Film Center Building
Why it's listed
Occupying the full Ninth Avenue block front between West 44th and West 45th Streets, this thirteen-story office building was constructed in 1928-29 as a support facility for the motion picture business. Its steel frame is clad in brown brick, with marble piers at street level and grooved and geometric ornament above. The main significance lies inside. Architect Ely Jacques Kahn designed the vestibule and lobby with plaster bands that resemble woven tapestry, patterned tile floors in pink, ochre and gray, striped stone walls, red marble cylinders, and a colorful mosaic in the elevator lobby. Kahn was among New York's most prominent Art Deco architects, and his interiors are considered among his most striking work. Built by Film Center, Inc., the building once housed more than seventy film distributors, and it continues to serve the film industry once centered near Times Square. Its lobby has survived largely intact despite the widespread loss of Art Deco interiors.
Significance in brief: The building is argued to have one of New York's finest surviving Art Deco interiors, designed by Ely Jacques Kahn, a leading local architect of the style. Its lobby shows his individual approach of treating walls and ceilings as woven plaster tapestries with polychrome color. It was built to support the motion picture industry and still serves that industry.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 84002768, listed September 7, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 630--9th St., New York |
|---|---|
| County | Manhattan |
| Listed | September 7, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84002768 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900- |
| Architect / builder | Ely Jacques Kahn |
| Architectural style | Art Deco |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Occupied commercial office building in excellent condition; the exterior has had no significant changes and the lobby survives largely intact, though some elevator cabs and lobby details have been altered. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.75989, -73.99116 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 84002768.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5448921
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.