This is a view from the Belt Line towards Broadway.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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7/21/2014
Photo of the Day: 134
Curtiss Street and Dover Street (google map).
This is a view from the Belt Line towards Broadway.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
This is a view from the Belt Line towards Broadway.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
7/20/2014
Photo of the Day: 133
Jefferson Avenue and Peckham Street (google map).
This is where the other half worships.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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7/16/2014
Saving St. Gerard's - Part I
Are plans to dismantle and relocate St. Gerard's Church now dead? I spoke with Patricia Chivers, Communications Director for the Archdiocese of Atlanta, GA, this morning. I asked her about the rumors circulating that THE BIG MOVE is now off, and asked about the status of fundraising and long-term plans for St. Gerard's.
She seemed unaware that the Diocese of Buffalo is currently marketing St. Gerard's to other prospective buyers. She told me that the local parish has not provided an update for at least one year regarding the status of plans for the property, and promised a statement on the issue within two days.
Chrissy Lincoln, Director of Operations at Preservation Buffalo Niagara—the only preservation group that supported the deconstruction and Atlanta move four years ago—said she recently toured St. Gerard's and has been approached by the Diocese of Buffalo to help market the property to qualified buyers.
If you haven't seen St. Gerard's magnificent interior, take a moment and scroll trough local architectural photographer Jim Cavanaugh's stunning series. He's captured the splendor of this East Side treasure.
Stay tuned.
Related posts:
She seemed unaware that the Diocese of Buffalo is currently marketing St. Gerard's to other prospective buyers. She told me that the local parish has not provided an update for at least one year regarding the status of plans for the property, and promised a statement on the issue within two days.
Chrissy Lincoln, Director of Operations at Preservation Buffalo Niagara—the only preservation group that supported the deconstruction and Atlanta move four years ago—said she recently toured St. Gerard's and has been approached by the Diocese of Buffalo to help market the property to qualified buyers.
If you haven't seen St. Gerard's magnificent interior, take a moment and scroll trough local architectural photographer Jim Cavanaugh's stunning series. He's captured the splendor of this East Side treasure.
Stay tuned.
Related posts:
- St. Gerard's in USA Today - (2/4/10)
- St. Gerard's Fate - (11/10/10)
- Moving St. Gerard's South (1/20/10)
- The Plundering of Buffalo (2/18/10)
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fixBuffalo photos • citylab • shrinking cities • americansuburbX • copenhagenize
cnu 22 • spacing toronto • urbanophile
cnu 22 • spacing toronto • urbanophile
7/14/2014
Photo of the Day: 127
Bailey Avenue and Warwick Avenue (google map).
A former used car lot on Bailey Avenue remains empty.
A former used car lot on Bailey Avenue remains empty.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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7/13/2014
Photo of the Day: 126
Broadway Avenue and Dreshler Avenue (google map).
This is where the other half worships.
This is where the other half worships.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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7/12/2014
Photo of the Day: 125
Navel Avenue and Bailey Avenue (google map).
There are no bike lanes on Bailey Avenue.
There are no bike lanes on Bailey Avenue.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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7/11/2014
Photo of the Day: 124
Cloverdale Avenue and Bailey Avenue (google map).
One of Bailey Avenue's original automobile showrooms remains boarded after Unique Boutique's closing.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
One of Bailey Avenue's original automobile showrooms remains boarded after Unique Boutique's closing.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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7/09/2014
Larkin Power House - Demolition or Preservation Part II
Developers Peter Krog and Jim Cornell have made it no secret that they want to demolish the Larkin Power House, first reported here.
When workers at the site were salvaging bricks from an exterior wall last April, Krog and Cornell were "blown in" by the Campaign for Greater Buffalo for beginning a demolition without a permit. A stop-work order was issued, and the Campaign prepared an application to designate the Power House and its neighbors as the Larkin Historic District. This would formally help preserve the sole visible remnants of Frank Lloyd Wright's work at the complex, as well as all of the remaining iconic factory buildings. Here's a map of the planned Larkin Historic District and a historic site map to further orient you to this development.
The hearing will be on Tuesday, July 15, 2:00 pm, in the Common Council Chambers. You are urged to attend and, if possible, speak in favor of landmark designation. This building, or the landmark-designation process itself, must not come tumbling down.
Here is the Larkin Historic District application and supporting photo archive. It is fascinating reading. It includes a picture of renowned architectural historian Reyner Banham clambering up the Power House chimney.
It is short notice, and the hearing is to occur during the workday, so it is difficult for many to attend. You can still make your voice heard by writing a brief note to the City Clerk declaring your support. These will go into the packets the Common Council will receive and be part of the public record.
The contact info is:
Gerald Chwalinski
City Clerk
1308 City Hall
65 Niagara Square
Buffalo, NY 14202
Please alert friends and colleagues who may want to support preservation of the Larkin Power House and the Larkin Historic District. Your support will be critical.
Related: Larkin Power House (4/23/14)
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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
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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fixBuffalo photos • citylab • shrinking cities • americansuburbX • copenhagenize
cnu 22 • spacing toronto • urbanophile
cnu 22 • spacing toronto • urbanophile
My weekly fix - week #5
Another dose of urbanity...
Metropolis Magazine covered this week's opening of the Frank Lloyd Wright Gas Station, here. The exhibit is Jim Sandoro's latest addition to an expanding collection at the Pierce Arrow Museum. Follow the museum's link for additional information about the project that remained unbuilt during Frank Lloyd Wright's lifetime.
At the other end of Lake Erie in Detroit this week, Anna Clark author of A Detroit Anthology (May 2014) has an Op-Ed in the New York Times - Going without Water in Detroit. Residents of Detroit have recently appealed to the United Nations for relief as up to 300,000 residents are facing water shut-offs. Detroit's water wars have prompted the formation of the Detroit Water Brigade and coverage of this human and urban disaster is now getting global coverage. The Guardian is reporting, here.
Copenhagenize has been following the construction and design development of the world's first elevated cycle track, here. This truly innovative project will elevate cycle commuting to a new high and set a new bench mark for bicycle infrastructure.
Moved By Grace, the attempt to plunder St. Gerard's one of the city's most exquisite architectural and cultural treasures by a suburban Atlanta GA congregation, has hit an inconvenient snag. It's been reported on a number of FaceBook posts that Preservation Buffalo Niagara was contacted by the Buffalo Diocese for assistance in re-marketing St. Gerard's. Chrissy Lincoln from PBN confirmed that contact and PBN has un-officially conducted tours of the church. Stay tuned.
Kosuke Okahara is working on a long-term project documenting the aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. LensCulture recently profiled his series - From Emergency to Normalcy - which is part of his larger work Fragments/Fukushima. His work depicts life and death inside the exclusion zone. Okahara's riveting work evokes strong emotions and presents a challenge and a critical evalution of our dependency and reliance on the velocity of technological progress.
Related: Week #1, Week #2, Week 3 & Week 4
__________________________________________________________________________________Metropolis Magazine covered this week's opening of the Frank Lloyd Wright Gas Station, here. The exhibit is Jim Sandoro's latest addition to an expanding collection at the Pierce Arrow Museum. Follow the museum's link for additional information about the project that remained unbuilt during Frank Lloyd Wright's lifetime.
At the other end of Lake Erie in Detroit this week, Anna Clark author of A Detroit Anthology (May 2014) has an Op-Ed in the New York Times - Going without Water in Detroit. Residents of Detroit have recently appealed to the United Nations for relief as up to 300,000 residents are facing water shut-offs. Detroit's water wars have prompted the formation of the Detroit Water Brigade and coverage of this human and urban disaster is now getting global coverage. The Guardian is reporting, here.
Copenhagenize has been following the construction and design development of the world's first elevated cycle track, here. This truly innovative project will elevate cycle commuting to a new high and set a new bench mark for bicycle infrastructure.
Moved By Grace, the attempt to plunder St. Gerard's one of the city's most exquisite architectural and cultural treasures by a suburban Atlanta GA congregation, has hit an inconvenient snag. It's been reported on a number of FaceBook posts that Preservation Buffalo Niagara was contacted by the Buffalo Diocese for assistance in re-marketing St. Gerard's. Chrissy Lincoln from PBN confirmed that contact and PBN has un-officially conducted tours of the church. Stay tuned.
Kosuke Okahara is working on a long-term project documenting the aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. LensCulture recently profiled his series - From Emergency to Normalcy - which is part of his larger work Fragments/Fukushima. His work depicts life and death inside the exclusion zone. Okahara's riveting work evokes strong emotions and presents a challenge and a critical evalution of our dependency and reliance on the velocity of technological progress.
Related: Week #1, Week #2, Week 3 & Week 4
6/24/2014
Photo of the Day: 107
Genesee Street and Rohr Street (google map).
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
The former Zoar Reformed Church, one the city's oldest wood-frame churches, was built (1906) when Genesee Street had few residents and a mostly rural character.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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6/23/2014
Photo of the Day: 106
Suffolk Street and Roosevelt Avenue (google map).
The city mowed this lawn because the owner didn't.
The city mowed this lawn because the owner didn't.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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6/22/2014
Photo of the Day: 105
Kensington Avenue and Orleans Street (google map).
This is where the other half worships.
This is where the other half worships.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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6/21/2014
Photo of the Day: 104
Kensington Avenue and Orleans Street (google map).
The near 20 year collapse of Kensingston Avenue's commercial activity between Bailey Avenue and the city line is almost complete.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
The near 20 year collapse of Kensingston Avenue's commercial activity between Bailey Avenue and the city line is almost complete.
Photos from this series are cross-posted on fixBuffalo's facebook page and archived here - Photo of the Day.
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My weekly fix - week 4
Another dose of urbanity...
According to a front page Wall Street Journal article yesterday, Buffalo finally made it to the coveted list of tourist destinations that include Turkmenistan, Siberia and the capital of North Korea, Pyongyang. The article about a recent $300 ruin porn tour of the Queen City - Visitors to Buffalo, NY find beauty in decay spread like wildfire through local social-media outlets and was finally picked up by the Buffalo News, here, by lunch time. The comments on both articles are worth a few moments.
Speaking of Wall Street and blight, hedge fund operator Mark Spitznagel brought his goats to town (Detroit) recently to help residents maintain the city's urban prairie. The New York Times ran with the story, Fund Manager Sets Goats Grazing in Blighted Detroit. NPR followed up with our Nubian friends the other day with Goats in the City? Making a Case for Detroit's Munching Mowers. Genius.
LensCulture is one of my favorite photoblogs and a daily read. A recent post - Megacities: the future of our planet has some stunning photographs and text by Marcus Lyon. There are more people on the planet today living in cities than ever before and the migration to the city from rural hinterlands is apparently unstoppable. Marcus Lyon has visited the BRICs - Brazil, Russia, India and China and reveals what he sees.
The Burchfield Penny Art Center celebrated Bloomsday on Friday afternoon with Harvard University lecturer Kevin Birmingham, here. Birmingham's recently released book, The Most Dangerous Book: The Battle for James Joyce's Ulysses is a self described biography of the text. In addition, Buffalo State College's Laurence Shine coordinated a series of dramatic readings.
Finally, if you haven't seen Richard Linklater's Slacker (1991) it's available for free online, here. The film follows the lives of some twenty-somethings for one day in Austin, TX. Slacker is a classic from the 90's independent film movement. Add it to your list of films to see this summer.
Related: Week #1, Week #2 & Week 3
__________________________________________________________________________________According to a front page Wall Street Journal article yesterday, Buffalo finally made it to the coveted list of tourist destinations that include Turkmenistan, Siberia and the capital of North Korea, Pyongyang. The article about a recent $300 ruin porn tour of the Queen City - Visitors to Buffalo, NY find beauty in decay spread like wildfire through local social-media outlets and was finally picked up by the Buffalo News, here, by lunch time. The comments on both articles are worth a few moments.
Speaking of Wall Street and blight, hedge fund operator Mark Spitznagel brought his goats to town (Detroit) recently to help residents maintain the city's urban prairie. The New York Times ran with the story, Fund Manager Sets Goats Grazing in Blighted Detroit. NPR followed up with our Nubian friends the other day with Goats in the City? Making a Case for Detroit's Munching Mowers. Genius.
LensCulture is one of my favorite photoblogs and a daily read. A recent post - Megacities: the future of our planet has some stunning photographs and text by Marcus Lyon. There are more people on the planet today living in cities than ever before and the migration to the city from rural hinterlands is apparently unstoppable. Marcus Lyon has visited the BRICs - Brazil, Russia, India and China and reveals what he sees.
The Burchfield Penny Art Center celebrated Bloomsday on Friday afternoon with Harvard University lecturer Kevin Birmingham, here. Birmingham's recently released book, The Most Dangerous Book: The Battle for James Joyce's Ulysses is a self described biography of the text. In addition, Buffalo State College's Laurence Shine coordinated a series of dramatic readings.
Finally, if you haven't seen Richard Linklater's Slacker (1991) it's available for free online, here. The film follows the lives of some twenty-somethings for one day in Austin, TX. Slacker is a classic from the 90's independent film movement. Add it to your list of films to see this summer.
Related: Week #1, Week #2 & Week 3
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