“I was out walking at lunch one day and saw the for sale sign.”
Rebecca McCauley took that walk in 2013 and today the Hudson Building at 483 Main Street is ready for new tenants. Rebecca and her husband Peter’s 483 Main Street LLC purchased the three-story, 6,200 sq.ft. building for $230,000. The ornate building is sandwiched between The Martin Group’s new headquarters at 477 Main Street and Carmina Wood Morris’ office building at the corner of Mohawk. It formerly housed the Christian Science Reading Room and now contains commercial and residential space after a meticulous restoration.
The building dates to 1928 and was designed by Hudson & Hudson (the firm also designed the similar façade of the nearby Berger’s Building). The McCauley’s worked with Preservation Studios to obtain state and federal historic preservation tax credits for the project that is the southernmost property in the 500 Block of Main Street Local Preservation District.
“It needed some TLC but the building was solid,” says McCauley noting the structure’s 18” thick walls. “I’ve witnessed the decline of the city and the decline of downtown and wanted to be part of the rebirth currently underway.”
McCauley had looked at doing a reuse project about ten years ago but that deal fell through. She never stopped looking for the right opportunity to come along.
“This building was workable and small enough,” says McCauley.
Small is relative. The purchase and renovations cost approximately $1 million.
The outside was cleaned and the masonry repointed as necessary. Windows were repaired. A third floor apartment with one bedroom and one and a half bathrooms with 2,000 sq.ft. of living space is available for $1,900/month (below).
The second floor is flexible. It can be used as either a two-bedroom, two bath apartment or as office space and also rents for $1,900/month (below). Commercial space is available on the first floor.
On the rooftop, a patio area for building tenants has been installed. It features flagstone and potted plants offering views up and down Main Street.
Rebecca says she has tenants interested in the first and second floor spaces. That leaves the well-appointed third floor apartment up for grabs. Rebecca’s daughter’s Madelena Lee Designs (Facebook page) picked out the finishes for the interior spaces.
The McCauleys worked with Lehigh Construction on the project that was designed by Scheid Architectural. Rebecca says the City was “wonderful” to work with and helped her navigate the development process including personal involvement by the Mayor. She says she is “not chomping at the bit to do another project right away, but if something came along I’d consider it.”
“I am delighted to be part of the renewal of the city,” she says. “It is so exciting to see everything that is happening right now.”
Get Connected: Susan Lenahan Kimberly, MJ Peterson Real Estate, 716.864.6757