$101,000 targeted for rehabilitation of terminal 4/21/2004
$101,000 targeted for rehabilitation of terminal
By SHARON LINSTEDT
4/21/2004
The Central Terminal building is poised to receive an early 75th birthday present - $101,000 to stabilize the building. The fix-up projects will be set in motion when the Buffalo Urban Renewal Agency board approves a design contract with Hamilton Houston Lownie Architects.
While millions of dollars are needed to restore the structure, every little bit helps, said Russell E. Pawlak, chairman of Central Terminal Restoration Corp.
“We’re targeting specific projects that will make a difference in our efforts to bring people into the building for tours and events,” Pawlak said. “Our philosophy is that if you can give the public a slice of what the building once was and can be again, it will kick-start interest.”
The nonprofit group that owns the former railroad terminal, located at 495 Paderewski Drive, is focusing on four projects that it said will improve access and safety. The list includes: repairing stone railings on the upper plaza, stabilizing the ornate cast-iron canopies that extend over the building’s three main entrances, repairing a section of the vaulted roof in the main section, and establishing electrical service to the rear of the structure.
While it is frustrating to tackle the massive building’s physical needs in a piecemeal fashion, the small efforts do help the ailing terminal, architect Theodore L. Lownie said.
“You never want to be a Band-Aid specialist where you’re just helping something hang on, but if it’s the only thing that can be done at the moment, it’s better than doing nothing,” Lownie said.
While repairing a decorative railing to make it safe does not begin to address the total restoration effort, it still makes a permanent impact, according to Lownie.
“If protecting it is the best we can do, then protecting is better than turning away,” he said.
Pawlak’s group, which acquired the deteriorating landmark in 1997 with ambitious plans to bring it back to life, has faced slow going in that effort. Some public money and a lot of sweat by volunteers have allowed the group to secure the structure and open it to public tours.
On the funding front, the Central Terminal group has made what it terms a “significant request” to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., for federal restoration money and has talked with Rep. Louise M. Slaughter, D-Fairport, about creating a historic tax district that includes financial benefits.
The group is also in the process of making application to the National Historic Trust and the Preservation League of New York State for assistance. Last fall, the Preservation League put the Central Terminal on its “Seven to Save” list of the state’s most threatened historic buildings. Representatives of that group will be back in Buffalo to take another look at the building next week.
On another front, the organization is in preliminary talks with two local light-manufacturing companies to either lease or purchase the terminal’s adjacent baggage building for conversion to manufacturing/warehouse space. Plans also call for lighting improvements to the 15-story tower, as well as studying whether to install restrooms in the building.
