New York officials announce $3M plan for Queens Holocaust memorial

To fund the historic initiative, the city has allocated an initial $3 million—including $2 million from Mayor Eric Adams and $1 million from the Borough President’s Office.

By Aaaron Sull, Jewish Breaking News

New York City officials have unveiled plans for a new Holocaust memorial at Queens Borough Hall, a $3 million initiative honoring the six million Jews murdered by Nazi Germany and the survivors who made the city their home after the Holocaust.

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards and First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro led the announcement outside Borough Hall on Tuesday, joined by state legislators and members of the local Jewish community.

The memorial will also serve as a public space for Holocaust education and community gatherings aimed at combating rising antisemitism.

“No matter how much time passes since the evils of the Holocaust, New York City’s commitment to the pledge of ‘Never Again’ must never waver,” said Donovan Richards Jr.

“That is why, in the face of rising tides of heinous antisemitism and Holocaust denial across our society, I could not be prouder to lead this effort.”

The project originated with Michael Nussbaum, co-publisher of the Queens Daily Eagle and president of the Queens Jewish Community Council, who approached city officials three years ago with a proposal for a permanent site of remembrance.

During the ceremony, Nussbaum credited Mastro for cutting through bureaucratic delays earlier this year to move the plan forward.

“This Holocaust Memorial Garden we begin to build today is a reminder of what can happen if we forget the past. It will also serve to keep our focus on the present, while we hope for our future,” he remarked.

“The Memorial Garden will be a place where anyone can come to reflect and seek peace.”

To fund the historic initiative, Donovan Richards noted that the city has allocated an initial $3 million—including $2 million from Mayor Eric Adams and $1 million from the Borough President’s Office.

Additional support announced at the event included $1 million from State Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky and a planned request for $1.5 million from the Queens Assembly delegation, with Richards also committing supplemental borough funding as the project advances.

“As our city and our country confront the rising tide of antisemitism, our administration will not remain silent. We will use our office to call out hate wherever we find it, encourage compassion wherever we need it, and create a city where everyone can live side by side in harmony,” said Mayor Adams.

New York City has the largest concentration of Holocaust survivors anywhere.

Following liberation, thousands settled in Queens, rebuilding families, careers, and community life while helping transform the city into a leading hub of global Jewish culture.

City agencies will now work with community leaders, historians, and Holocaust survivors to develop the site as a memorial garden.