Yonkers' Teutonia Hall sold, faces uncertain future

Ernie Garcia
elgarcia@lohud.com

YONKERS - The Yonkers Downtown Waterfront Development Corp. will sell a 19th-century building to a developer, leaving the structure's future uncertain.

Teutonia Hall, at 41-51 Buena Vista Ave., has been the subject of past development and preservation efforts.

The corporation's board voted to sell the derelict structure to Teutonia Buena Vista LLC for $450,000 Wednesday night.

The 1891 building with a facade of terra cotta and bricks was built by the city's German immigrant community, which also established a nearby church on Hudson Street that is still in good condition and occupied.

Some of the waterfront development corporation board members expressed concern about the sale price and the possibility that the building will be razed for development. The corporation acquired the building in 1994.

James Pinto, the development corporation's executive director, explained that the site is environmentally contaminated and the ground beneath it must be cleaned, which could put the building in danger of falling.

Deputy Mayor William Regan said that the developers have appeared at the city's Landmarks Preservation Board to discuss Teutonia Hall, but the landmarks board's members had been unresponsive to the company.

Teutonia Buena Vista LLC of Teaneck, N.J., is controlled by the same people who built new housing at 66 Main St. and who operate the Trolley Barn, an old warehouse readapted as apartments and retail.

The development corporation signed an agreement with Teutonia Buena Vista in 2007, allowing it to lease the property and buy adjacent lots for a redevelopment project, but that did not happen. The building's sale is now needed so that Teutonia Buena Vista can obtain financing for preliminary planning for preservation or redevelopment, according to the resolution voted on Wednesday.