BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) - Fire officials have confirmed that the Tuesday fire on Buffalo's East Side was an arson.
The fire started around 5 p.m. at 79 Kilhoffer Street and destroyed the former crack house that was being renovated into a community center. Buffalo Fire said someone threw an "incendiary device" into the building.
"I really was hurt and it brought tears to my eyes to see this happen," Stop the Violence Coalition Executive Director Murray Holman told WBEN. "We worked so hard to try and get to this level and give it back to the community and to be a beacon of light in this community. I know it can be replaced but this is a sad situation."
No arrests have been announced in connection to the arson.
Habitat for Humanity's Manager of Development and Communications, Stephanie Lawson, said the arson was disheartening and devastating to their mission of helping the community.
"We've very committed to supporting the families that are living in Bailey Green and are finishing those houses we've currently got under construction," she said. "Naturally, we're all very saddened by this but we're going to continue doing the good work we've started."
"Now it's gone," Holman said.
Despite the arson, Holman said they plan to rebuild the home. He hopes that the person who committed the crime will be caught.
"Violence is everywhere," Holman said. "We have to really start coming out of our homes and securing ourselves as a community. Back in the day (we used to have) block clubs where people were just walking through the neighborhood checking on each other. That's crucial to any neighborhood that's going on right now. In the times we're living in we're just laying back. It's time for our generation to step up and say enough is enough. Just check."
Habitat for Humanity said they will discuss the next steps with their partners in that neighborhood and said no decision will be made independently. Lawson said their hope is to decrease crime in that neighborhood by creating homes that are safe there. She said they will continue the work they have started over the decades in Buffalo.