A hallway with peeling paint. Photo taken by Serena Booth. Creedmoor is a psychiatric facility in Queens that has a substantial, sprawling campus and a dark history. Many of the buildings in the Creedmoor campus lie vacant, as there are over a dozen abandoned buildings that stand within its campus. Founded in 1912, Creedmoor was initially intended to be a farm colony of the Brooklyn State Hospital. Historically, farm colonies were seen as ideal housing systems for patients with mental illness, as patients could work on a farm to produce food and other resources, which created more self-sufficient settlements. This idealized version of a farm colony was far from the common reality at Creedmoor Psychiatric, as patients suffered overcrowding and horrific conditions. In 1959, it housed over 7,000 patients, but patients and resources were slowly pulled from the facility due to increasing concern over the abusive conditions. Currently, the facility only houses a couple hundred patients, and an outdoor part of the campus at Creedmoor is being used to create a tent facility for migrants. Some buildings have been converted for the use of the community, such as the construction of multiple public schools on the campus, but many buildings remain unused. Creedmoor represents the turbulent funding and disinvestment that has taken place towards mental health facilities in New York. Due to deinstitutionalization that started in the 60’s, and continued until the movement reached a peak in the 80’s, the units at Creedmoor Psychiatric Center were mostly emptied. Although much of the facility now lies abandoned, Creedmoor Psychiatric Center is emblematic of social issues in New York City that are very much alive. The campus of Creedmoor occupies over 100 acres, which is an extremely substantial amount of space in New York City. Despite this, the psychiatric hospital only has a couple hundred residents, and tent facilities are being used to house migrants. A small portion of the Creedmoor campus is being utilized for migrant housing, and this is a recent development that took place in August of 2023 when the city opened 1,000 beds in a tent facility. This development leaves some people to question whether the dilapidated structures could be converted to create more permanent housing for migrants, or even residents of Queens. New York City has a housing crisis, so the lack of use of restorable buildings is questionable. Other sections of the Creedmoor campus have been redeveloped, such as into public schools, and there are two museums on the property as well. These restored buildings have a purpose in the community, and they are a good example of how vacant buildings that lie on the property should be restored for a good cause. Governor Katchy Hochul has assembled a team of state officials to find a new use for a section of the campus, and this team has been working along with community members in the neighborhood to redevelop 55 acres of the 125-acre campus. Creedmoor highlights the turbulent nature of redevelopment proposals, as some buildings on the property have been redeveloped to suit the needs of the community. Things to Know: The Living Museum ( hyperlink "The Living Museum" https://artbreakout.com/interview/speaking-with-dr-janos-marton-co-founder-and-director-of-the-living-museum-at-creedmoor-psychiatric-center/ ) at Creedmoor is a museum that showcases art from former patients at Creedmoor, and it can be accessed by appointment or virtual reality tour. Relevant Question: How can the campus of Creedmoor be better used? What structures does your community need?

An old classroom with a chalkboard. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

A dental chair in an examination room. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

Debris falls from the ceiling in some rooms. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

A fire door separates sections of the ward. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

A room with fallen ceiling panes. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

An old exercise bike sits at the end of a hallway. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

A hallway inside an abandoned ward. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

The interior of the theater from beneath the stage. Photo taken by Serena Booth. The Loew's Coney Island Theatre, also known as the Shore Theater, is a landmarked theater in Coney Island that has been abandoned for 50 years. Opened in 1925 as the Loew’s Coney Island Theatre, the building once had a lot of cultural significance for the neighborhood as it drew crowds to the neighborhood and was an architectural gem. The interior of the building includes a theater and a ballroom, and the top floors of the building were offices and apartments, but they also lie vacant. The Loew's Coney Island Theatre has been vacant for decades, as it closed its doors in the 1970s. The ornate interior of the building is adorned with nautical details, intricately carved ceilings, and unique lighting fixtures. The property was landmarked in 2010 and purchased in the late 2010s, but it is still in the process of being restored. Even before it was recognized as a landmark by city officials, the Loew's Coney Island Theatre was a cultural landmark for Coney Island, yet developers have allowed it to lie in disrepair for nearly half a century. The abandonment of this theater paints a bigger picture of America’s dying theaters, and it also warrants questions about how public spaces are allowed to lie in disrepair for so long. Built in 1925 as a place for the public, the theater was designed to seat over 2,000 people. Although it was popular in its heyday, the beautiful interior of the building has been seen by very few people in the past few decades due to being shuttered away. The structure sits across the street from the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue stop, so in theory, this building could be accessed by hundreds of thousands of people. It is in a prime location for a theater, so it is a shame that the space has been collecting dust. Some sources ( hyperlink "sources" https://newyorkyimby.com/2023/03/coney-island-shore-theaters-hotel-conversion-begins-at-1301-surf-avenue-in-coney-island-brooklyn.html ) state that the Shore Theatre is attempting to restore the property and open it to the public. These recent renderings have reimagined this space as a hotel, with a spa and ground-floor retail space. In a contemporary city, culture from the past must be appreciated as well, so perhaps this building should be restored with integrity to its initial intention of being a place for public entertainment. The Shore Theater offers a new way of thinking about public space because it is a beautiful, ornate, culturally significant space being neglected. In the future, New Yorkers need to reclaim these spaces for the public and use them to benefit communities. This building and the issues it has faced through redevelopment sheds light on the lack of solid policy concerning the turn-around of vacant properties that allow for buildings to lie vacant. Although some policy exists in regards to maintaining what the state of New York considers ‘zombie properties’, this law only applies to one in four residential properties that are subject to a mortgage. Because of this major loophole in the law, it is legal for developers to own and warehouse properties without maintaining them or opening them to the public. Relevant Question: Is it fair for privately owned buildings to remain vacant, when they are located in a popular public domain? If not, how must policies shift to address this issue?

An ornate, spiral ceiling. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

Hand-carved handrails. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

Rusty lockers line a hallway. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

An exit door and a staircase lead through the theater. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

A locker with deteriorating tape, which has the title “Fear of Love” handwritten on it. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

Centralized view of the stage. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

Unknown machinery and lights. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

Old machinery. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

View of the stage from a front pew. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

An overgrown pathway leading to a men's dormitory building. Photo taken by Serena Booth. The Staten Island Farm Colony is a historic property that lies in the Staten Island greenbelt. The property consists of many acres of forest, as well as quite a few buildings that have remained abandoned for decades. Initially, the property consisted of dormitories and a farm, and the community was designed as an isolated place for the poor and socially disadvantaged to live for free, in exchange for work. The property was built in the 1800s, but it has been sealed and abandoned since 1975. The Staten Island Farm Colony introduces many questions about housing. Initially, the property served as housing for the poor, but the buildings have lay vacant and unused for decades. New York City does not have laws in place to ensure the use of vacant buildings, which is questionable considering the slow rate of progress regarding the redevelopment of these properties. In the city, people are directly affected by vacant properties because these buildings affect the property market, and also prevent people from having more access to public space. In 2016, 45 acres of the property were sold to a Staten Island developer for a mere $1, but in theory, it would cost about $91,000,000 to renovate the site. The plan, which involved preserving 5 buildings on the site and demolishing 5 buildings on the site to create an apartment complex, has yet to be completed, despite promises from the developer that apartments constructed in this redevelopment would hit the market in 2017-2018. Developers often fall short on their promises to restore vacant buildings, and this is commonly seen when comparing the projected time that redevelopment is supposed to take, with the actual time it does. Many redevelopment plans for vacant properties get abandoned like the buildings themself, and construction never seems to start or finish. For vacant buildings in New York City, legislative change may be necessary to create policies that promote the redevelopment of buildings. Relevant Question: What would a Farm Colony system look like in the future in New York City? Can this model of work in exchange for free public housing be applied to other types of work?

The outside of a men’s dormitory in the Farm Colony. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

A men's dormitory at the Staten Island Farm Colony. Photo taken by Serena Booth.

A room in a men’s dormitory in the Farm Colony. Photo taken by Serena Booth. Creedmoor Psychiatric Center References: Chan, Sewell. “The Lost World of Creedmoor Hospital.” The New York Times, 12 Nov. 2009, archive.nytimes.com/cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/12/the-lost-world-of-creedmoor-hospital/. Chu, Haidee. “‘underutilized’ Creedmoor Psych Center Looks toward a Very Different Future.” THE CITY - NYC News, 3 Feb. 2023, www.thecity.nyc/2023/02/03/creedmoor-psychiatric-center-visioning-center-kathy-hochul-instituionalization/. “Speaking with Dr János Marton, Co-Founder and Director of the Living Museum at Creedmoor Psychiatric Center.” An Interview with Dr János Marton, Living Museum Co-Founder & Director, 28 Mar. 2019, artbreakout.com/interview/speaking-with-dr-janos-marton-co-founder-and-director-of-the-living-museum-at-creedmoor-psychiatric-center/. Loew's Coney Island Theatre References: Pruznick, Matt, and Michael Young. “Coney Island Shore Theater’s Hotel Conversion Begins at 1301 Surf Avenue in Coney Island, Brooklyn.” New York YIMBY, 12 Mar. 2023, newyorkyimby.com/2023/03/coney-island-shore-theaters-hotel-conversion-begins-at-1301-surf-avenue-in-coney-island-brooklyn.html. “Shore Theatre.” Cinema Treasures, cinematreasures.org/theaters/595. “Coney Island’s Shore Theater: What Survives?” Coney Island History Project, 23 Jan. 2019, www.coneyislandhistory.org/blog/coney-islands-shore-theater-what-survives. New York City Farm Colony References: Dunlap, David W. “New Life for Staten Island’s Derelict Farm Colony.” The New York Times, 20 Jan. 2016, www.nytimes.com/2016/01/21/nyregion/new-life-for-staten-islands-derelict-farm-colony.html. New York City Farm Colony - Seaview District Historic District Designation Report, s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/1408.pdf.