fixBuffalo: Search results for "2 girard"

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7/27/2005

Going, Going...

I first started writing about 2 Girard - google map over here in March, and later in May. The place always catches my eye while driving along the "scar" that never heals. It's right across "Humboldt Parkway" from Deaconess Hospital.

click to enlarge

Look how close to perfect the neighbor's place is. I'm sure they are just as interested as dozens of my blog readers have become in the future of 2 Girard. I'll make sure to let the neighbors know the owner of 2 Girard has a court date with Judge Nowak.

Buffalo Housing Court Case #868/2005 on August 2 at 930am.

When I stopped by to take pictures today I noticed that the back door was wide open. I knocked and since no one was home, I decided to venture inside. This is what I saw...

click to enlarge

If there ever was a candidtate for "Reclamation and Re-Use" this is the property. Most of the interior moldings are gone. I suspect the curved window moldings on the first and second floor to disappear soon, too. I've written about "Reclamation and Re-Use." It's called Deconstructing Buffalo. It's also part of the Judge Nowak's Neigborhood Preservation Collaborative.

And if you are interested in getting this place properly secured and some justice for the owner, please contact Masten District Housing Liaiason Mark Boyd. He is heading up Antoine Thompson's office.

Mark Boyd's email. His office number is 851-5145. Please call, we need all the help you can spare.

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Artspace Archive • Annals of Neglect • BAVPA • Where is Perrysburg? • Broken Promises...
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1/08/2009

There is No Plan

On Saturday afternoon I drove right by and didn't notice - 2 Girard is gone. Today I returned for photos. I last mentioned this amazing Queen Anne single family home in September 2007 - here - when I learned that a neighborhood organization was going to purchase and renovate it.

May 2007

Last July, as the Mayor's bulldozers were ramping up for his '5x5' demolition plan, the Mayor was quoted in a Buffalo News article - here:

We’re targeting the worst. We’re convinced those structures must go. There’s really no choice. - Mayor Byron Brown

January 2009

No choice? 2 Girard was a viable structure - a rehab opportunity in waiting.

I remember commenting to my friend as we entered the '33' at Best Street on Saturday afternoon. "Every time i drive along this stretch i feel as though i add insult to injury." It was demolished the day after Christmas.

March 2005

The Mayor reportedly was considering a press event at 2 Girard prior to the demolition and was advised not to. He moved to a fire damaged house on Jefferson Avenue at the last minute.

To see the full impact of what we have lost, visit Historic Aerials - here, for a look at what the neighborhood was like in 1958. Take a moment to compare the 1958 map with the 2006 image, using the convenient slider tool. Staggering.

Today

Here's the link to eleven 2 Girard posts - going back to March 2005 - including some interior pics.

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11/07/2006

2 Girard - Last Time...

I started keeping track of 2 Girard Street [google map] in March, May, July and November 2005 and most recently this past February. I still find this house fascinating. The almost magical quality of the turret had to engage children for hours and days, along time ago when places like this were still valued. Sadly, Sunday afternoon was the first time I'd imagined a "vinyl victorian" here on this corner, Humboldt Parkway's first.

click image to enlarge

I've been to Housing Court a couple times. Owner in Atlanta never showed. And while talking with Judge Nowak last February about the plight of 2 Girard, I sensed his frustration as I showed him the pictures and pleaded for a stay. He denied it. The place is tenacious. I thought it was going down months ago. There was some interest last year, prior to the City taking possession. Solid roof and the place still sits very straight.

Maybe this place is fated. Imagine for a moment what Richmond Avenue would look like if a highway was photo-shopped into the middle. As long as it stands there's some hope. Any takers? Tours on request. Let me know. Like a few others over here, I'll help you build a case to rescue this from the City's hands.

Here's the listing on Craigslist - 2 Girard, Buffalo NY

9/19/2007

Saved!

Been following the recent life cycle of 2 Girard, that you see from the 33 along Humboldt Parkway. Recently posted here - Remember 2 Girard? - with all sort of links reaching back to March 2005 with photos and requests to stay the demolition. Learned today from frequent fixBuffalo reader that plans for the 2 Girard's revival appeared on Citi-stat last week.

Here's the latest...

Submitted to Agency Members, for approval, is a request to contract with Fillmore Leroy Area Residents, Inc. (FLARE, Inc.) in the amount of $335,600 for the acquisition and rehabilitation of 24 Victoria Street and 2 Girard Place. FLARE has already rehabilitated four homes on Victoria Street and is looking to construct two new homes. Two Girard Place is located on the corner of Humboldt Parkway and can be seen from the Kensington Expressway when approaching downtown Buffalo. This home may be converted into a single family home if a previously interested buyer is still willing to purchase this property when rehabilitation is completed. Mayor Brown praised this project noting that the Girard location is an eyesore in its present state. Ms. Yvonne McCray from FLARE gave a brief overview of the project. She added that through the CHDO funding, FLARE has been able to assist smaller groups and she thanked the Board for their support.

2 Girard Street

04/01/07Transfer property to FLARE

06/07/0706/29/07Contract and Deed Prepared and ready

06/07/0708/15/07Funding Contract not completed as of08/28/07

Check back soon for additional updates...

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Artspace • BAVPA • Tour d'Neglect - 2007 • Woodlawn Row Houses • faq • my flickr
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2/08/2006

Time Is Up...Gone!

I was in Housing Court last month asking Judge Nowak for a little more time to see if I could generate some interest in 2 Girard Place. The answer...NO. Time is up. I've failed in my 11 month long battle to generate some interest in saving this significant part of the urban landscape. You've probably seen it dozens of times, it's just before Best St. inbound on the 33 on your left. Here's the google map to help with directions.

It's been written for demolition and will probably come down this Spring. Housing Court has been in touch with the current owner of record, Cedric Walker. He claims that he had no idea that he owned this house in Buffalo and claims that somebody fraudulently deeded the property to him. Hmmm...

There may be a few moments. But you should hurry. Judge Nowak is very sensitive to what's happening to our City. He took a few moments during the proceedings to remind me that 2 Girard was made available at the City's auction last October and at the time no interest was shown in the place. In any case if you are interested in doing some major rehab...come on down. E-mail me, let me know of your interest and between the good folks in Judge Nowaks court perhaps we can track the presumptive owner down and keep 2 Girard where it sits...

I first wrote about 2 Girard here in March, in May, in July and more recently in November. I've taken an interest in the property as it's really close to the former German Roman Catholic Orphan Home just across the Parkway at the corner of Dodge and Parade. I know that neighborhood is sort of tough to know and get around for an insanely stupid reason.....the scar, Buffalo's monument to malfeasance and bad municipal planning.

Here the pics of the orphan home Exterior and Interior. It's owned by the CAO of Erie County and hasn't been in Housing Court since Scott Witzig owned and bought it from Trammell & Co., another sad story. It is the first stop on a PresCo sponsored bicycle tour I'm leading this summer. It's been renamed "Tour dé Neglect"....Bill Trezevant's Church of the Transfiguration is the second stop...do you think he might join us to answer questions...ok, I'll invite him...

3/23/2005

Property of the Weak...#1

This house is located at 2 Girard Place. According to City Hall, Cedric Walker is the owner of record. It's a 3/3 double and it's currently assesed at $3400.00 (no typo). There is no file over in Buffalo Housing Court on this property. According to neighbors its been looking like this for years.

Any takers? The house appears to be in good structural condition.

click to enlarge

This property is located two blocks away from East High School on Northampton Street where 25 million was recently spent on renovations under the Joint School Construction Project. Other houses on the block include this property at 31 Girard Place.

My experience suggests that 2 Girard Place is available for purchase despite the lack of a "for sale" sign. If you are interested and would like some assistance in tracking down the owner, please contact me.

5/29/2007

Say What?

Remember 2 Girard? Visited the place several times over the past two years. Showed up in Housing Court, too and asked Judge Nowak to spare this City owned house a demolition order. He didn't.

Rather confusing situation now. It's City owned and despite the demolition order somehow someone somewhere has stepped to the plate. We learned last month - City Property On-Line - that a sale is pending for 2 Girard.

Still no sign of anyone taking possession. High grass and totally open. It's still on my watch list. You can see it just before the Science Museum on left hand side of the 33 on your way downtown in the morning...

5/16/2005

Property of the Weak... #3

This house is located at 905 Humboldt Parkway (check that google satellite image!) According to City Hall, Annie Harden is the owner of record. (Seems like the bank forgot to transfer the deed...go figure.) It's a 2/2/2 three family house and it's currently assessed at $39,900.00. According to neighbors its been looking like this for years.

Any takers? The house appears to be in good structural condition.

click to enlarge

***Update***
May 16, 2005

Had a conversation with one of Buffalo's most innovative realtors this afternoon,
JM Reed from Polis Realty.
He has keys to the place and would be very interested in helping
a serious buyer with the purchase of this totally cool property.
JM Reed can be reached at 716-881-1200
or jmreed@polisrealty.com

See this on Craigslist, too!

Just to the right of this property you'll see this Carriage House. Pretty cool for the 'hood. You'll also see this sign posted on the door of 905. National Home Marketing Solutions is a property and asset management company that specializes in HUD properties. They are located in Georgia.

Contact Information 905 Humboldt Parkway

I've archived the Other Property of the Weak for your review!

Follow up...Weak #1

The house at 2 Girard is still available for the adventurous urban pioneer. Here are some current pics. It's located on the other side of Humboldt Parkway from 905. The basement is now wide open, so it will probably need all new plumbing, fixtures and I imagine the heating system has been stripped by this time, too. Something tells me that this property will be demolished by this time next year. Wanna bet?

click to enlarge

4/16/2007

City Real Estate On-Line...finally!

In a recent Citistat update (March 2, 2007) Paul Wolf, Chief of Staff for the Common Coucil reported the following...

Marketing Available City Owned Properties

The CitiStat panel discussed the need to market the many properties owned by the City for new development opportunities. The need to establish a marketing plan was discussed. The idea of utilizing a real estate company or a private marketing company to market available City owned properties was also discussed as something to look into. At the very least Mr. Wanamaker stated that within the next 30 days an effort will occur to at least put photos of available City properties on the City’s web page.

Well...don't know if the deadline was met, yet here's the link and catalog [.pdf] off the City's site. See, prior to this link, the only way to know what property was for sale was to go to the 9th floor of City Hall and ask for the catalog, actually a 10-15 page packet. If you were somehow in the loop you could sometimes get the packet mailed to you.

While looking through the on-line catalog prepared by John Hannon's staff - sort of looks like a late night middle school web project - I quickly noticed a house the City is trying to sell at 2 Girard Place. It's strangely marked as "sale pending" and fixBuffalo readers will remember it - right here.

From the hundreds - and perhaps thousands - the City owns, one quickly begins to wonder why these properties were chosen over others. Pix are about as good as what you might get from your realtor. Looking at a number of the pix in the City's "on-line catalog", I was struck by the number of cars parked in City owned driveways.

A small step in the right direction. If you've purchased a house from the City recently, do share your experience...

2/17/2009

There is No Plan - Part II

While places like 2 Girard and 1572 Jefferson seem to disappear from the streetscape overnight, other houses like this at 235 Woodlawn Avenue are left standing. Why?

Mayor Brown was quoted in a Buffalo News housing series last summer, "We’re targeting the worst. We’re convinced those structures must go. There’s really no choice." By almost any metric, this burned out two family home should be demolished. It's directly across the street from two recently developed projects - the Cold Spring Church and the new Bethel Headstart building at the corner of Jefferson and Woodlawn. A short three blocks away is the newly renovated Performing Arts High School.

Positive investment in a community that's been ravished by decades of neglect helps create a certain level of opportunity - homesteading and urban gardening - yet the lack of effective long term strategic land use planning is revealed when our hollowed out streetscapes become so burned and desperate that houses are left to languish (see Tale of Two Cities - the five year story of another burnout, just around the corner).

LISC-Buffalo has helped codify a vision, based on a set of best practices, for managing our City's decline - see Getting Smarter About Decline, October 2006. Triaging the thousands of abandonded, boarded and vacant structures - for mothballing, sale, or demolition - is necessary. It is not being done. Why?

As neighborhoods continue to hollow-out, vacancy like a virus spreads and the list of empty places grows longer every day. One begins to wonder if houses such as this, located next to clusters of positive reinvestment, will continue to rot. The fire at 235 Woodlawn Avenue was set by an arsonist ten months ago in April 2008.

Over at BuffaloGeek, Chris posted this recently - Buffalo: You're Doing it Wrong! - about what's (not) happening in the city. Good read.

See - There is No Plan - Part I

5/15/2009

Crossing the '33' - Part III

I noticed the demolition action here a couple weeks ago and stopped by the other day. According to Masten District Councilman Demone Smith's office the 46 year old pedestrian bridge connecting a once vibrant neighborhood just south of Northland Street will be rebuilt in the coming months. No news yet as to the project's cost.

The other two pedestrian crossings along the '33' connect neighborhoods that are still split. I posted about the first one, connecting Grape and Cherry Streets - see, Crossing the '33' - Part I - in January '07 and the equally bisected neighborhood near High and Gray Streets - Crossing the '33' - Part II - in May '07.

In the past few months I've become a big fan of Historic Aerials, sort of works like googlemaps. When you drill down you'll notice that the '33' was completed in stages. In the 1958 map - centered on the Science Museum - you'll see that the destruction construction had already begun, closer to downtown. By 1966 most of the '33' was completed between the 198-hourglass and downtown. The section between Best and Ferry Streets was still at-grade. Using one of the site's embedded tools take a moment to compare that 1958 moment with today's existing reality. Staggering.

While shooting what remains of the pedestrian bridge earlier this week, I noticed a number of houses on the east side of Humboldt Parkway that have been marked for demoltion. I'll be following up on those in the next few weeks.

click image to enlarge

RIP 2 Girard.

7/05/2014

942 Humboldt Parkway: bank owned

Last week Zillow claimed that Buffalo, NY had the most stable real estate market in the country, with a zero risk of loss. The Buffalo News picked up and ran (uncritically) with the story, here.

942 Humboldt (google map) was last sold for $63,000 in 1994. It's a 3000sf single-family home with four bedrooms and two baths and the city currently assesses this property at $37,000. The foreclosure is complete, it's bank-owned (M&T Bank) with an asking price of $12,900.

The real estate record and sales story of 942 Humboldt Parkway is not anecdotal. It's part of a larger trend of disappearing values and mortgage foreclosures that are locked in limbo with other zombie properties that define entire neighborhoods on the city's East Side.

So, what's up with the missing $50,000 in value? The house is located just two blocks away from one of the city's most important museums, schools and an Olmsted Park that has a fabulous and recently renovated splash pad. In addition, Humboldt Parkway has just been striped for bike lanes and one block away on Fillmore Avenue substantial street and sidewalk improvements - including bulb-outs, bike lanes, new granite curbs and tree plantings - are now complete.

So color me confused about the missing $50,000. The Buffalo News repeated Zillow's press release about real estate values in Buffalo, NY and yet the reality seems to be very different and slightly unforgiving.

Perhaps the asking price has something to do with the empty lot one block away where the city spent $18,000 to demolish 2 Girard Place five years ago. Or, maybe the lost $50,000 of value is linked to the Kensington Effect that makes sitting on the front porch nearly impossible.

Here's the Hunt Listing if you're interested in a possible purchase.

Related posts: Fixing the Kensington

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2/05/2010

Wonder where it all goes...?

This is an amazing building. Wonder Bread is an early 20th century, steel-reinforced concrete "daylight factory."

The building's interior spaces are characterized by tall ceilings, large south-facing windows, and open layout to maximize the penetration of natural light. The exterior, faced in blond brick, does not reference its structural framing in concrete and is an ode to preceding 19th century load-bearing, timber-framed mill buildings. The windows at top are references to the Roman arch, a common feature of British and American mill buildings in the late 19th century.

Pyramid Brokerage lists the Wonder Bread building - 313 Fougeron - for $800k. In other markets such a spectacular spot would be snapped up in New York minute. Two years ago Buffalo Rising took a close look at a business located at Wonder Bread. Here's that story with a few interior pics.

This blog's focus has centered on a number of unique City-owned residential structures in the past few years - the Woodlawn Row Houses, 2 Girard, 16 Harwood Place and 194 East Utica. In additon, a number of religious buildings have been placed on the local radar, these include: the German Roman Catholic Orphan Home, St. Matthew's, Transfiguration and Sacred Heart. Occasionally I've posted about some of the East Side's threatened industrial treasures.

The Wollenberg Grain Elevator was City-owned and had recently been listed on the National Register. It was demolished by neglect and burned during the night in October 2006. This year, in addition to the new City Abandoned series, a number of threatened industrial buildings on the City's East Side will be profiled.

Meanwhile curious minds would like to know what happened to the missing 'N' - it was dangling by a thread last Friday. By Monday it was missing.

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1/08/2007

Crossing the 33 - Part I

While poking around the Fruit Belt on Sunday afternoon, I walked over the pedestrian bridge connecting Mulberry Street with Hickory on the other side of the 33. Here's the map!

click image to enlarge

Really sort of odd walking this path - despite my rather intrepid urban exploration orientation - as it's really an after thought making room for pedestrians or bicyclists in their desire to cross the 33. It's an envionment designed for getting people around in cars. Simple. Like to know if these pedestrian bridges were part of the original design of the 33 or some sort of after thought.

While checking out some of the houses in the lower Belt I started thinking about the correlation of realestate values and the proximity to high volume urban highways like the 33. Further up and just north of the Museum of Science is 2 Girard, just sitting and rotting. Wonder if proximity to 33 and lower realestate values is anecdotal or could be backed up by some real data. Anyone?

Next weekend, another pedestrian crossing.

See also - Reconnecting Buffalo

4/12/2006

Biting the Dust...

Frequent readers of this little Masten neighborhood blog know about 2 Girard Place here on the City's East side. Here's another.

click to enlarge

I thought this house at 194 East Utica was occupied. Here's the map. It's not. It was boarded recently and yesterday I saw the familiar red spray painted numbers. Demolition of this really unique two-family victorian home is just around the corner.

And so it goes...

2/26/2006

To Demo or Not to Demo...

While the demolition of existing structures on the City's East side has moved forward in erratic fits and starts like a crack whore trying to score, there are a number of buildings here on the City's near East Side that are just crying out for the right combination of ownership and tenant mix. Recently a new East Side blog, Broadway Fillmore Alive featured a story about one of my (not so) favorite City leaders and presumed East Side resident, Common Council President David Franzcyk. It's all about trying to squeeze more money for demolitions and totally failing to get at the the underlying causes of neighborhood decline.

Notice the total absence in his resolution of specific number of residences that are demo worthy. I mean can these demoltions really cost exactly 10K. What I'm getting at is that no one really has the arms around this problem of abandonement and demolition. The City's Fire Dept. has one set of numbers relating to the number of abandoned houses in Buffalo, the Dept of Assesment another number and the folks on the City Hall's third floor in the Dept of Inpections are doing triage with all the resources they can muster. Yet, if we were serious about the problem of abandonement and demolition the City would be going after demolition payments and collecting on overdue court ordered demolition fees. Long on generalities. Short on specifics.

Two rather innovative alternatives to using increasingly larger amounts of tax dollars to pay for demolitions might include:

The establishment of a city owned demolition crew. They could use these industrial sized chippers, shreders and grinders to reduce the landfill cost of the resulting debris
Establish a program that's been kicked around - "Deconstruct Buffalo" and reuse old building materials. Many readers of this blog are advocates of this approach.

A year ago, 242 Koons Avenue was demolished. City tax payers footed the bill. Call Franzcyk's office 851-4200 and see if any payments have been collected. Just ask the simple question, "why not?" (The house's former owners are Bay Area, CA investors with the means to write a check.) And then there's the total idiocy of the City taking possession of a three old burn-out at 198 Glenwood Avenue at last year's City tax auction. A warrant is still outstanding in housing court for the former owner. Now, guess who's paying for that demolition. I mean why not go after the former owner any longer? Of course there is the truly sad case of 2 Girard Place. Sickens me...and the history of the City's ownership of 669 Genesee Street is even worse. No marketing plan...just a 500K demolition bill waiting to hit the Control Board.

And while David Franzyck has represented the City's most blighted neighborhood for decades, what has been done to attract private investment to the area and reverse the downward "Detroitization" of Polonia? One word, K-mart!

More reasonable City leaders have told me that David Franczyk is the best Councilman the Delaware District never had. In any case he's spent far too much time trying to save the forest forty miles away in Perrysburg, NY than he has taking care of Broadway Fillmore, his district. Read all about here...it's the story you won't see anywhere else.

The problem of abandonment and demolition is getting worse by the week here on the City's East Side. And if we keep doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results, well you get the idea.

Come on over...drive or walk around the neighborhoods here on the City's East side and see for yourself.

1/04/2006

West Village Blog...Great Story

Just noticed this piece, What Price Abandonment? over at the West Village Renaissance Group blog. As frequent readers of this blog know, I've been covering this beat and drumming that drum here on this, the other side of Main Street, Buffalo's East Side since October '04. It's finally good to have some company in the local Buffalo blogosphere.

They Decrease Property Values...
In a 2001 study,
researchers from Philadelphia found that houses within 150 feet of a neglected vacant property experienced a net loss of value of $7,627. Those within 150 to 300 feet experience a loss in value of $6,819 and those within 300 to 450 feet of such a property depreciated by $3,542.

This full texts of these reports sited in the West Village Blog story can be found here at The National Vacant Properties Campaign.

I first learned about this national organization back in February '05, over here. Recently, I saw this on West Utica and have been very concerned about this beauty along Humboldt Parkway.

Check out this story that I covered in October '05 regarding the 23,000 vacant and abandoned properties in the City of Buffalo. Maybe we'll get a recount in 2006!

click to enlarge

On a more serious note, if you are interested in that Humboldt Parkway House, located at 2 Girard Place, that we finally got into Housing Court for the first time last August, check out the total lack of progress by clicking on the docket number:

Buffalo Housing Court Case #868/2005 on January 9, 2006 at 930am.

Wanna bet the defendent, Cedric Walker is another no-show. I'll be there, again. Stay tuned.