I've been following the plight of 125 Woodlawn Avenue. Since a local contractor who lived here and left for Charlotte, the place has been on a down hill slide. The City took possession last October in a tax foreclosure proceeding. It was demolished this week. Price for this demolition, $20,000.
125 Woodlawn - Before & After
click image to enlarge
I first wrote about 125 Woodlawn in August 2006 - High Price of Red Tape. I learned from looking through the documents stapled to the front door that the City was paying a local contractor $8,000 to remove the asbestos siding. In Red Tape - Part II, from December 2006, shows what the house looks like without the asbestos siding.
click image to enlarge
Asbestos siding is an amazing product. It holds paint very well and seems to require very little maintenance. Structurally this house was in very good shape, with the exception of some support issues on the front porch.
Let me ask again. Why are we spending so much on demolition when the same 20K could have been used in a revolving loan fund to help with the rehab here at 125 Woodlawn. This sort of stick style house appears all around the Cold Spring neighborhood. We need a few people with vision.
When I moved to this neighborhood, on this block with 125 Woodlawn, there were 18 houses 10 years ago. That's down from the original 25 shown in this picture from 1956. Today are 13 houses. Five are occupied.
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Artspace Archive • Annals of Neglect • BAVPA • Where is Perrysburg? • Broken Promises...
Writing the City • Woodlawn Row Houses • faq • my flickr
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Artspace Archive • Annals of Neglect • BAVPA • Where is Perrysburg? • Broken Promises...
Writing the City • Woodlawn Row Houses • faq • my flickr
the creativity exchange
6 comments:
what a shame...
A. Why the hell does it cost $20K to demolish one house?
B. You continuously (and correctly) state that Buffalo is a shrinking city, yet (in some sort of altruistic sense) we should be saving all these houses that no one seems to want anymore?
Seems a bit like a mixed message to me.
Seems like demolition madness is becoming rampant in Buffalo. Sad.
I agree with MW tha certain properties should be assessed in regard to their architectural style and mothballed for the future. Not all decrepit houses are worth the effort so save but some certainly are and this is an example of one. And wouldn't it make more sense to rehab the existing stock, stop building new vinyls, and offer the rehab to someone at cost or via a lottery?
Such a waste.
No such thing "Styx", btw - that was the river at the border of Hell, remember? The style is called "Stick Style". Anyway:
Major "cost" = ripoff : Someone with ties to City Hall hires minimum wage (or lower) guys to pry off the "asbestos" siding (it is cement - don't fool yourselves, thinking there is any danger) and sticking it into trash bags. Cost is surely under $One Thousand, but CHARGE is usually $7-8+ thousand.
Just one example of the profitable Poverty Industry around here.
FYI, tuvjjhwi = Jefferson
before it's too late, i hope that buffalo will develop an urban homestead program, exclusively for owner-occupants, to recycle the older houses and redevelop the older neighborhoods. there are so many young people who are priced out of the suburban real estate market, people who are bright, energetic and environmentally aware, who would be ideal candidates for such a program.
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