{"id":179323,"date":"2026-03-30T04:19:18","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T04:19:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/179323\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T04:19:18","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T04:19:18","slug":"advocates-urge-mamdani-to-save-greenwich-villages-tony-dapolito-recreation-center","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/179323\/","title":{"rendered":"Advocates urge Mamdani to save Greenwich Village\u2019s Tony Dapolito Recreation Center"},"content":{"rendered":"

Assembly Member Grace Lee joined a coalition of Downtown organizations gathered in Greenwich Village Sunday afternoon to call on Mayor Zohran Mamdani to \u201crenovate, not demolish\u201d the Tony Dapolito Recreation Center<\/a>, a beloved local landmark and outdoor swimming pool that has been long shuttered due to structural issues.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The rally, led by grassroots non-profit Village Preservation, also saw groups release government records obtained through a year-long Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request, which protesters alleged undermined city claims that the center is beyond repair.<\/p>\n

Around 100 local residents joined Sunday\u2019s protest outside the center, located at 1 Clarkson St., joining community organizations such as Downtown Independent Democrats, SoHo Alliance, Village Reform Democratic Club and several others.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"PhotoPhoto by Shane O\u2019Brien.<\/p>\n

The city has proposed demolishing the long-shuttered recreation center \u2013 designated a city landmark in 2010 \u2013 as part of a broader $164 million plan to revitalize the Clarkson Street corridor.<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s plan -introduced by former Mayor Eric Adams \u2013 calls for building a modern outdoor pool complex on the site as well as a separate indoor recreation facility across the street at 388 Hudson St., within a new affordable housing development.<\/p>\n

\"AnAn aerial rendering shows the city\u2019s proposed $164 million revitalization plan for the Clarkson Street corridor, including a new outdoor aquatics facility on the site of the Tony Dapolito Recreation Center and an indoor recreation center across the street at 388 Hudson St.Photo by NYC Parks<\/p>\n

Over a dozen local community groups have long opposed the demolition, however, describing the Dapolito Rec Center as a \u201cmuch-beloved\u201d local landmark.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On Sunday, over a dozen community groups called on Mamdani to \u201cfollow through\u201d on a campaign promise to support the renovation of the site. City Hall has not yet responded to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

However, Parks Department officials said the city had allocated approximately $100 million to reconstruct the recreation center and bring it into a state of good repair.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

NYC Parks conducted multiple rounds of investigative probes which revealed multiple serious structural issues. Ultimately, the city determined that it bringing the current space would result in \u201csignificantly less usable space,\u201d according to officials.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Restorative work would result in the reduction of the size of the pool from three lanes to two and leave the center with a non-regulation-sized basketball court with no spectator seating and a non-ADA accessible indoor track, according to Parks officials.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Officials also maintain that other structural issues were likely to surface throughout the restoriation, stating that any renovation to bring the building up to code would result in a loss of essential programming space and a cost that would exceed the value of the building.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But Andrew Berman, executive director of Village Preservation<\/a>, said the city records that the organization has obtained through FOIL have contradicted the city\u2019s claims that the center is beyond repair.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt revealed is that it\u2019s all repairable,\u201d Berman said. \u201cIt\u2019s the most common thing in the world to say you have an old building that needs some repairs. It\u2019s like saying sometime this year it\u2019s probably going to rain. But what they\u2019ve been contending is that the repairs can\u2019t be done. And what this found is that their own experts and engineers said it\u2019s imminently doable, and here\u2019s the plan for doing it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Berman added that the mayor has \u201cnot done anything good or bad\u201d in relation to the center since taking office but added that the \u201cclock is ticking\u201d for renovation work to begin.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe longer he waits, the harder it\u2019s going to be to repair the building,\u201d Berman said. \u201cSo we\u2019re going to hold him to his word, and we want him to move soon.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Andrew Berman called on Mayor Zohran Mamdani to save the Tony Dapolito Recreation Center. Photo by Shane O\u2019Brien.<\/p>\n

The center has been closed to the public since the Covid-19 pandemic due to structural issues, while the outdoor pool facility adjacent to the center closed in 2019 for similar reasons.<\/p>\n

The city initially planned to renovate the space, but renovations soon stalled. Instead, the city unveiled its plan for the Clarkson Street corridor, stating that the plans had been shaped by local feedback.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lee, who represents New York\u2019s 65th Assembly District, told the crowd that the center is \u201cworth preserving,\u201d stating that efforts to save the site are reflective of the \u201csoul and spirit of the community.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s unfathomable to me that city officials have repeatedly claimed that the facility could not be saved, while failing to produce any supporting documents to provide to back that up,\u201d Lee told protesters Sunday afternoon.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lee also noted that the recreation center is designated as parkland and that the city needs the permission of the state legislature to rezone public parkland.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m here to say that we will continue to protect this property as protected parkland,\u201d Lee said. \u201cWe are calling on Mayor Mamdani to honor his commitment to repair, not demolish.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mar Fitzgerald, Democratic district leader for the 66th Assembly District, including Greenwich Village, East Village and part of Chelsea, described the center as a place where children learned to swim, took classes and gathered with friends.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t just a building. It was a second home for every village kid,\u201d Fitzgerald said. \u201cIt was a foundation and a place where generations of young people found support structure and belonging. \u201c<\/p>\n

\"MarMar Fitzgerald speaks at Sunday\u2019s rally. Photo by Shane O\u2019Brien.<\/p>\n

But several protesters also asserted that the center plays an important role for local adults, with adult swimming meets providing an opportunity to gather and socialize.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s an Equinox right over there\u2026 but we have nowhere for the middle and working-class to swim,\u201d said local resident Elizabeth England, who used the pool for rehab while recovering from an injury in the 1990s. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing like this (nearby).\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou would meet everyone here,\u201d she said.\n<\/p>\n

Hank Dombrowski, a swimmer at the Hamilton Fish Recreation Center who attended Sunday\u2019s rally dressed in a swimming hat and goggles, said he would often compete with adult lap swimmers at the Tony Dapolito Rec Center, stating that the pool would serve as an opportunity for people to reconnect with each other.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t see people like all winter long. You come back and you just feel the community. It\u2019s like a pub.\u201d\u00a0
\n\"HankHank Drombrowski attended Sunday\u2019s rally in swimming cap and goggles. Photo by Shane O\u2019Brien\n<\/p>\n

England said the center stands as a \u201cbastion\u201d of a previous era amid the gentrification of the neighborhood.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is just a place where everyone could go and afford to rub elbows with each other,\u201d she said. \u201cParticularly as you age, getting together is super important.\u201d\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

Berman similarly believes that the center represents the working-class roots of Greenwich Village and said efforts to landmark the center were partially related to its significance to working-class immigrants.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cPart of the reason why we fought to get it landmarked is because it was built in the early 20th century as a bath house for poor and working class immigrants in this neighborhood who didn\u2019t have indoor plumbing,\u201d Berman said. \u201cIt eventually evolved into a public recreation center and it continued to be a place where people from every socioeconomic background, racial background, every part of the city came and mixed because it was it was free or low cost.\u201d<\/p>\n

The recreation center opened as a bathhouse on May 6, 1908, but has been repurposed and renovated several times since.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

The Parks Department said the center later became a \u201cyear-round hub for many in and around the neighborhood.\u201d\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

In addition to providing fitness facilities, it hosted youth and adult athletic leagues, after-school programs, a summer day camp, fitness classes and many other activities.\n<\/p>\n

The center also includes an 18-foot-long Keith Haring mural, dedicated in August of 1987, that both parks and community advocates want preserved.\n<\/p>\n

Berman said the city\u2019s plans for the Clarkson Street corridor are \u201cnot what the community wants or asked for.\u201d\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

He welcomed plans to build a recreation center across the street from Tony Dapolito but said it must not come at the expense of landmarked site. He added that the city\u2019s plans \u201cmake no sense.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody agrees that some new recreational facilities in the new building is great, but everybody says they want this building repaired, restored, renovated. There is no excuse for doing anything other than that,\u201d Berman said. \u201cMayor Mamdani said he\u2019s looking at everything with fresh eyes. He\u2019s got to look at this with fresh eyes as well.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"PhotoPhoto by Shane O\u2019Brien.<\/p>\n

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