2. Jamaica Savings Bank

Jamaica Savings Bank on Queens Boulevard
The Jamaica Savings Bank was first opened in 1866 on Jamaica Avenue, but the modern Jamaica Savings Bank was built from 1964 to 1966 at 89-01 Queens Boulevard in Elmhurst. This modernist building was constructed as the bank’s new headquarters and was considered by the LPC as a “bold expression of mid-20th century engineering.” The building comes to a triangle at its corner entrance, which stands 43 feet tall, with two glass facades meeting. Many modernist buildings were built across Queens at locations like Flushing-Meadows Corona Park. Today, the building houses a Bank of America.

The LPC approved the building for landmark designation on June 28, 2005, but just four months later in August, the New York City Council voted to overturn this designation. The owners cited the building’s maintenance issues and tendency to flood, as well as the public’s lack of appreciation for Modernist architecture, as reasons for overturning the designation. There have been recent pushes to re-landmark the former Jamaica Savings Bank by groups such as the Elmhurst History and Cemeteries Preservation Society.