This is a story from the New York Times that is near and dear to my heart, and not just because I love good neo-classical architecture. It’s actually because the building that the writer in this story talks about is a somewhat down at the heels but still very cool old synagogue on East 6th Street in the East Village, which was my home neighborhood for the majority of the dozen years that I lived in Manhattan. I passed this building frequently over the years, had a girlfriend who lived not more than two buildings down from it, and frequented a bar right next to the synagogue, which you can see with red brick right next to the synagogue in the picture.

The gist of the story is a battle between preservationists and members of the congregation who want the building razed and rebuilt for the members of the synagogue, because it’s in such a state of disrepair.

There is something quite beautiful and endearing about the building, and a Columbia professor, Andrew Dolkart – not involved in the dispute – who was interviewed in the article summed it up perfectly, capturing the very spirit of what makes it such an interesting building, when he said: “It wasn’t designed by a sophisticated architect. It wasn’t a pioneering building. It was an architect who was looking at what sophisticated designers were doing and then adapting it in an inexpensive and not so sophisticated manner, to create a kind of folk classicism, almost.”

Well said. The folk classicism bit is spot on, and speaks volumes about the building’s origins. It was erected at a time when very poor immigrants were flooding the Lower East Side, and sought a place to practice their faith. There are many such synagogues in the neighborhood, some in better shape, some in worse and some that have already been demolished. There is no doubt that this is an issue that stirs deep emotions in those involved in the debate.

For my part, as a lover of great and iconic architecture, I want to see the building saved. It ties directly into a very important time in American history, and is a shrine of sorts to the tenacity of the Jewish people at the time of the great immigration at the turn of the 20th century.

As a believer in religious freedom, and in the rights of a congregation to decide its own fate, I have to believe the people who are in favor of the rebuilding – especially considering that it’s difficult to even access the synagogue in inclement weather – have a right to do what they please with their building, and to ensure the continuation of their place of worship.

Check out the NYT article here and decide for yourself.

-Noah Fleisher, Aug. 20, 2008