Brooklyn advocacy group fights to protect & preserve historic Brooklyn Borough Hall
The Friends of Brooklyn Borough Hall, a community-driven group, is fighting to restore and protect the structure.
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Brooklyn Borough Hall, a historic landmark once known as Brooklyn ’s City Hall before the borough’s consolidation with New York City, is showing signs of decay.
The Friends of Brooklyn Borough Hall, a community-driven group, is fighting to restore and protect the structure.
“I’m worried that it will become neglected,” said Martin Schneider, historian and founder of the organization. “Sort of just a glorified skatepark.”
The building’s iconic Tuckahoe marble steps are marred by graffiti. Some of it now seems "baked" into the porous stone after years of neglect and delayed cleanup.
Martin says graffiti materials containing pigments and dyes, like ink, can be especially damaging.
“If you don’t use the right chemicals in time, it seeps into the material,” he said. “Essentially, making it a permanent fixture.”
In addition to the graffiti, litter - ranging from empty coffee cups to cigarette butts -covers the steps. Darkened streaks from skateboard wax - used to reduce friction for tricks on ledges and rails - are also visible along the marble’s edges.
Noah Daniel, a skateboarder and regular at Borough Hall, knows the steps well.
“I like skating it because it’s one of the best flat ground spots in the city,” he said. “Most of the other places are pretty rough.”
Frustrated by the growing wear on the building, which was first established in 1846, Martin and co-founder Talisha Ward launched a petition.
Their goal was to draw attention from city leaders and push for urgent preservation efforts before the damage becomes irreversible.
Talisha remains hopeful.
“People can come outside and see not only the history, the beauty and the future of what Brooklyn can be,” she said. “And this can represent that.”
News 12 reached out to the New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services about any procedures in place to preserve Borough Hall.
A DCAS spokesperson said they “treasure [their] historic buildings” and "regularly power-wash the steps at Brooklyn Borough Hall" with the next cleaning scheduled for Wednesday night. They encourage anyone who sees graffiti going forward, to report it to 311.
