Preservation League of Staten Island

06/22/2026

This past Saturday, PLSI Board Member Tamer Mahmoud did an encore of his presentation of Landmarks at 60. SIxty years after the passing on the NYC Landmark law, there have been many positives and negatives to it. More still needs to be done.
Additional presentations to be scheduled over the next few months.

06/22/2026

A big thank you to NYC Parks.

Saturday's talk (and impromptu walk) at Walker Park with author James Kaser, Professor at CSI was enjoyed by all.
Some great history of this now Livingston neighborhood was presented and discussed.
Future author talks and walks planned.

Also his book is available thru www.sunypress.edu
You can save 30% with code SNPF25

06/19/2026

Members of the Preservation League of Staten Island were happy to support a preservation partner: the Sandy Ground Historical Society on receiving a 2026 Historic Districts Council Grassroots Award which was held at the historic St Bartholomew's Church, Park Avenue Community House. They were honored for their on-going efforts to preserve and promote this important piece of American history. Congratulations!

06/11/2026

Good news!

06/09/2026

Tall Ship Watch Party Breakfast – Waterfront View of Sail 4th 250th Tickets On Sale Now! Details Below!
https://lighthousemuseum.networkforgood.com/events/102188-watch-party-breakfast

05/30/2026

A wonderful feature by the late Virginia 'Gini' Sherry. Gini was a PLSI Board Member and a long time supporter and ardent advocate of historic preservation on Staten Island

The architectural style enjoyed great popularity at the turn of the century, and Staten Island has some surviving examples.

05/27/2026

The Board of Directors of Sundog Theatre invites you to step into history at the Historic Bechtel House, a beautifully preserved 19th-century gem known for its famous stained-glass windows that cast colorful light throughout the space. Its timeless charm and rich Staten Island heritage create a warm and intimate backdrop for an unforgettable afternoon in support of arts and community.

There are limited tickets available. Advance purchase required – no tickets will be sold at the door. Reserve your spot and support the arts in an extraordinary setting!
Purchase tickets here OR see the Linktree in our bio: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/the-historic-bechtel-house-event
~

~
Susan Fenley Marjorie Hack Mark Giacalone Nicole Reid Christopher Chris Ferrera Phyllis Guglietta Lorna Harris Alex Tronolone Julie Desimone-Cadunzi Elyssa Paige Ellen Petillo Victoria Beddoe-Colella Melissa Holland Isabella Lucia The Staten Island Foundation Empire State Bank

05/20/2026

Preservation Alert and Action!

The Preservation League of Staten Island needs your help.

As you've heard and seen here, the two NYC Landmark Designated buildings at the Bayley Seton Hospital campus: the Seaman’s Retreat and Physician's House are in dire straits and are facing rapid Demolition by Neglect. The unsecured buildings have let vandals steal and destroy them, with weather and elements taking their toll.

The League is asking those concerned about protecting and preserving these historically important and architecturally significant Staten Island structures to copy and paste the content below into an email and/or snail mail and send to the new Chair of the Landmark Preservation Commission Ms. Lisa Kersavage.

She and the LPC need to ACT and ENFORCE the existing Landmark law.

These buildings need to be protected NOW!

Thank you for attention and action.

The details below:

Chair's email:

[email protected] and
The first letter in the email is an L.

[email protected]
And via
www.nyc.gov/site/lpc/about/email-the-chair.page

Honorable Chair Lisa Kersavage
New York City Landmark Preservation Commission
253 Broadway
11th Floor
New York NY 10007

Dear Chair Kersavage:

I'm writing to you and the NYC Landmark Preservation Commission with a simple, urgent and straight forward request: Enforce the NYC Landmark law, enacted 60 years ago, at the Bayley Seton campus on Staten Island.

The site's two official NYC Landmark designated buildings since 1985: the circa 1834 Seaman’s Retreat and the circa 1842 Physician's House are seriously threatened with Demolition by Neglect. The LPC needs to step up and protect these historic and architectural significant Staten Island structures. The current owners are not doing even the bare minimum to secure and safeguard the buildings from vandals and the elements.

Threats and fines are not working, legal action is required at this point.

Please enforce the Law!

Thank you.

Regards
###X

05/19/2026

Wrapping up a weekend of Staten Island historic preservation, the Preservation League of Staten Island held its annual 2026 Historic Preservation Awards Ceremony at the Reformed Church in Port Richmond.
The PLSI honored property owners and businesses for their ongoing historic preservation and stewardship of some wonderful Staten Island buildings.
This year's awardees included Historic Treasure: 152 Lee Ave, 416 Henderson Ave, 24 Brighton Street, 557 Bard Ave, 1336 Clove Road, 25 Meadow Ave, 150 Cannon Avenue and 117 Daniel Low Terrace. Block Beautiful: 3,5,7 Vine Street. Business Beautiful: Edgewater Hall 691 Bay Street, Kilmeyers Restaurant 4254 Arthur Kill Road. Marty Pearsall Award (for an individual who promotes and advocates historic preservation on Staten Island): Eileen Monreale, Friends of Olmsted-Beil House and our top Bronze Award (for a complete historic restoration): 240 Fisher Avenue.

The League also awarded donations to a few Island groups actively promoting historic preservation and protection. They included National Lighthouse Museum, Friends of Olmsted-Beil House and SonRise Church.