The Fort Tryon Jewish Center is a synagogue located at 524

Fort Washington Avenue Fort Washington Avenue is a major north-south street in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan. It runs from Fort Tryon Park to 159th Street, where it intersects with Broadway. It goes past Bennett Park, the highest natural point in ...

between West 183rd and 184th Streets, across from Bennett Park in the Hudson Heights neighborhood of

Upper Manhattan Upper Manhattan is the most northern region of the New York City borough of Manhattan. Its southern boundary has been variously defined, but some of the most common usages are 96th Street, the northern boundary of Central Park (110th Street), ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. The congregation was founded in 1938 by long-time residents of the city and refugees from Nazi Germany. It first occupied leased space, building a modest facility in 1950, and then a spacious sanctuary that opened in 1960, designed by N. J. Sapienza in the Modernist style. The

Torah Ark A Torah ark (also known as the ''Heikhal'', or the ''Aron Kodesh'') refers to an ornamental chamber in the synagogue that houses the Torah scrolls. History The ark, also known as the ''ark of law'', or in Hebrew the ''Aron Kodesh'' or ''aron ha- ...

in the building has been described as "a gem of midcentury design." From 2002 on, the congregation grew as young families moved into the neighborhood.

Failed real estate deal

In an April 2014 article, the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' described a failed real estate transaction involving the Fort Tryon Jewish Center. The congregation signed an agreement with Rutherford Thompson of Thompson Development, which planned to build a 23-story condominium building to be called "One Bennett Park". Under the agreement, the developer would pay to completely renovate the synagogue in exchange for

air rights Air rights are the property interest in the "space" above the earth's surface. Generally speaking, owning, or renting, land or a building includes the right to use and build in the space above the land without interference by others. This lega ...

and the right to situate a

entrance to the residential tower on the congregation's property. According to ''The Real Deal'' magazine, a lawsuit filed in 2010 alleged that Thompson defaulted on the loan in February 2008. The synagogue was left in an unusable state, resulting in ongoing litigation, during which time the congregation met at

Mother Cabrini High School __NOTOC__ Mother Cabrini High School (MCHS) was a Catholic high school located at 701 Fort Washington Avenue between Fort Tryon Park and West 190th Street, with a facade on Cabrini Boulevard, in the Hudson Heights neighborhood of Washington H ...

, and its successor since September 2014, Success Academy Washington Heights. Since July 2015, the congregation has met in the Social Hall of the Hebrew Tabernacle at 551 Fort Washington Ave.Fort Tryon Jewish Center website
Accessed: May 11, 2016

References

External links

{{commonscat-inline, Fort Tryon Jewish Center
Official Fort Tryon Jewish Center website
Synagogues in Manhattan Conservative synagogues in New York City Jewish organizations established in 1938 1938 establishments in New York City 1960 establishments in New York City Synagogues completed in 1960 Modernist synagogues