A recent buyer of a Chapin Parkway residence wants to tear it down and rebuild on its lot. On the east side, a former theater, now church, is likely headed to landfill with no replacement in sight. Those are two of the more interesting items on the September 3 Preservation Board agenda.
The trend of tearing down older homes and constructing a new one in its place, oftentimes in historic neighborhoods and at a scale out of synch with its older neighbors, has largely avoided Buffalo. There has been a few instances in the Delaware District however and another is proposed at 137 Chapin Parkway at the corner of Potomac Avenue.
Attorney Cindy Bennes purchased the two-story, 2,940 sq.ft. residence on July 27 for $500,000. The four-bedroom, 2.5 bath house was built in 1950. Elaine and Richard Cutting were the sellers.
According to the Board agenda, the foundation will be kept for a new build. One hopeful sign: John Wingfelder, architect of the new build at 363 Grant Street, is designing the project.
The teardown trend has grown in other locales because the older homes in some communities are becoming functionally obsolete and buyers are looking for a modern, low-maintenance house in a close-in neighborhood.
On the east side, ECMC is seeking to demolish 525 Grider Street. It is the former Grider-Kensington Theater that was built in 1914. The 7,000 sq.ft. structure was most recently used as a church and residence.
ECMC’s Grider Community Gardens LLC purchased 513-525 Grider Street in 2008 from Open Door Church of God in Christ for $67,500.