Last year I had the pleasure of visiting the Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital (best known for its main Kirkbride building, c.1876) in Parsippany, N.J.  Most of the buildings were previously demolished, but a few still stand.  However, it now seems certain that all of the remaining buildings will be demolished.

According to this article, “‘The campus will be knocked down in a “matter of months,” according to members of the state Department of Treasury.  “The Christie administration is committed to converting the property for open space use for the public to enjoy,” said Treasury spokesperson Joseph Perone. “We discussed the (Preserve Greystone) group’s concerns because we thought they were worth exploring. However, we concluded that the financial risk of preserving or rehabilitating the Kirkbride building is insurmountable.’”

Unfortunately it sounds like there was really no serious discussion with the group Preserve Greystone about options to preserve and rehabilitate the buildings.  Six groups have come forward with ideas on how to rehabilitate the site without demolishing it, but they seem to have fallen on deaf ears.