West Coast Perspective’s 2015 edition of the downtown development posted early this week. Each year his development list gets longer, with bigger and more extravagant projects. As in past years, most of the development on the list is in the form of renovation to historic buildings. Maybe 80% or more of the individual construction projects in Buffalo involve renovation of older buildings.
These older buildings have become the fuel of Buffalo’s resurgence. This is because restored historic buildings in historic neighborhoods are attractive. They are especially attractive to the energetic educated young demographic that Buffalo desperately needs to attract and retain. It also doesn’t hurt that state and federal historic tax credits sweeten the profitability of these projects. As the supply of older buildings quickly shrinks in the most desirable areas, developers have increasingly pushed investment into fringe areas that no one could have imagined development just a few years ago. In the case of Larkin Square, a once fringe area has now become a highly desired destination. Less than 10 years ago it wouldn’t have been unimaginable to see the whole neighborhood demolished and left empty. Imagine that, Larkin Square as shovel ready land! Buffalo should be so lucky to have all that new shovel ready land, right?
Way too much of much of what we now cherish in Buffalo could have been torn down. It sends a shiver down your spine thinking about it. Still, even with what is so evident now, demolition of Buffalo’s precious and finite supply of historic buildings and neighborhoods continues at a hot pace.
What currently threatened city neighborhood could be the next Larkin Square in Buffalo? Is it the still mostly intact but struggling retail strip running through Kaisertown on the far south-east side of Buffalo? Is it the wonderful compact streets of Hamlin Park; anchored by Canisius College but threatened by extreme poverty and decay on its southern edge? Potentially valuable historic neighborhoods and buildings across the city remain threatened by neglect and threatened by a city with no plan for leveraging these proven historic assets for growth. When these buildings are gone, when these neighborhoods are wiped away, they never come back. The state has spent $100s of millions of dollars bringing back a replica of Buffalo’s Erie Canal neighborhood. It has, by any measure, been a huge success. But, why not save the REAL history before it is wiped away. Imagine the Canal Side neighborhood if it had never been lost. Imagine New Orleans if that city had treated its history the way Buffalo has treats its history; no French Quarter; no Garden District; no tradition; no city.
Even as developers prove over and over, that Buffalo’s historic building stock is a major economic asset, Local government leadership blunders along with more demolition plans than it has plans for saving buildings. In fact, there is NO plan to save Buffalo’s historic assets. The City does not even enforce its building codes, commonly giving neglectful slumlords free rein to manage buildings into an uninhabitable and dangerous state. WHY? Where is the benefit of allowing demolition by neglect style building management?
So, in celebration of Buffalo’s flagrant waste of its historic heritage let’s look back at glorious 2014, the year in short sightedness:
32 North Street A portion of this building collapsed, allegedly after a supposed lightning strike. The building sat empty and neglected for many years before the collapse. Isn’t it odd that a building in this highly desirable neighborhood should sit empty and neglected for so long? WHY is that allowed? As it sat there in its decayed state, it sucked value out of the properties around it. WHY was that allowed? Lightning certainly can cause damage when it strikes a building. It can knock some bricks out of place or start a fire. I have never heard of it causing a large collapse. Soon after a large part of the building did collapse the owner and city alleged that it was too far gone to save and was in a dangerous state. With this reasoning in hand it was torn down in a matter of days. One more empty lot. One step closer to mediocrity. One less thing that is unique to Buffalo.
500 Franklin Street This Civil War era building was a bit of a rump building, with much of its original detail removed and its appearance drastically changed over time. However, the main historic body of the building remained with a simple but not unattractive mid-century storefront added to the front. There was a claim that a fire had rendered the building beyond repair. It looked to be quite intact as they started demolition. It was torn down for a planned new development with approval from the Buffalo Preservation Board. This building was in the Allentown Historic District, a designation that theoretically should have protected the it from demolition without going through a rigorous process that showed replacement to be the only option. The process seemed to be anything but rigorous. The proposed replacement building, shown in two-dimensional plan and elevation drawings with no context, appears to be an unimaginative apartment block decorated with the kind of details that some perceive as “historic”; you know, some brick and arches and stuff. Demolition of historic buildings would not be so bad if they were replaced with buildings of some sophistication. Unfortunately, we usually get a cartoonish mockery of a historic building instead. The Preservation board, as an organization, is not much more than a decoration for your mantel. It has little to no power to do anything. Last I heard, the Mayor has not even fully staffed it, allowing 2 seats on the board to remain unfilled for the last several years.
Silk Factory The Broadway Fillmore area has been Buffalo’s ground zero for decay, crime, and poverty for a few decades now. Even so, it still has a large stock of some of the city’s most impressive historic buildings. The city has no plan to save these buildings nor is it vigorous or even semi-vigorous in enforcing its building codes in this neighborhood. Recently the historic factory building at 1270 Broadway, known as the Silk Factory, collapsed in a wind storm. The cause of the collapse was reported as high winds during a storm. Tornados and Hurricanes are the type of wind storms that cause buildings to collapse. More likely, the cause of this collapse was long-term neglect which allowed the walls to weaken to the point that the moderate winds of a normal Buffalo storm would have such a devastating effect. A large section of the building was quickly sent to landfill leaving another of those coveted shovel ready sites. Broadway Fillmore could easily be the next Larkin Square but the city has no plan to assure that future.
Our Lady of Lourdes Rectory was supposedly torn down, by owner Ellicott Development, to make way for a proposed development. Ellicott has not released plans for the proposed development on the now vacant land, which boarders the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. The empty lot now provides a clear view to the Our Lady of Lourdes Church, which stands directly north of the former rectory. The Church, also owned by Ellicott Development, was stripped of all its windows and all its interior details and furnishings by a former owner. Even as an empty shell it remains a beautiful and imposing building. Ellicott has stated that they have plans for the church as well and that they have no plans for demolition at this time. Even so, it remains a rotting carcass sucking value from surrounding properties. Also adjacent to the church property, Ellicott tore down most of the houses on the St Paul Mall (back in 2012). Ellicott allegedly demolished these buildings to lower their tax bill while they worked on a plan for future development at an unspecified time. Can you imagine a tax structure that encourages removal of economic assets? What a city!
Jefferson Street Shul – The old historic Synagogue with the distinctive onion dome at 411 Jefferson finally succumbed to decades of neglect. A few loose bricks here and there signaled to the City that the building MUST come down. Instead of a unique and attractive revenue producing building we now have an empty lot. This is a building that could have anchored a rejuvenated neighborhood. Unlike some of the city’s large religious buildings this small scale building could have been an easy conversion to other uses. Great buildings like this in stressed neighborhoods have little chance for a future without a government plan. At minimum the city could mothball them for the future. No such plan exists in Buffalo City Hall. Demolition reduces crime, they say.
That was 2014. What does the future hold? How much more green space, or parking, or shovel ready land will the city add in place of valuable historic buildings. Let’s look at the possibilities:
Power House This battered but beautifully bold factory building in the Larkin District has been mentioned in the same breath with the word demolition but also as a possible renovation candidate. Time will tell. It’s hard to believe anyone would consider tearing down a big warehouse building in the Larkin District these days. I guess lessons come hard in Buffalo. Then again with all those people flocking to the Larkin neighborhood it could use the parking.
Buffalo Rising recently highlighted this Chippewa Street property , which has been shedding bricks from the top of its walls. Chippewa has been a magnet for the drinking crowd for more than a decade now and has also been the recipient of hundreds of millions of dollars in new high-end investment in recent years. Yet, the city allows neglectful owners to mismanage their buildings in this way year after year. WHY? Who benefits from slum lord management like this? The last thing Chippewa needs is another parking lot instead of a historic building. Buildings mismanaged like this steal value from surrounding properties. WHY IS THAT ALLOWED? When buildings like this eventually get demolished we all lose a piece of our urban American heritage. Then again, with all the people coming to the street to have fun this could be a nice parking lot. Can’t have too many parking lots, right?
The Episcopal Home: A complex of buildings just north of the Peace Bridge, will likely be gone before the end of 2015. The Episcopal Home abandoned the buildings several years ago in favor of a plastic covered complex in the suburbs. The State of New York, with plans to expand the Peace Bridge toll plaza to accommodate parking for large numbers of trucks and to build a biggie sized duty-free shop, plans to demolish the buildings. They say they will save and move the beautiful chapel on the site, but no plans for that building have yet to be released to the public. Truck parking and duty-free. Yay!
This house at 197 North Street is the second building in from Elmwood Avenue. It occupies an odd plot of land pushed tight up against the mid rise Hyde Park Apartments. It is the remaining half of what once was a duplex mansion. The other half was removed for construction of the apartment building in the 1920s. The house is in rough condition even though it is in a highly desirable part of the city. The rumor is that the owner of the Hyde Park wants the house gone to make room for parking. Parking would substantially enhance the rental value of the apartments. Houses next to densely built older apartment buildings are commonly at risk of being destroyed for parking. An example is the gorgeous mansion on West Ferry that was torn down for this parking lot 15 years ago or so. The carriage house remains at the back of the lot. The two houses just east of the parking lot give you a good sense of what was lost for this car storage pen. The house on North Street is in the Allentown Historic District, but as we have seen, this is a shallow protection, if it is protection at all. This house SHOULD NOT be demolished. The city MUST protect and enhance its intact historic urban fabric. Protect this house and its neighborhood and the adjacent apartments will eventually add far more value than another dead parking lot will contribute. But hay, what great city doesn’t have lots of free parking?
The First German Baptist Church at 41 Spruce Street on the East Side has been marked for demolition. The demolition notice on the front of the building is dated December 1st 2014. The wreckers should be by any day to create some more shovel ready property. Once their work is complete this Civil War era building will be gone for good, along with its direct connection to our past and the potential it holds for our future. The building is only a few blocks from Downtown Buffalo. Most of the surrounding neighborhood has already been removed leaving a valuable part of the city ready for development. Interesting unique buildings like this could be seeds for that redevelopment. But, there was no plan to make sure it remained available for that purpose. Gaping holes in the roof and broken windows open to the weather for years have allowed unnecessary deterioration. Even today the front door sits wide open. The money that will be spent demolishing this building could have been used to mothball it. It could have been saved as an asset for the future. Based on Buffalo’s ongoing rejuvenation that future could have been quite soon. But, shovel ready, right? It is plain stupidity that the City of Buffalo allows buildings like this to rot and then be demolished. Does local leadership not see that these are the buildings that are buttering the bread these days? Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
Thanks to frequent BRO commenter for alerting us to the demolition order and for supplying pictured of the building.