10:07 am Mar. 15, 20133
Little Syria: A Forgotten Place is about a small but thriving Arab-immigrant neighborhood that existed in lower Manhattan for more than a century, from around the 1870s to the 1970s. It was destroyed to make way for construction of the World Trade Center in the '70s.
They were store-owners, peddlers of textiles and restaurant-owners. They made their life on Washington Street before they were uprooted to make way for one of the world’s biggest financial centers.
Through the eyes of a few main characters, most with personal connections to Little Syria, the film details an effort to preserve the three remaining buildings on Washington Street, the main thoroughfare of the old Arab neighborhood.
The tale of Little Syria’s destruction and the struggle to preserve the quickly vanishing remnants of the neighborhood brings to light a story that is all but forgotten in contemporary New York.
This film documents the history of these mostly Syrian and Lebanese immigrants who settled the neighborhood.
An insightful and well done documentary; congrats Minty and best wishes for a fantastic future.
As a tenant at 109 Washington Street, I would love nothing more than to see an area with such rich heritage be saved. However, something that I feel is often ignored in this process is a long-term plan to preserve these three buildings in a way that will keep them functioning and standing. As sad as it is to see these historic properties destroyed, it is just as depressing to see them simply fall apart. The building at 103 Washington, known to many as the former Moran's restaurant, was granted landmark status.
However shortly thereafter, the management realized it could not function as a business while Chang construction pieced together what will be the tallest Holiday Inn in the world using a fleet of primarily unskilled labor and taking many hazardous short cuts to throw it together quickly. Morans had been a thriving business to locals and tourists alike, but a visit there quickly became a task as Teamster's protested the non-union labor outside and those who toughed the picket lines found themselves inside a beautiful piece of history enjoying a delicious meal as your plate vibrated off the table and unskilled workers playfully jumped around on steel sheets being hoisted above your head outside. As a result, Morans was unable to operate and now this historic landmark seems to be used as a storage space for the Chang construction group and a place for the non-union workers to wait out the Teamster hostility as they protest outside its doors.
As you move toward the center of the block (105-107 Washington Street) you'll find a building that serves as a literal rat hotel and home for stray cats yet vacant to tenants simply removing more affordable housing from the market. The last I checked, it was owned by the same people who own the lot on the Northeast corner of Washington and Carlisle (once the Port Authority Trailer Park) who have seemingly struggled to finance their plans to tear it down and build around and atop those of us who reside at 109 Washington Street. The best part about our small walk-up building is the people who call it home. We are a close knit group, and many times you would think its a coop rather than a rental as we find ourselves taking the initiative to see to it that both simple and minor repairs are taken care of from buying fire extinguishers for the hallways ourselves to accepting bids for required repairs. For example if it weren't for people like Esther (seen in the video above), who took actions into their own hands, we would likely still be waiting for our landlord to make the repairs needed to restore electricity from Super Storm Sandy. Furthermore, if you check the DOB website you'll find page after page of violations issued against 103, 105, 107 and 109 that date back for years that have gone ignored. Sadly we've had to lawyer up pulling in two of the best in tenant law to make sure we don't get pushed by a bulldozer or flattened by a crane.
As much as I support the preservation of Little Syria on Washington Street, as we become known as the Lower West Side, we need a plan to make sure that these buildings are actually preserved and protected, from and by, both those who currently own the properties and the major developers who seemingly own their fare share of surrounding lots and the airspace above each of these buildings. Otherwise, we're going to end up with three landmarks that won't stand a chance of surviving much longer than the time it takes to get them recognized as such.
Hi Minty,
Congratulations on this very informative and very well made documentary. It holds one's interest till the end and i could not but help but empathize with the Syrian and Lebanese immigrants who would like to preserve the three remaining buildings on Washington Street, the main thoroughfare of the old Arab neighborhood.
Wish you all the best!
Shashi