Community Corner

Yorktown Takes a Piece of History Before Knapp House is Torn Down

Construction on Crompond Crossing, a 26-unit affordable housing building, has already begun and Knapp House will be torn down as part of the project.

The Knapp House, which dates back to the Revolutionary War, will soon be no longer standing. It is being demolished as part of a development project in Yorktown known as Crompond Crossing. 

Despite a Yorktown man's plea with town board members to help save what he calls a historic house before it's too late, only the door framing and a few windows will now be preserved. 

Several workers on Monday began taking down the frame, which will be temporarily kept at the house of Yorktown resident and Yorktown Landmarks Preservation Committee member Bill Primavera, who said the frame would be then given to the Yorktown Museum.

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Jean-Francois de Laperouse, Yorktown Councilman Nick Bianco and Crompond Crossing developer Neil DeLuca were at the site.

"I love historic preservation, but unfortunately we can't save everything," Primavera said. 

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Developer Neil DeLuca had agreed to put the demolition of the house on hold until community members figure out how to save it and what historic parts they could preserve.

"What does this cost to a developer in the grand scheme of everything?" he said.

Crompond Crossing, the complex being built on the property, will be a mixed use project that includes two commercial buildings and a 26-unit affordable housing building. DeLuca said he hopes to have the entire complex finished by fall of 2013. 

The Knapp house, located at 3372 Old Crompond Road, was built by the Knapp family and it has stood there for more than two centuries. The Knapp family built and sustained the community since its earliest days – they served in the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, farmed the land, became notable figures in the industrialization of New York and were active members of the First Presbyterian Church where most of them are buried.

"I think if people were working together and were a little bit more passionate, there is a lot more that could have been saved," de Laperouse said. 

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