of the substantial role that the African American community of Harlem played in creating political and social change in New York City and the nation." the LPC proposal reads

But the new historic district is far from a done deal. Tuesday's vote was just the first step toward an official landmark designation for the area. Over the coming months, the LPC will meet to present the merits of creating the historic district and will hold at least one public hearing on the proposal.

Photo courtesy Landmarks Preservation Commission