Fate of historic murals uncertain following Manhattan homeless shelter’s closure

Historic Works Progress Administration murals at Manhattan’s Bellevue Men’s Shelter may be lost as New York City weighs whether to restore or demolish the long-dilapidated building, which closed earlier this year after Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration announced a long-term redevelopment plan and temporarily relocated residents. The Italian Renaissance–style structure, designed by Charles B. Meyers, opened in 1933 as the Bellevue Psychiatric Hospital and was converted into a men’s homeless shelter in the mid-1980s. Archival photographs from the Public Design Commission indicate at least six WPA/Federal Art Project mural commissions by Emilio Amero, Luis Arenal, Agnes Tait, Ryah Ludins, Lily Furedi, and Nunzio LaSpina, though the murals have since been painted over. A 2017 redesign proposal by Marvel was never funded, and Building Conservation Associates reported that no murals were visible during its research; because the building is not a designated landmark, it has not been subject to the stricter preservation processes applied to protected sites.

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