NYPD 10th Precinct Station House

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5-story Italian-Renaissance police station completed in 1912. Designed by Hoppin & Koen, the building opened as the 18th Precinct House. The ground floor is clad in rusticated granite, with three large round-arches - a centered entrance, a garage door for the single motorized vehicle assigned to the precinct, and a large window, which has since been replaced by a much smaller, narrow window in the eastern bay. The original fan lights above the arches have also been removed. Between each arch is a square-headed window with a smaller window above it. A stone cornice caps the ground floor.

The upper floors are clad in limestone, with five bays of regular windows. From the 2nd-5th floors each bay is slightly recessed, with a rectangular carved spandrel below each window. A terra-cotta flagpole base in the shape of the New York City seal provides the sole decorative element of the mid-section of the structure. Another cornice sets off the top floor, which is flanked by two carved cartouches announcing the precinct number. Above, a bracketed roof cornice sits above a tidy row of dentil molding.

The new station house could accommodate both male and female prisoners, unlike the former structure for men-only. The first floor was double-height in the common areas where the desk and visitor areas were located. To the rear it was split into two levels to accommodate the two tiers of cells, as well as the muster room, Matron’s quarters on the mezzanine, and sitting room. The 2nd floor contained the accommodations for the supervisors: the Captain’s bedroom and bath, three lieutenant’s rooms for the six lieutenants, six sergeant’s rooms for the twelve sergeants, detectives’ rooms and lavatories. The top three floors contained two dormitories each, with lavatories and showers. Each dorm could sleep twenty officers.

With the United States’ entry into World War I, the station house was designated as one of the Air Raid Stations in case of enemy air attack. In 1922 the 18th Precinct was eliminated as the police force did a city-wide realignment of precincts. The station house at 230 West 20th Street became headquarters for The 14th Inspection District for traffic purposes, comprising the Boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. By 1941 the department had reorganized once again and the 20th Street Station House was once again a patrol precinct—now the 10th Precinct.

The 10th Precinct services Manhattan's residential communities of Chelsea and Clinton South. The Precinct is .93 square miles and has 25.45 miles of roadway. Inside the precinct boundaries are two Housing Authority Developments (Fulton & Chelsea Elliott Houses), the Jacob Javits Convention Center, Chelsea Piers, West Side Heliport, Circle Line and World Yacht Cruise Lines, Chinese Consulate, and the Fashion Institute of Technology. Additionally, located within the confines of the Tenth Precinct are the media headquarters of the New York Daily News, cables' New York 1 News, PBS Channel 13, and the Associated Press.

The precinct is home to over 200 art galleries as well as many of New York City's most popular nightclubs. The recently open Highline park on the old CSX elevated railroad provides a great walking tour through the westside neighborhood.

www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/precincts/precinct_010.shtml
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