Museum Of Natural History To Resume Gilder Center Construction

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — The American Museum of Natural History will resume construction work in the Upper West Side's Theodore Roosevelt Park a week after a lawsuit challenging its expansion project was dismissed, museum officials announced.

Crews will begin delivering construction materials to the building site located within Theodore Roosevelt Park as will resume the removal of seven trees to make way for the Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation, museum officials announced. Work will also resume on the exterior of existing museum buildings, which is expected to create "low-level construction noise."

"The Museum is working to minimize disruption throughout the construction project," a museum statement reads.

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State Supreme Court judge Lynn Kotler ruled against the Community United to Protect Theodore Roosevelt Park's legal challenge of the $383 million Gilder Center. The preservation group argued that the city Parks Department incorrectly interpreted a 142-year-old law when it approved the American Museum of Natural History's plan to build its new facility in the park.

The advocacy group also argued that the museum should have been required to go through the city's Uniform Land Use Review Procedure to obtain permits for the expansion, which Kolter disagreed with.

Kolter also ruled to dismiss a temporary restraining order that limited the scope of the museum's construction work in Theodore Roosevelt Park and prevented any tree removal.

Community United to Protect Theodore Roosevelt Park is considering appealing the ruling, the group's chairman William Raudenbush said in a statement.

"This decision is deeply disappointing and fails to protect the interests of the people who live in one of New York's oldest residential neighborhoods as well as failing to follow the law. Our organization is evaluating all options, including an appeal," Raudenbush said.

The American Museum of Natural History filed building plans for the Gilder Center in August 2017 after receiving approvals for the project from Community Board 7 and the city Landmarks Preservation Commission in 2016.

The $383 million Gilder Center will expand the American Museum of Natural History's footprint into Theodore Roosevelt Park by a quarter-acre, according to museum plans. The new five-story facility will add a total of 230,000 square feet of space to the American Museum of Natural History, according to plans filed with the Department of Buildings. The American Museum of Natural History plans to complete the Gilder Center by 2021.

Rendering by Studio Gang Architects courtesy American Museum of Natural History