By Alex Davidson
The ongoing debate to either preserve or alter the 94-year-old Republican Club building in Richmond Hill took a twist last week when the building’s new owner placed a newspaper classified ad offering to sell the property for $995,000.
“I just want to sell it and get out,” said Faizulmunir Kazi, owner of The Republican Club building at 86-15 Lefferts Blvd., who placed the ad in The New York Times. “If I knew before I bought it that it was up for landmark (status), I wouldn’t have bought it.”
Kazi, who wanted to develop the property into four or five retail stores or a party hall, was dismayed to learn that the property, named because it housed the local Republican Party chapter, was the subject of a landmarking movement.
“After I bought it, I was surprised,” said Kazi, a specialist in buying properties and then selling them at profit, from his Jackson Heights office. He said he wants to develop the property into four or five retail stores, or into a party hall.
Preservationists and Kazi have been feuding over the future of the former community center, that once housed soldiers during World Wars I and II. The building is currently zoned for commercial development, said Kazi, who added he already has a number of buyers in line for the property.
Preservationists are attempting to revitalize the Richmond Hill area and want the city to make the building a historic landmark, said Community Board 9 President Paul Sapienza.
“(Kazi) is trying to dump (the building) at a profit before it gets landmark status,” he said.
Preservationist Nancy Cataldi, president of the Richmond Hill Historical Society, said the society has been lobbying the commission to landmark The Republican Club building since 1992 as the first step in establishing an historic district in Richmond Hill. She said the building, which has no electricity or water but is structurally sound, is an important part of Richmond Hill’s history and should not be modified.
Kazi originally wanted to transform the building, built in 1908, into three or four housing units. Now he said he will maintain the outside structure of the building and consider developing it into a commercial plaza with retail stores.
“I will make it whatever the zoning allows me,” said Kazi, who bought the building in September. “I will keep the front up, will not knock it down for sure.”
Kazi did not disclose how much he paid for the building.
Both groups expressed their opinions at an Oct. 29 Landmarks Preservation Commission hearing in Manhattan. The commission will decide in a few days if the building is designated a landmark.
Cataldi said Kazi is trying to sell the building because he will have to pay a large amount of money to restore the outside of the building if it becomes a landmark. She said preserving the building is important because it could once again serve as a community center and anchor in a future historic district.
“We have no place to go for meetings,” said Cataldi, who wants to turn the building into a community center. “Compared to Flushing Town Hall, we have nothing.”
Community Board 9 District Manager Mary Ann Carey said the Republican club which used the building stopped being active 10 years ago after a senior member died. The city placed a lien on the building to collect back taxes and then sold the lien to a private company. The private company held the building until a few months ago, Carey said, when they put it up for auction and Kazi purchased the property.
Cataldi, who said the neoclassical building was built in 1908 in what was then considered downtown Richmond Hill, said any future commercial or residential development on the site would worsen existing overcrowding problems.
“(The building) is in very bad shape, but it’s centrally located,” said Cataldi, who added that the building served as campaign center for Ronald Regan in 1980. “It’s just not appropriate for more overcrowding and it’s out of character with the Victorian neighborhood.”
Reach reporter Alex Davidson by e-mail at TimesLedger@aol.com or by phone at 229-0300, Ext. 156
