First Reformed Church in Piermont Recommended for Historic Register

First Reformed Church, Piermont – Built in 1946, the excellent example of Colonial Revival architecture replaced an earlier church that had served the community for nearly a hundred years when it was lost in an accidental fire.

That’s the description offered Monday when Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that the New York State Board for Historic Preservation has recommended the addition of 27 properties, resources and districts to the State and National Registers of Historic Places.

The Piermont Reformed Church is the only local nominee.

The nominations also include an Oswego fort that sheltered Holocaust refugees, the nation’s first outdoor bank teller window, and the only remaining historic carousel on Coney Island.

“These sites are the locations of significant moments in New York’s rich history that in many cases reverberated across the nation and beyond,” Cuomo said in a prepared statement. “By placing these landmarks on the State and National Registers of Historic Places, we are honoring and preserving their legacy and giving visitors the chance to learn about this state’s vibrant history.”

State and National Register listing can assist property owners in revitalizing buildings, making them eligible for various public preservation programs and services, such as matching state grants and state and federal historic rehabilitation tax credits. Spurred by the state and federal historic rehabilitation commercial tax credits administered by the State Historic Preservation Office, developers invested $500 million statewide in 2014 to revitalize properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places, while homeowners using the state historic homeowner rehabilitation tax credit invested more than $9.8 million statewide on home improvements to help revitalize historic neighborhoods.

The State and National Registers are the official lists of buildings, structures, districts, landscapes, objects and sites significant in the history, architecture, archeology and culture of New York State and the nation. There are more than 120,000 historic buildings, structures and sites throughout the state listed on the National Register of Historic Places, individually or as components of historic districts. Property owners, municipalities and organizations from communities throughout the state sponsored the nominations.

Once the recommendations are approved by the state historic preservation officer, the properties are listed on the New York State Register of Historic Places and then nominated to the National Register of Historic Places, where they are reviewed and, once approved, entered on the National Register.

“Congratulations to the owners and caretakers for this important recognition,” said Rose Harvey, Commissioner of the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. “Listing these 27 places on the State and National Registers will help us to better preserve, appreciate and understand New York’s profound history.”

More information and photos of the nominations are available on the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation website.

PHOTO: Piermont Reformed Church Facebook page