120 East 125th Street, Manhattan. Credit: CityLand.
Commissioners suggested retaining former firehouse’s garage door and rethinking mural sizes for planned cultural center. On November 13, 2012, Landmarks considered a proposal by the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute (CCCADI), to make modifications to the individually landmarked Fire Hook and Ladder Company No. 14 at 120 East 125th Street in Harlem. The Romanesque Revival firehouse, designed by Napoleon LeBrun & Sons and completed in 1889, was designated in 1997. The firehouse was closed in 2003 due to budget cuts. The City Council approved sale of the building in 2007, on the condition that it be transferred to a community service provider. (See CityLand’s past coverage here.) CCCADI was awarded the firehouse, and presented the proposal in order to convert the firehouse into a new space for the Institute.
Melody Capote, Director of External Affairs for the Institute, stated that moving to the 125th Street location, from the present Hell’s Kitchen location, would “place us in greater proximity to the constituencies we serve.” She stated that the site would host exhibitions, concerts, lectures, after-school programs, and “community-based learning.” Capote expressed hope that the location would allow the Institute to become a place where community members could “share ideas and dialogue.”
