"Inisfada" - North Hills, New York (Pt. 3)

Part I on the history of "Inisfada" can be viewed here and part II here

Courtesy of History Center at the Manhasset Public Library (n.d.)

After the estate's public days had ceased, another sale was held by Capo Auction in November 2013 to sell off the remaining few pieces of value that were kept by the Jesuits. It raised $50,000 for Fordham University. In an attempt to repurpose the former organ, the Organ Clearing House of Boston was retained for for a two-week intensive dismantling, but after a few years of lying in storage, the parts were disposed of in April 2019.

A salvage job of the architectural elements was undertaken by Nevcon Builders for Evan Blum of Demolition Depot/Irreplaceable Artifacts at 161 E 126th Street. Items removed included planters, woodwork, doors, sconces, the 2nd floor skylight, and the ironwork. While it is regarded as vaguely-sustainable to reuse these materials, they loose their context when carted off to be sold at top-dollar prices as meaningless architectural fragments. This misguided process incentivizes cultural heritage as a commodity, rather than leaving it in-situ. This meager effort paled in comparison to all of the other items in the home that were not reused or salvaged which would number in the thousands.

Photos courtesy of Nevcon Builders (Oct. 2013)

While it would seem great that planters, a skylight, decorative flower pots, wooden newell posts, outdoor sculptures, the entryway details, solarium doors, main hall doors, mantles, and other items survive, these will likely sit in their crates for many years awaiting a buyer. At last glance in 2016, the prices for these items were in the tens of thousands which makes them fully-prohibitive for any ordinary person to purchase. The ornamental wood that was collected is only being sold as part of an entire room which could be over $100,000. A price quote for sets of lights ranged from $30,000 to $60,000. What once was accessible to any visitor to view will now only be in reach of only the richest in society. There is almost full certainty that these items will never be put on public display again.

Photos courtesy of Demolition Depot & Irreplaceable Artifacts (2016)

Demolition unexpectedly started on Dec 5th, 2013. I distinctly recall leaving for school that morning with a very odd feeling with how ominous and cloudy the weather was. Little did I know that those fears would be foreshadowing a gruesome death of one of America's greatest historical sites. Hidden behind a long driveway and buffer of trees, it was extremely difficult to get a real understanding of what was going on.

Photos courtesy of Gary Lawrance (2013)

Photo courtesy of Alejandra Villa for "Newsday" (2013)

Courtesy of Elizabeth Johnson (2013)

Without the main house standing, the land remained fallow for several years under the ownership of the Manhasset Bay Group as negotiations were made on how to proceed with maximizing building lots on the property. Once maintained gardens and compelling outbuildings became overgrown with neglect, becoming a blight on the area. In 2019, it was placed back on the market for $110M without any building activity for nearly a decade.

Courtesy of Giovanni D. Puglisi (2019)

In November of 2021, the property was purchased from Lifestyle International Holdings Limited--the parent entity of the once-anonymous Manhasset Bay Group--by the Toll Brothers development company at $72M discount off list price. Toll Brothers will build roughly 46 new homes on the property, eliminating ostensibly every last vestige that remained from the days of the Bradys and the Jesuits. Along with the buffer of trees that stood, the Searingtown Road gate has all been removed as if the centuries of history here never existed to begin with.

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Going back to the early roots of North Hills being home to 'the Irish channel', the Welsh saying of "Lle i Enaid Gael Llonydd", a place for the soul to find peace, this setting and environment was especially significant to the mission that St. Ignatius had for the community of nourishing the mind, body and soul. Intended to be the Brady family's legacy as their gift to all of Long Island, "Inisfada" became a beacon of spiritual connection. For visitors, it was incredible to find this specific moment intact of what life was like in the high 20's and a slice of England in our own backyard--the light flooded in through the stained glass windows, the trees planted nearly 100 years earlier had grown tall and graceful, the sounds of the organ pierced through the halls. It was a glorious place. My only regret was not getting to photograph more, experience more, or be as involved as I could with "Inisfada". It is something that will always be with me. 

One can only wonder what it must've been like for people who were visiting this retreat house from different parts of the country or the world--who came into this glorious building--and were moved to try to better themselves. It was a vessel to receive spiritual wisdom. This was undoubtedly a place that people did not just pass through, but had a profound effect in their lives and understanding of the world. Perhaps an enhanced appreciation of architecture as well. Despite having a design built to withstand through two world wars, the Great Depression, countless global recessions and changes of tastes, it was not merely enough to survive a laissez-faire local government disinterested in community vitality over the prospect of maintaining a low tax base for residents who are already well-off to begin with. All throughout the development of Manhasset from a rural farming town to the powerful suburb it is, "Inisfada" had been there as a rock against the ravages of time.

While the intended function of a self-sufficient estate or even as a religious retreat house may not have been feasible without further external financial support, there were myriad other uses that would have kept the integrity. If worse came to worse, there was even vast successful precedent of building on the periphery while retaining the main house as possibly a clubhouse or converting it into condominiums. It was better, apparently, to destroy it all than to publicly affirm what had once been such an important part of so many lives. Architects can only dream that their designs can help change people's lifestyles, and through the power of sustainability, "Inisfada" could have continued on with its bold vision.

As long as the owner was vaguely within the scope of the law, there would be no trouble at all at least from the Village of North Hills. While the developer ensured the historical resources were conveniently obliterated ahead of time, there will be no escaping the strain on traffic, sewers, emergency access, school population, and more that will ensue. It is ironic that the Manhasset Bay Group--four Hong Kong real estate magnates with no apparent prior connection to Long Island whatsoever--ended up inflicting so much damage to our community and the environment. It is a sin only comparable to tearing down the Taj Mahal or Versailles as a landmark so beloved and important that its loss is completely unfathomable and unrealized from its massiveness. For a religion that professes to recognize nature as a form of godliness, the utter lack of response from the largely-Catholic Manhasset community to this irretrievable environmental, social, and artistic loss speaks volumes in itself.

North Hills has become a village where nearly every single possible acre of profitable land has been turned from pastural estate grounds to street after street of bland cookie-cutter housing. Mayor Marvin Natiss was quoted in an August 2013 article on the blog Narative.ly as saying "If the new developers choose to demolish the building, they have a right to do that. I can't control the Great Gatsby era for the few people who think it should be preserved" and was later quoted in the Manhasset Times as saying “Once they [then-anonymous developer] own[s] it, they’re free to do whatever they see fit". He granted the demolition permits in December 2013 surely without any hesitation whatsoever, whilst on vacation in Florida. For all the local control and self-determination absolutists, our future was abdicated to a foreign actor with no apparent ties to the area to use our irreplaceable history and resources like a commodity.

It is obvious that the concerns of the officials of North Hills are not with the vitality and sense of place but with the illusion of maintaining a low tax base in perpetuity (this development revenue will only cover a portion of the now increased costs for community services to serve the project--the rest will have to be paid by taxpayers). The increase of over 50 families will have to be absorbed by a school system already nearing capacity, eventually necessitating massive bonds to fund an expansion or creating a new building. One would not be surprised if some officials on Long Island would be willing to take down the Great Pyramids if it would be profitable. Keep in mind, North Hills officials had already gone on record as having deliberated disposal of Shelter Rock--which literally predates modern civilization--to pave way for more residential development. This architectural travesty at St. Ignatius will forever be North Hills' greatest mistake.

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This history is our past, but it is also intrinsic to our future. When people destroy history, they also destroy a bit of the spirit of humanity. In a modern consumerist lifestyle that sacrifices the essentials of the planet to produce the superfluous, there is nothing more wasteful than removing something that was irreplaceable to this community in the vain attempt meet a very narrow guise of need that never even existed. Our planet is in disaster and this is yet another jarring contribution to that environmental damage. While it was too late for "Inisfada" to be saved, it is not too late to let this great place be lost without pause. The task before us as residents and more broadly as a nation is to decide that preservation is more valuable than profit. Since works like this will never be made again, what is lost will never be regained.

Being from Long Island, we are part of such a remarkable story of the incredible people who came before us; and as the next generation of people who live here, we are part of it as well. It is an honor to write what is possibly the definitive story of this once glorious home. We are given the extraordinary responsibility to ensure that the best of the past remains standing so future generations can benefit from it. After all, we are given this role as guardians with a moral imperative to protect these irreplaceable treasures. There are no do-overs. "Inisfada" was part of an unrivaled sense of place where we could gaze out across the peninsula to see reminders of what once was, and for a brief moment, we were borne ceaselessly into the past.

A special thanks goes out to Fr. Damian Halligan, Chuck Idol, George Malhame, Elizabeth Gagliardi, Paul Mateyunas, Gary Lawrence, Evan Blum, Zach Lemle, Caroline Christie, and countless others for sharing their stories and helping make this post possible.

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