Preservation New Jersey released its annual list Thursday
TRENTON -- The Union Hotel that was made famous by the Lindbergh kidnapping trial and the state's deteriorating infrastructure are among this year's 10 most endangered sites in New Jersey.
Preservation New Jersey released its annual list Thursday in hopes of encouraging people to try to save the sites.
The group says the sites show both the need to balance preservation and development and the value of using preservation as a positive tool for revitalization.
Each year, 10 sites are chosen based on three criteria: the historic significance and architectural integrity, the critical nature of the threat identified and the likelihood that inclusion on the list will have a positive impact on preservation efforts.
This year's list is as follows:
Union Hotel (Flemington, Hunterdon County)
The circa-1814 hotel gained national notoriety in early 1935 when the "trial of the century" unfolded across the street at the Hunterdon County Courthouse and the hotel's rooms housed the reporters and sequestered jurors.
The landmark is now faced with the threat of demolition as the latest redevelopment plan calls for some buildings to come down and, in their place, build restaurants, retail space, a new hotel, college and underground parking.
East Broadway Historic District (Salem, Salem County)
This historic district, along a main artery in Salem, contains over twenty vacant buildings in a two thirds-mile stretch, reflecting the declining economy and population of teh city. Salem, like countless other communities in the state, needs to motivate current owners to rehabilitate their buildings and attract new owners to purchase and restore abandoned structures. -PNJ
Deliverance Evangelistic Center (Newark, Essex County)
Originally constructed as Temple B'nai Abraham, this 1924 circular building with a 2,000-seat sanctuary is owned by Deliverance Evangelical Ministries. The congregation, in decline for many years, no longer uses the building, which is need of extensive repairs. Local government and spiritual and civic groups need to partner to put this important Newark landmark back into use. -PNJ
Dr. James Still Office (Medford, Burlington County)
This one-story hipped-roof vernacular building was built in 1836 by James Still, an herbalist and practitioner of folk medicine. The state purchased the property in 2006 but has undertaken no work at the deteriorated and vacant building despite completion of a New Jersey Historic Trust-funded preservation plan. -PNJ
Rahway River Park (Rahway, Union County)
Construction is underway on a $4.9 million facelift of the park, a project that a grassroots group of opponents say will desecrate a pristine open space. The upgrades include a multipurpose synthetic turf field, a new eight-lane track, bleachers for 1,200 fans and a fieldhouse with restrooms and a concession stand. The park was designed by the landscape architecture firm Olmsted Brothers.
Van Dien-Ruffgarten House (Paramus, Bergen County)
This 1840s Jersey Dutch Stone house sits vacant, deteriorating and for sale. Paramus declined to purchase the nine-acre property, and with tremendous development pressure in the area, the building's future is uncertain. -PNJ
The Forum Theatre (Metuchen, Middlesex County)
This 1928 red-brick theater only receives intermittent use and is currently for sale due to severe competition from mass market movie theaters. Despite being great cultural resources, many historic theaters in the state face similar circumstances and threat of demolition. -PNJ
Hugg-Harrison-Glover House (Bellmawr, Camden County)
Built in stages between the 1720s and 1764, the Hugg-Harrison-Glover House is notable for the 1764 date visible in its patterned brickwork and for its association with the War of Independence. The house sits in the path of a massive "direct connection" project linking I-295 with Route 42 and is threatened by demolition. After its significance was overlooked during early project planning, the Department of Transportation must now exhaust all efforts to save this building. -PNJ
Deteriorating infrastructure of New Jersey (statewide)
The state's infrastructure was given a D+ in a recent report by the American Society of Civil Engineers. Despite the vast need for construction, repair and maintenance, the state's bridges, tunnels, dams and roads -- often older and historic -- is critically underfunded. -PNJ
Whyman House (Elizabeth, Union County)
This late-nineteenth-century cubical Italianate villa with intact outbuildings and landscape features is one of the last unaltered examples of a once-common housing type in Elizabeth. Now vacant, for sale and facing threats from development, this local landmark provides an opportunity to show the value of our historic and architectural resources and their ability to be put to new uses.
Previous Preservation New Jersey's top 10 lists:
- Top 10 most endangered historic sites 2015
- Top 10 most endangered historic sites 2014
- Top 10 most endangered historic sites 2013
- Top 10 most endangered historic sites 2012
For more information, visit preservationnj.org.
Cristina Rojas may be reached at crojas@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @CristinaRojasTT. Find NJ.com on Facebook.