BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) In the future, buildings in the city of Buffalo that have been designated as landmarks, will be inspected every three years.
The Buffalo Common Council unanimously approved the ordinance which grew out of the saga involving the Great Northern grain elevator, which had not been inspected in over 30 years.
A legal battle is underway over whether to demolish the Great Northern. It was designated a landmark in 1990, but never inspected after Archer Daniels Midland bought it in 1993.
"The Department of Permits and Inspections is in charge of inspecting city buildings," said Council member Joel Feroleto. "The inspections are initiated by either a call to 311, a phone call request or email request."
Feroleto said there are so many buildings in the city of Buffalo, that the department doesn't have the resources to pro-actively inspect every single building.
"This law ensures that the 134 local landmarks in the city will be inspected once every three years," he said.
To get landmark designation, someone has to submit an application and submit detailed information about the building's history. There are nine different criteria that the Preservation Board considers.
If a building gets the designation of the Preservation Board, it then goes to the Common Council and the Mayor for approval.
"I see pictures all the time of beautiful, historic buildings that were taken down during and after the Great Depression," said Feroleto. "Those weren't considered local landmarks at the time. But we have lost a ton of beautiful architecture throughout the years."
The measure requires the mayor's support. Both Mayor Byron Brown and the Department of Permits and Inspections have indicated that they support the ordinance.
When it comes to the Great Northern, Feroleto said he would like to see the building stay. "It's interesting and unique in the sense that we have deep pocketed developers and property owners that have indicated that they would love to purchase it and would put up the money. Doug Jemal, for one, has said it. He has an outstanding track record in Buffalo and Washington, D.C. in preserving buildings."
Often times it's just the opposite when it comes to preserving buildings. You don't have a willing buyer and the concern is that the property would deteriorate over time with nothing happening.
"This is different. You have people that want to purchase it. At the end of the day, it's still privately held property and you can't force a person or corporation to sell their property to anyone, let alone, a specific person," added Feroleto.
The Great Northern was damaged during a wind storm in in December.
Soon after, ADM applied for an emergency demolition permit. James Comerford, the commissioner of Permit and Inspections for the City of Buffalo signed the demolition order. But in an effort to preserve it, The Campaign for Greater Buffalo sought and received a preliminary injunction, blocking demolition. The next step is for the New York Supreme Court Appellate Division in Rochester to rule on the matter.
