The group hoping to save the Gedney Farm House from the wrecking ball continues to scramble for a viable rescue plan.
The old house, which has occupied its lot in Mamaroneck since the 1790s, is owned by the Rye Neck School District, which no longer has a use for it and, to save money, plans to demolish it.
The Rye Neck Board of Education meets Wednesday night. The farm house is not on the agenda.
Concerned Citizens for the Gedney Farm House has suggested a number of plans to spare the building. None has stuck. On Tuesday, Carol Akin, one of the organization’s leaders, circulated an email with another proposal, this claiming Mamaroneck resident with considerable resources had offered to move the building to his property.
A short time later, Akin sent another email saying that the proposal had changed and that a new one would soon be issued. By 5:15 p.m., that had not yet happened.
The farm house, at 734 E. Boston Post Road, has all the years to make it literally, but not officially, historic. It is not on the national register of historic places.
In one of her emails, Akin said the district had changed the terms by which it would allow the house to be moved. No longer would the building be free for the taking; it would have to go to bid. Whoever bought it would have to pay $2,500 a month in maintenance fees beginning Jan. 1 until the house is off the property.
Rye Neck School District Superintendent Peter Mustich said he hadn’t seen any recent proposals by the group. He said the maintenance fee is not a surprise. As for the fact that the house is no longer free for the taking, he acknowledged the change and said the district had learned it wasn’t allowed to give away the building.
While the district has not yet set a timetable for demolishing the building, Mustich said it will happen soon.
“We’ve given these people since September or October to do something,” he said of the Concerned Citizens. “We’ve only heard, ‘We’re going to do something.’”
He said group’s members are not being “realistic” about the work, permits and costs that moving the house would require.
“It’s a nice thought, but it’s much more complicated,” he said.
4 Comments
In a conversation with Mr. Mustich last week, he told me that he’s not sure whether the district will be officially taking bids for “the house at 734 E. Boston Post Road,” but he suggested that interested parties send him a proposal “as soon as possible” for dismantling and relocating the house, which might cost upward of $200K, including asbestos removal. I haven’t gotten any response from the local historical societies or state official I wrote to, or been able to find contact information for the Concerned Citizens group, and I’m wondering whether we could cast a much wider net in looking for a person/group who could do something more inspired than tear down this piece of history. (Incidentally, part of the character of Mamaroneck is how many of the older structures have their own plaque out front: eg, “Walter’s Hot Dogs, 1919.”) More time is also needed, since this has only recently become a more public issue and the terms have changed. Some of us are also wondering whether the state mandate for amount of playground space could be waived or met in any other way.
I take calls for the National Trust for Historic Preservation and have just spoken to a most lovely lady by the name of Carol, she told to me the very somber story of The Gedney Farmhouse.
I truly hope I was able to aid all of you in the preservation of such a beautiful and important part of your community.
If there is anything else that I could do to help please feel free to email me at jadepippy@gmail.com .
If you could provide me with a link for donations I will more than gladly spread it around!
Good luck to you all!!!
Sincerely,
A Canadian who would love to help.
My own research suggests that the Gedney Farmhouse probably dates back to BEFORE 1770. Gedney’s were born and raised and died in that house into the early 20th century. Last night Carol told me that the Rye Neck BoE had scheduled the ‘old lady’ for demolition next week.
I haven’t seen any evidence to suggest that the BoE was ever interested in preserving Gedney.
I was told that a State official had suggested during a phone conversation that the space requirement mandate might be WAIVED given the value of Gedney House.
A local realtor wrote out an assessment stating that he felt Gedney could have brought in $6000 a month rent in the current market.
If the ‘state mandate’ was not really an issue, and if, apparently, Gedney could have MORE than covered her own monthly cost (although I can’t imagine what it was that, in an unoccupied, unheated house, cost $2500 a month), what WAS the reason for this mad rush to destroy her?
I don’t know.
It appears that with any interest on the BoE’s part, Gedney could have been sustained while ‘these people’ (as Superintendent Peter Mustich referred to the Concerned Citizens group) worked out the ‘complicated’ logistics of relocating her.
The evidence suggests that preserving Gedney would have been the FISCALLY responsible thing to do for the Rye Neck School District reducing the tax burden while saving their heritage.
NOW, is the time for a complete inventory of historic buildings in Mamaroneck. We need to thoroughly document their provenance, determine their position on the endangered list, and develop a fiscally responsible strategy for preservation of our heritage.
I attended the Rye Neck Board of Education meeting last night, Wednesday, February 15. Much to my dismay, one bid for the demolition of the 1790 Gedney farmhouse was read and accepted from Garito Contractors in Yonkers for a little over $100,000. It was also announced that the demolition work would start at the end of this week! Unfortunately, as a non-resident, I am not allowed to speak at the board meetings so I wasn’t able to ask if there was more than one bid. I can only assume there wasn’t, as state law requires all bids to be read at a public meeting.
It has been clear to me that the Rye Neck Board of Education has never been interested in keeping this wonderful historic structure. Instead, tens of thousands of dollars have been spent in proving to the state agencies that the structure is worthless when common sense tells one it is invaluable.
The cost of maintaining the structure could easily be offset by renting it out and it could well be that the school district could make money from a rental. However, if the school district just didn’t want to be bothered, the property could be sold with restrictive covenants and provide a tidy profit for the district.
Frankly, I am puzzled and confused about the school district’s attitude. It is a real mystery.