Unloved All-Metal Prefab Is Leaving NYC for Palm Springs

It's official: the 1931 Aluminaire House, the U.S.'s first all-metal prefab, is leaving NYC for Palm Springs, California. Originally installed in the Grand Central Palace exhibition hall, the three-story structure then moved to a private estate in Long Island, before getting donated to the New York Institute of Technology. But ever since NYC's Landmarks Preservation Commission unanimously rejected a proposal to keep the house in Queens last year—it's currently sitting in boxes—Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet has been adamant about bringing the aluminum alloy and steel structure to his city. Pougnet has been working to fundraise the approximately $600,000 required to transport the prefab across the country, and just last weekend, announced that the move is definitely happening.

How it will fit into Palm Springs' architecture >>