Tony Dapolito Center Still Doomed, Adams Pushes “Hudson Mosaic” Tower

The outgoing Adams administration has formalized a plan to knock down the Tony Dapolito Recreation Center and replace it with a towering residential complex, which is set to be called Hudson Mosaic.

Local preservationists, who would rather see the shuttered landmark repaired than obliterated, are furious. Some housing advocates and city officials, meanwhile, are quite pleased. The new development—which would be spearheaded by Camber Property Group, Services for the UnderServed, and Essence Development–would notably include a new recreation center.

The centerpiece of the project would be a 35-story residential tower, which is slated to include amenities such as an outdoor terrace, a fitness room, a computer room, a kids’ playroom, in-building laundry services, a social services suite, and multiple “community lounge” rooms.

“Hudson Mosaic is a demonstration of HPD’s commitment to building homes and neighborhoods that give every New Yorker the chance to thrive and live a life with dignity,” Acting Housing Preservation & Development Commissioner Ahmed Tigani said in a statement. He added that the project would be a “rich and vibrant community [asset].”

New York City Parks Commissioner, Iris Rodriguez-Rosa, issued an effusive statement as well. “The new recreation center at Hudson Mosaic will offer year-round access to affordable, accessible, high-quality amenities that support health, wellness, and community connection. We’re proud to help bring this transformative space to life,” she said.

Village Preservation, which has been spearheading a campaign to “Save Tony Dapolito,” pointedly described the Hudson Mosaic rollout as “shocking and disappointing.” They added the plans “are neither surprising from the outgoing Mayor nor are they anywhere near approved or assured.”

Village Preservation has tried to stand in the breach ever since the city first announced their intentions to utterly “replace” the 117-year-old Clarkson St. recreation center with a new development, outside of a promise to preserve (and move) its famed poolside Keith Haring mural.

This past summer, the advocacy group demanded that $51 million in earmarked funds go towards conducting much-needed repairs, which were initially supposed to move forward after the decaying space was closed to the public in 2020.

Andrew Berman, Village Preservation’s Executive Director, has consistently argued that such a sum is cost-minimal compared to the $164 million–according to the latest city estimates–that would go towards building something such as Hudson Mosaic.

In a Dec. 22 interview with Straus News, Berman emphasized his organization’s strident criticism of the new plans. “The proposed design could not stick out like more of a sore thumb, given its surroundings,” he said.

“There is broad support for development on this site that would include both public recreation facilities and affordable housing...[but] this plan is really a big middle finger to this community,” Berman added. He clarified that any new recreational facilities should “supplement,” rather than replace, the recreation center.

Berman noted that Village Preservation was looking to have “a much more reasoned and rational conversation” on the project with incoming Mayor Zohran Mamdani, City Council Member Erik Bottcher, and incoming Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal.

As to whether he was optimistic that this could significantly alter the Hudson Mosaic plans, and end up preserving Tony Dapolito, Berman said that he was keeping an “open mind.”