View source for 90 Church Street

{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{short description|Historic post office in Manhattan, New York}}
{{Infobox NRHP
| name         = 90 Church Street<br>(U.S. Post Office – Church Street Station)
| nrhp_type    =
| image        = Church st post office crop.jpg
| image_size   = 300px
| caption      = 90 Church Street in 2006
| location     = 90 Church Street<br>[[Manhattan]], [[New York City]]
| coordinates  = {{coord|40|42|45|N|74|0|40|W|display=inline,title}}
| district_map = {{Maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|frame-align=center|frame-width=250|frame-height=250|zoom=14|type=point|marker=|title=90 Church Street}}
| built        = 1934–35
| architect    = [[Cross and Cross]]<br>Pennington, Lewis & Mills<br>Lewis A. Simon ''(Superv. Arch. of the Treasury)''
| architecture = [[Classical Revival architecture|Classical Revival]] and [[Art Deco architecture|Art Deco]]
| added        = May 11, 1989
| mpsub        = {{NRHP url|id=64000597|title=US Post Offices in New York State, 1858-1943, TR}}
| refnum       = 88002359 <ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2006a}}</ref>
}}
[[File:90 Church Street panoramic.jpg|thumb|255px|Entrance hall]]

'''90 Church Street''' is a [[Federal government of the United States|federal]] [[office building]] in [[Lower Manhattan]] in [[New York City]]. The building houses the [[United States Postal Service]]'s Church Street Station, which is responsible for the 10007 [[ZIP code]]. The building takes up a full block between [[Church Street (Manhattan)|Church Street]] and [[West Broadway]] and between [[Vesey Street|Vesey]] and Barclay Streets.

==History==
90 Church Street was designed by [[Cross & Cross]], Pennington, Lewis & Mills and [[Louis A. Simon]], who was [[Supervising Architect of the Department of the Treasury]] at the time. The architectural style of the building is a mixture of [[Classical Revival architecture|Neo-classicism]] and [[Art Deco architecture|Art Deco]]. It has two towers and the facade is clad in [[limestone]]. The ''[[AIA Guide to New York City]]'' described the building as "a boring limestone monolith that has trouble deciding between a heritage of stripped down neo-Classical and a new breath of Art Deco."<ref name=aia>{{cite aia5|pages=72, 74}}</ref>

The building was completed in 1935.

It was added to the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1989.<ref name="nrhpinv_ny">{{cite web|url=http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=5106|title=National Register of Historic Places Registration: Church Street Station Post Office|date=November 1986|access-date=October 1, 2010 |author =Gobrecht, Larry E.|publisher=[[New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation]]}} ''See also:'' {{cite web|url=http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=5108|title=Accompanying nine photos}}</ref><ref name="Dunlap, David W">{{cite news |title=Post Office, Polluted on Sept. 11, Is Back in Business |work=The New York Times |date=August 19, 2004 |author =Dunlap, David W.}}</ref>  The building was extensively renovated by [[Boston Properties|Boston Properties, Inc]] from the early 1990s though 2000 by Architects [[Swanke Hayden Connell Architects]] and [[TRO (company)|Brannen Associates]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/10/business/commercial-real-estate-regional-market-manhattan-wrangling-over-cleanup-90.html|title=COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE: REGIONAL MARKET -- Manhattan; Wrangling Over a Cleanup at 90 Church Street|last=Barbanel|first=Josh|date=September 10, 2003|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 6, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

In addition to housing the Postal Service, the 90 Church Street building contains offices of the New York State Public Service Commission, the New York State Health Department, and the [[New York City Housing Authority]].<ref name="Dunlap, David W"/>

=== September 11 attacks ===
The building suffered moderate damage during the [[September 11 attacks]] due to a remnant of one of the planes and other debris landing on top of the building. Following the collapse of the World Trade Centers twin towers, the building's [[facade]] was damaged, windows were broken, the roof was seriously burned and major [[water damage]] occurred throughout the internal structure. It was also extensively [[contamination|contaminated]] with [[asbestos]], [[lead]] dust, [[fungi]], [[fiberglass]] dust, [[Mercury (element)|mercury]], and [[bacteria]].<ref name="Dunlap, David W"/>  The building was entirely engulfed by dust after the collapse of both buildings, respectively, and was further damaged when [[7 World Trade Center (1987–2001)|Building 7]] collapsed later the same day. There was no major structural damage.<ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.fema.gov/pdf/library/fema403_ch7.pdf |title=World Trade Center Building Performance Study |chapter=Chapter 7, Peripheral Buildings |date=May 2002|author =FEMA}}</ref> During [[Rescue and recovery effort after the September 11, 2001 attacks|recovery efforts]] at [[Ground Zero]], the United States Postal Service worked to return individual pieces of mail found by rescue workers to the addressees.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.arago.si.edu/index.asp?con=2&cmd=1&id=81562 |title=Letter to customers explaining recovered 9/11 mail |publisher=National Postal Museum}}</ref> In August 2004, the Church Street Station Post Office reopened, and mail was once again being processed there.<ref>{{cite news |title=Mail Still Being Sent to Trade Center |publisher=Associated Press |date=December 4, 2006 |author =Barr, Meghan}}</ref> Church Street Station also serves the 10007 ZIP code, covering portions of [[Battery Park City]], [[Tribeca]], and [[Civic Center, Manhattan|Civic Center]].

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{commonscat-inline}}

{{National Register of Historic Places in New York|state=collapsed}}
{{World Trade Center}}
{{Tribeca}}

[[Category:1930s architecture in the United States]]
[[Category:1935 establishments in New York City]]
[[Category:Post office buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan|Church Street Station Post Office]]
[[Category:Government buildings completed in 1935]]
[[Category:Neoclassical architecture in New York City]]
[[Category:Art Deco architecture in Manhattan]]