The rolling lawn of the former Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School radiates from the corner of South Goodman Street and Highland Avenue, just opposite Highland Park. At its highest point sits the main building and its tower, iconic stone structures that look like a combination of a castle and a church.
The distinctive structures are prime examples of the Collegiate Gothic style of architecture. They were designed by architect James Gamble Rogers, a proponent of the style who also designed buildings on the campuses of Yale and Columbia universities.
Those are just some of the details that New York State preservation officials cite in the paperwork nominating the divinity school campus for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.
The nomination paperwork also notes that the campus remains largely unaltered, and that its original buildings retain their distinct character and features.
The campus is now owned by developer Angelo Ingrassia, but he's made few changes to the property to date. The divinity school moved out in 2019.
Properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places are eligible to participate in certain public preservation programs. Those include matching state grants and federal historic rehabilitation tax credits.
The designation does not place any requirements on the property owner unless they receive federal funding. Portions of the campus were designated as city landmarks in 2017, and those designations do require an extra layer of review.
