Architecturally-Important 1945 Modern Home In Lawrence Demolished

LAWRENCE, NY—A postwar home designed in 1945 by leading modernist architect Marcel Breuer was torn down in the Village of Lawrence this month, prompting preservationists to lament it as a major loss.

Docomomo US is a nonprofit that advocates for preserving architecturally-important buildings.

The group's executive director Liz Waytkus described the demolition of the Lawrence house, called Geller I, as "by far the most significant loss in recent memory."

The Ocean Avenue house was torn down by the current owners, Shimon and Judy Eckstein, after attempts by preservationists to save it. The property sold in 2020 for $975,000, and the house's structure was intact, even though the interior had been remodeled.

The New York Times reports that Waytkus and others said the house was likely eligible for the national and state registers of historic places "and they had attempted to secure a landmark designation through the Town of Hempstead."

"The house was not just any Marcel Breuer designed home but really the first of his own design blending American ideas, materials and his own upbringing in Hungary. You just don't expect a Breuer house to come down and certainly not for a tennis court," Waytkus told Dezeen.com, an architecture blog.

Geller I was Breuer's first "binuclear house," a style he became known for in the postwar years. Breuer designed many prominent buildings, including a former home of New York's Whitney Musuem.

Lawrence Village administrator Ronald Goldman told the New York Times that “While we appreciate architectural values, it is private property.”

A second home designed by the prominent architect is one the same street in Lawrence, dubbed Geller II, and preservationists are hoping to protect it.