Phillips-Van Heusen Pledges $1 Million to Ellis Island Project
Emanuel Chirico wants to call
attention to the forgotten side of Ellis Island.
The chief executive officer of Phillips-Van Heusen Corp.
said today that the apparel maker will give at least $1 million
toward the restoration of 29 dilapidated buildings on the
islands south side and help publicize the project.
Since the main building at Ellis Island was restored in
1990, more than two million people a year take a ferry from lower
Manhattan to learn the history of how 12 million immigrants were
processed for entry into the U.S. in the years 1892 to 1954.
“This is a campaign to build awareness, Chirico, 49, said
in a phone interview. “Ellis Island is beautiful. You see the
museum on the north side, but on the other side, you dont
realize how much is in disrepair.
The campaign also has a personal element. “My grandparents
from both sides of my family came through Ellis Island from
Italy in 1910, Chirico said. “My grandmother was 13 at the time
and had chicken pox and was almost turned back. She stayed there
for 30 days.
Chirico said Phillips-Van Heusen, whose labels include
Arrow, Calvin Klein and Izod, will donate 1 percent of the Arrow
shirt lines wholesale sales during the next 12 months to the
National Park Service, which operates Ellis Island, and Save
Ellis Island, a nonprofit that raises money in partnership with
the park service to restore the buildings. The amount raised will
be no less than $1 million but could be more, Chirico said.
The company donated $500,000 in 2006 to help restore the
Ferry Building, the departure point for immigrants who passed
legal and health tests. The building reopened last year with
special exhibitions.
Telling Stories
In the spring of 2007, Phillips-Van Heusen started a
marketing campaign called “We Are Ellis Island that included a
Web site and print and television ads. Visitors to the Web site
can submit stories of how their families came through Ellis
Island and can make a donation.
The campaign will continue for another 12 to 18 months,
Chirico said, and will use 80 percent of Arrows $20 million 2008
marketing budget.
The companys latest donation will be used for small
restoration projects for the buildings, which served mainly as
hospital facilities and have been closed since 1954.
The park service is studying how the buildings can be used
and sustained economically once theyre renovated, so the
nonprofit hasnt yet embarked on a major capital campaign,
Cynthia Garrett, superintendent of the Statue of Liberty National
Monument and Ellis Island, said in a phone interview.
One idea is to create an Ellis Island Institute, which would
consist of a conference center and eventually become a “world-
class gathering place for discussions about immigration, public
health and diversity, she said.
A complete renovation of the buildings is at least 10 years
away, Garrett said. Chirico said the project is so large that it
may cost an estimated $300 million.
“A lot has been done at Ellis Island, Garrett said.
“Its a wonderful park and museum. Were trying to continue that
story.
