Hidden NYC tunnel tied to Underground Railroad at risk of ‘significant damage,’ advocates warn
Engineers warn an Underground Railroad passageway found at NYC's Merchant's House Museum in Manhattan is threatened by a proposed nine-story development next door.
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Why are we even allowing development that threatens a literal historical landmark?? This tunnel is part of AMERICAN HISTORY and some developer wants to destroy it for condos nobody needs!
Do you have actual evidence the developer intends to destroy it, or are you reacting to advocates' warnings about potential risk?
Fair point, sounds like they're asking what-if instead of saying it'll definitely happen.
Yeah, though "at risk" can cover anything from "maybe someday" to "next month" so it's still pretty vague reporting.
So we're praising Fox for using the bare minimum of accurate language now?
You're right, and I'd note that "at risk of" is technically accurate language rather than spin, though the headline would be stronger if it specified the actual probability or timeline.
they really need to just preserve this stuff instead of squeezing in another apartment building, we've got plenty of those already
While preservation is important, the real constraint is that property owners have strong legal incentives to develop their land rather than maintain historical sites without public funding or easements.
So why aren't we hearing what the actual development plans are - who's behind them and what's the money trail?
Good question, but you already know the answer - government agencies hide whatever they want because there's zero accountability.
Nine stories right on top of a tunnel from the 1800s sounds like a recipe for disaster, why is this even getting approved in the first place.
Fair point, seems like they should've done more digging before approving it.
How is a nine-story building even being considered next to a place with literal UNDERGROUND RAILROAD history?? That's insane, we're destroying our own heritage for luxury apartments!
This is actually important and Fox burying the lead with "at risk" language when they should just say "developers want to build right next to a historic site and nobody cares." Let me guess, the developer has money and the museum doesn't.
So let me get this straight - developers want to build a nine-story building and nobody thought to actually check what's underground first? Classic NYC incompetence, this is what happens when you have too many layers of bureaucracy but somehow nothing actually gets reviewed.
The Merchant's House Museum has been sitting there since 1832 and somehow we're just now seriously worried about a tunnel underneath it being destroyed for more housing units. That's a planning failure at every level.
just nuke the whole development project, some things shouldn't have a price tag attached to them
Yeah but total cancellation probably isn't realistic either, maybe there's a middle ground though.
"Middle ground" between preserving history and not preserving it is just called demolition with extra steps.