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| key participants: Carmina Wood Morris, P.C., Architecture, Engineering, Interior Design; Signature Development; Webb of Buffalo, LLC, Building Owners; Siracuse Engineers, Structural Engineering Consultant |
Formerly-grand, this
19th century commercial building would likely have been demolished
but for the timely intervention of the architects and the vision
of the developer. Their careful renovation of the remaining historic
fabric, along with a complete replacement of the ruined flooring
system, has returned this building to useful service—to the
benefit of neighborhood residents and the educational community. The circa 1888 Webb Building (originally the Richmond Block) is a five-story masonry building described by Kenneth Markunas of the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation as “… the best surviving local example of commercial Richardsonian Romanesque Revival structures and one of a handful of remaining cast iron storefronts in Buffalo.” Despite this distinction, the building stood neglected for more than two decades. “Lights are now shining onto Pearl Street from apartments in this once-dark building, and developmentally disadvantaged pre-schoolers are making progress at the Vincennes Academy on the first two floors,” said Jonathan Morris, Principal-in-Charge at Carmina Wood Morris. “We are pleased to receive this recognition from the Preservation League for our work at the Webb Lofts, and hope this project will serve as an inspiration to others.” top ^ |
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| key participants: Argus Architecture & Preservation, P.C. Mercer Construction Co., LLC New York State Department of Environmental Conservation New York State Museum Open Space Institute Ryan-Biggs Associates, P.C. West Branch, Inc |
The Open Space Institute is to be congratulated for its commitment to saving this unique property in Essex County, and in so doing, setting an example which we hope will be emulated by other land conservation organizations. The MacNaughton House, a timber-frame saltbox double house, was constructed in 1834 to house the manager and the visiting owners of the Adirondack Iron and Steel Works. From 1876 until 1947 the property was leased to hunting clubs, primarily the Tahawus Club. In 1901, then-Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was vacationing at the house when President McKinley was shot in Buffalo, and it was from Tahawus that Roosevelt began his historic ride to the Presidency. By the autumn of 2005, when OSI called on Argus Architecture & Preservation to assess the building, it had been abandoned in a state of total neglect for more than 40 years. Emergency stabilization was undertaken to ensure that the building would remain standing until the next construction season. “To complicate matters,” said Janet Null of Argus Architecture, “except for road access, Tahawus is as isolated today as it was in the 1830s, and there is no power or water supply.” “The stewardship of historic structures is often a challenging issue for land conservation organizations,” said Joe Martens, President of the Open Space Institute. “We are pleased to receive this recognition from the Preservation League for stabilizing the MacNaughton House, and look forward to the day when the interpretation and enjoyment of this historic site will be enhanced by the building’s complete restoration.” top ^ |
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| key participants: Bovis Lend Lease R.M. Kliment & Frances Halsband Architects U.S. General Services Administration Wank Adams Slavin Associates |
The US Post Office and Courthouse at Cadman Plaza are the cornerstones of Brooklyn’s civic center and benefited from a sensitive approach to historic preservation balanced with modernization requirements. While the buildings are solidly Richardsonian on the outside, the interior boasts thousands of lighter, elegant features which could have been lost, but were recaptured through careful research and meticulous attention to detail. Completed in 1892 with a matching extension built in 1933, the building had been the hub of postal and judicial activity in the borough until 1964, when the courts moved across the street. The building was progressively vacated over the years with the exception of a branch post office and some federal document storage, and neglect led to severe deterioration. “This magnificent public building has now been restored to its rightful place in the urban context of Brooklyn’s civic center,” said Robert Kliment of R.M. Kliment & Frances Halsband Architects. “Wood windows, slate roofs, richly decorated interiors and other significant elements have been restored, and the U.S. Post Office and Courthouse has been reinstated as a significant formal and functional force, and a welcoming presence on Cadman Plaza.” top ^ |
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| key participants: Carlson Associates of Cooperstown Crawford & Stearns Architects & Preservation Planners of Syracuse Mohawk Valley Heritage Corridor Commission; NBT Bank of Canajoharie NYS Office for Small Cities The Arkell Hall Foundation Village of Canajoharie |
The renaissance of Canajoharie should serve as a model for heritage tourism development and downtown revitalization across the state. This community retains a wealth of historic and architectural resources that have been renovated in a way that celebrates the historic character of the village. Canajoharie’s downtown demonstrates the impressive results that can be achieved when not-for-profits, local governments, architectural professionals, consultants and state agencies work toward a common vision. Canajoharie had once been a thriving canal-side community and was distinguished by many handsome rough-cut limestone buildings constructed with local Canajoharie Stone, the same material that was used in building the Brooklyn Bridge. Just a few years ago, however, Canajoharie looked like far too many other upstate communities with boarded up storefronts, water-damaged masonry and inappropriate vinyl replacement windows. “To date, the team of Mohawk Valley Heritage Corridor Commission and the Village of Canajoharie has been successful in applying for a number of grants for the revitalization of the core intersection of Church and Main Streets,” said Fred Miller, executive director of the Commission. “Six buildings, which encompass 11 facades and 12 storefronts, have been brought back to the way they might have appeared in the heyday of the Erie Canal. Five new projects are slated to be undertaken in 2008.” top ^ |
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| key participants: Eldridge Street Project Reynaldo C. Prego, P.E. Robert Silman Associates, PC; Simpson, Gumperts & Heger T Higgins Construction Inc. Walter Sedovic Architects Wiss Janney Elstner Associates |
In 1984, the Preservation League presented one of its first Historic Religious Properties Awards to the Eldridge Street Synagogue, in recognition of its historical and architectural significance and organized efforts to restore the structure. Twenty-four years later, we are delighted to recognize this magnificently restored and hallowed place not just as a relic of the past, but as an example of how a successful historic preservation project can revitalize diverse neighborhoods and communities. The 1887 Synagogue, the first great house of worship built on the Lower East Side by Eastern European Jews, was an architectural marvel when it first opened. However, as the neighborhood changed and the congregation dwindled, age and weather began to take a devastating toll on the building. “This is one of three or four historical sites that tell in a nutshell the whole story of the Lower East Side, and Jewish immigration,” said Roberta Brandes Gratz, founder of the Eldridge Street Project. “If we didn’t save this building, we’d have had to reinvent it.” “I am proud to have been able to witness and support the hard work the Museum’s architectural team applied with its thoughtful restoration plan,” said Sheldon Silver, Speaker of the New York State Assembly, who represents the Lower East Side community in which the Synagogue is located. “Through the efforts of the Eldridge Street Project, the Synagogue has been restored to its former grandeur. In addition, Eldridge Street serves as a gathering place for young people of diverse backgrounds as they learn about Jewish culture, immigration, Lower East Side history, architecture and historic preservation.” top ^ |
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| key participants: Adirondack Studios AKW Construction Consulting, Inc. Arts Center & Theatre of Schenectady, Inc. DBA Proctors; Collett Mechanical Jersen Industies M/E Engineering; Pook Diemont & Ohl, Inc. Ryan Biggs Associates, P.C. Schenectady Hardware & Electric Specialized Audio Visual, Inc. SRG Architects T. Lemme Mechanical U. W. Marx Westlake Reed Leskosky |
The transformation of the vaudeville-era Proctors theatre, once in serious disrepair with only one working light bulb, to the linchpin of a Schenectady’s revitalized downtown is nothing short of exemplary. The preservation of the historic theatre and arcade, as well as the adaptive reuse of the adjacent Carl Company department store has delivered a heightened sense of place and history, as well as state-of-the-art performance spaces. The famed theatre architect Thomas Lamb designed Schenectady’s Proctor’s Theatre. It opened in 1926, one of a chain of F.F. Proctor’s vaudeville houses. With its unique commercial mid-block arcade, it was a true “palace of the common man.” “It would have been very easy for the citizens of Schenectady to walk away from this decaying and deteriorated theater,” said James Jamieson, A.I.A., Chairman of the Schenectady Historic District Commission and Capitol Architect for New York State. “Instead, armed with creative strategies for preservation, financing, and adaptive re-use, they transformed this National Register listed property into the engine of redevelopment in the struggling downtown, and the showplace of the Capital District of upstate New York.” top ^ |
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| key participants: A.J. Coppola AIA Jon Behrends, Precision Contractor Kingston Mayor James M. Sottile Rural Ulster Preservation Company (RUPCO); this project leveraged permanent and construction funding from 15 different sources |
What was once a symbol of decline at the gateway to Kingston’s Stockade National Historic District is now a beacon of hope, providing mixed-use support to the heritage tourism and business communities, as well as desirable rental housing. The Hotel Kirkland is an exemplary preservation project. Further, the installation of a geothermal heating and cooling system ensures that this important historic structure will have a sustainable future. Built in 1899, the four-story English Tudor revival building constructed as a hotel with dining and banquet facilities. The restaurant was known as the Dutch Rathskellar, and in its heyday in the mid-20th century, it was an important social landmark and legendary gathering and meeting place. Despite its status as a community institution, the building remained vacant for over three decades, and weather and vandalism took its toll. In early 2001, the Hotel Kirkland was nearly razed to clear the site for a planned parking garage. “In 2002, Kingston approached RUPCO about the historic rehabilitation of the Hotel Kirkland,” said Kevin O’Connor, executive director of RUPCO. “Now complete, the Kirkland is a mixed-use project featuring a restaurant with the largest dining room in the City of Kingston, state of the art office spaces for small businesses, and seven beautiful apartments, five of which are affordable units. In addition, the entire building is now handicapped accessible.” top ^ |
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| key participants: City of New Rochelle Community Preservation Corp. Empire State Development Corp., Main Streets Program Individual building owners New Rochelle Business Improvement District Polonia Development and Preservation Services Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Susan Doban Architect, PC |
New Rochelle’s five-building Business Improvement District Model Development Block project, conceived as a model to illustrate the benefits of the restoration of historic properties, owes much of its success to the enormous amount of imaginative and resourceful collaboration among local businesses, state agencies and regional organizations. The positive and visible results, including additional commercial and residential preservation and economic development, are already serving as an inspiration to other municipalities. The BID’s project has accomplished two significant goals,” said Barbara Davis, City Historian. “First, it beautifully restored five 19th century buildings that are important to the history of downtown New Rochelle, and second, it increased the community’s awareness of all the architectural treasures that exist in our midst.” According to Susan Doban, president of Susan Doban Architect, PC, “It’s gratifying on many levels to restore the underlying richly detailed terracotta, stone, and brick facades; it heightens awareness of the historic past, the labor and resources that went into the development of the earlier downtown, and, in this case, it has stimulated new pride in the downtown. The psychological ripple effect is almost palpable, and has already translated into renewed economic vigor as other property owners follow suit and new businesses are attracted to the Main Street area.” top ^ |
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| key participants: Arlene Puentes, October Home Inspections Erik Vandenberg, A thru Z Home Inspection Jim Obrotka, HIA Home Inspections Donald Cocker, National Property Inspections Nicholas Kuvach, Reveal Home Inspections and numerous architects, authors, consultants, contractors and industry experts who present at the annual Historic Homes Seminar |
The Hudson Valley Chapter of the American Society of Home Inspectors is to be commended for providing vital training to those professionals who are in the best position to advise, counsel and educate homeowners on the merits of historic preservation. The impressive list of preservation professionals they have engaged to provide training in their annual Historic Homes Seminar illustrates a strategic commitment to protecting New York’s historic structures. “A number of home inspectors with a penchant for preservation realized that many of their well-meaning but uninformed colleagues would recommend insensitive remodeling rather than thoughtful, historically accurate repairs,” said Arlene Puentes, HVASHI Chapter President. “HVASHI volunteer program organizers put together the Historic Home Seminar to bridge a critical knowledge gap, and in so doing, protect and conserve historic properties throughout the Hudson Valley, New York State and beyond.” The 6th Annual Historic Homes Seminar for the home inspector and other real estate professionals will be presented by HVASHI on September 16-18, 2008 in Newburgh, and will feature a behind-the-scenes inspection tour of homes on historic Huguenot Street in New Paltz. Workshops topics include: Inspecting Old Houses From the Ground Up; Plastering in the 21st Century; Historic American Architectural Styles and Types; Inspecting Historical Properties to Code; and Home Energy Audits and Effective Corrections Costs. “With so many antique buildings in this region, home inspectors have a significant role to play in historic preservation,” said Neil Larson of Larson Fisher Associates, who participated in the 2007 seminar. “But this large profession needs training. HVASHI makes the effort to introduce its members to the value and methods of historic preservation, and keeps the issue in front of them with annual training seminars. They have done a terrific service for historic preservation, and provide a model for other ASHI chapters across the state.” top ^ |
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| While many look forward to time at Thousand Island Park as an opportunity to relax, Trude Brown Fitelson’s year-round preservation efforts have been described by some as a second career. The National Register listing of this unique community and its protection are a testament to her remarkable patience, stamina, and perseverance over many decades.” Thousand Island Park, located on Wellesley Island in Jefferson County, began as a Methodist campground in 1875 and became a popular resort area by the turn of the century. According to Paul Malo, author and nationally recognized authority on the art and architecture of the Thousand Islands, “The remarkable renaissance of Thousand Island Park over the past thirty years is due in large part to the unflagging work of Trude Brown Fitelson.” Trude Fitelson was a founder of a community organization, the Thousand Island Park Landmark Society, which conducted a survey of more than three hundred buildings, leading to the 1982 designation of the entire community on the National Register of Historic Places. Trude also spearheaded a long-range land-use plan that conserves several hundred acres as “forever green.” She has been active in design and landscaping of outdoor public spaces, initiated a master zoning map, and drafted the Preservation Code. At the present time, she serves as senior advisor to Preservation and Design Review Board and is working on a primer to inform residents about the heritage of Thousand Island Park and the ongoing need for vigilance in steering development in an appropriate course. “I have been so fortunate to have Paul Malo as a mentor! His advice and friendship have been invaluable to me and the architectural preservation of Thousand Island Park as a late 19th century summer community is due to his guidance!” – Trude Brown Fitelson top ^ |
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| Preserving New York: Winning the Right to Protect a City’s Landmarks by Anthony C. Wood (Routledge, 2007) Preserving New York: Winning the Right to Protect a City’s Landmarks (Routledge 2007) by Anthony C. Wood makes an important contribution to our understanding of preservation history in New York City in general by focusing on one compelling story – the establishment of the local landmark law. It is easy to imagine this book becoming required reading for preservation degree programs across the country. Despite presenting a chronicle of losses, Preserving New York makes the reader proud of the city’s achievements and hopeful for preservation’s future. This publication tells the previously untold story of the people and places, the buildings and battles, and the politics and policies that led to New York City’s landmarks law, passed in 1965. Preserving New York represents the culmination of a two-year project of the New York Preservation Archive Project, a non-profit organization with a unique focus: preserving, documenting and celebrating the history of the historic preservation movement. “Tony Wood has created a carefully researched and beautifully written book that is filling a large gap in our understanding of the historic preservation profession,” said Anne H. Van Ingen, director of the Architecture, Planning & Design and Capital Projects for the New York State Council on the Arts. “We all owe Tony a large debt of gratitude for doing such an extraordinary job – this is a book that needed to be written.” top ^ |
