Salvation Army's West Village HQ is NYC's newest landmark

The massive Salvation Army headquarters building on West 14th Street is now NYC’s newest landmark. The city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission needed just a short while to deliberate over the headquarters this morning, before unanimously designating it.

Located at 120-130 West 14th Street, the headquarters, officially known as The Salvation Army National and Territorial Headquarters, are comprised of two buildings: an 11-story office building, and an adjacent four-story auditorium building.

This Art Deco-style complex was designed by renowned architect Ralph Walker, who specialized in Art Deco architecture, having designed other notable NYC gems like the Irving Trust Company Building (now 1 Wall Street), and the Barclay-Vesey Telephone Building (now the Verizon Building).

The Salvation Army complex is particularly notable for the distinct recessed entrance portal on the auditorium building, the asymmetrical massing, and the complex’s brick and cast stone exterior.

The Salvation Army has occupied the complex since it was built for them in 1929, and intends to do so for the foreseeable future, according to the Commission. The proposal to designate the building first came to the Landmarks Commission in 1982, but due to a backlog and delays, the complex was never designated. The Salvation Army had also previously opposed designation, but has come on board this time around.

The Commission heaped praises on the complex, and moved swiftly to designate it on Tuesday.

“These kinds of designations are important to our roster,” Meenakshi Srinivasan, the chair of the Landmarks Commission, said at the meeting. “They not only recognize and celebrate great architecture, but also institutions that are very important. We recognize that this designation captures both architectural and cultural significance.”