The Erie County Industrial Development Agency today approved $591,000 in sales and mortgage recording tax abatements for Schneider Design Architects, PC for its $13.6 million adaptive reuse project at 145 and 149 Swan Street downtown.
Schneider, which has completed two conversions of vacant historic buildings into residential and commercial space, plans to renovate the mostly empty five-story, 50,000-square-foot structure at 149 Swan St., as well as the neighboring 30,000-square-foot, four story building at 145 Swan St.
145 Swan St. was built in 1908 for Witkop & Holmes grocers, while 149 Swan St. was built in 1896 for the Sibley & Holmwood Candy Company.
Dubbed ‘Apartments at the HUB’, the project will feature 50 upscale apartments, which will occupy 96 percent of the redone space.
The project will also make room for the WNY Bicycle Center, which will include a bike retailer and bike storage for tenants and downtown cycle commuters, a café, fitness center and office space.
A roof-top patio garden and highly-landscaped, green space areas are also in the plans.
The mixed-use project, set to debut in 2014, will create five jobs.