It’s Time to Let Dapolito Go

By Alec Pruchnicki

THROUGH THE FENCE AT DAPOLITO, L-R:, the Keith Haring mural, empty pool, and side of the Dapolito center. Photo: Alec Pruchnicki.

Having been newly appointed to Community Board 2, I was advised to attend as many committee meetings as possible in order to see where I could serve most efficiently. Although I prefer to attend in person, on September 9, the meeting at the Lenox Hill Village Emergency Department was filled so I attended the Parks and Waterfront Committee meeting by Zoom. The reason the room was packed was because there has been an intense and ongoing community movement to renovate the closed Dapolito Center on Clarkson Street. Chairman Rich Caccapolo started the meeting by explaining that the agenda would include the proposed recreation center that will be part of the new affordable housing proposed for 388 Hudson Street, also on Clarkson, about one block away. It would not discuss Dapolito renovation. It didn’t work out that way.

Most prominent in leading the demand for Dapolito renovation was Andrew Berman, director of Village Preservation, who was present by Zoom. I have enthusiastically supported many of VP’s proposals, but not this one. Berman encouraged the audience to ignore Caccapolo’s direction and discuss both Dapolito and 388 Hudson as they are linked by community needs, budget, and geography. I have been to many meetings obeying Robert’s Rules of Order, including a defined agenda, but I have never heard an audience participant reject and override a stated agenda. Never. But Berman read the audience well, and speaker after speaker wanted to discuss Dapolito, sometimes ignoring 388 Hudson completely. The chat line over Zoom eventually ended up with 450 chats, a number I have never seen in any other Zoom meeting. Many demanded both sites to be discussed, so let’s discuss both in proper context.

A Parks Department spokesman stated that the original plan was to renovate Dapolito and a budget was even approved. Dapolito supporters had confirmed that with documents obtained from a FOIL request and demanded that it be implemented. But the Parks representative said that once a closer look was taken at the 120-year-old building it was clear that it would be more difficult, expensive, and maybe even non-compliant with ADA access after renovation. I could have saved Dapolito supporters a lot of FOIL access hassle by saying that of course anything can be accomplished if you are willing to spend the time and money on renovation. In my own 40-year-old building and my previous office in a newly constructed building, new renovations discovered new problems and expenses once renovations actually started. Also, the new recreation center will have facilities like an indoor pool and a larger basketball court than even a successfully renovated Dapolito Center. The Parks Department is also planning to start renovation and enlargement of the outside pool next to Dapolito possibly including the Keith Haring mural. It is unclear if any of the Dapolito supporters could find any services reinstituted there that could not also be put in the new center at 388 Hudson. If the Parks Department has its way, eventually there will be a new state-of-the-art recreation center at 388 Hudson and an outdoor pool next to the demolished Dapolito site. If the Dapolito supporters have their way there will be two state-of-the-art recreation centers within one block of each other. The question now shifts from “could” we do this to “should” we do this.

The Parks Department does not have an unlimited budget and is presently fighting to get the total up to 1% of the city budget and distribute services to the 59 community boards in New York City. There are only 12 indoor pools and CB2 will have one. There are 53 outdoor pools and 17 mini-pools and CB2 will have a large one. There are 35 major recreation centers, although 52 of various sizes. CB2 will have one major center. It will also have a baseball/soccer field on Clarkson Street and another one three blocks away on Pier 40. It would be wonderful if we had an unlimited budget and could afford multiple sites within a block of each other, covering present needs and nostalgia for the admittedly historic Dapolito Center.

This is selfish. In fact, it goes beyond selfishness to institutional racism. This is not the same as personal racism which I do not believe is at play here. Institutional racism involves a set of policies and priorities which intentionally or unintentionally favor a privileged segment of society over an underprivileged, and usually racially discriminated against, segment. CB2 is one of the richest, most politically powerful, and predominantly whitest neighborhoods in the city. To access the limited and contested city budget to get an above average level of parks services and then demand more is clearly an example of institutional racism and selfishness. Yes, Dapolito is historic and beautiful. Institutional racism, even if inadvertent, is also historic but ugly.

There is a compromise, if the Dapolito supporters are willing to compromise. Tobi Bergman, a former CB2 member I believe, has proposed that the main Dapolito building be demolished, as planned, and the land turned into new open space parkland, (Village View, April 2026, “Just Imagine-A Wide Open Park Space from Varick to Hudson”) This would produce a park stretching from Varick to Hudson streets, including the ball/soccer fields, the small playground, the renovated outdoor pool and possibly a renovated and improved façade from the Dapolito Center to provide a grand entrance to this new open space. Although the Hudson River Park is only about three blocks away, there is a shortage of open green park land in that area of Varick/Hudson/Clarkson. During the fight over the Elizabeth Street Garden, many of its supporters pointed to the need for open space for a variety of esthetic and health reasons. Since some of these supporters are also involved in this fight, I hope they transfer this love of greenery to this compromise proposal.