Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - It's been two weeks since the first swing of the demolition crane at the Great Northern grain elevator began to the cheers of some and the jeers of preservationists in Buffalo.
“Things are going well, things are moving along safely," said Cathy Amdur, Commissioner of Permit and Inspection Services for the City of Buffalo, in a WBEN interview Thursday.
The process is a marathon, not a sprint, and will take months before the site is leveled and completely clear. “It will be 8 months before the site is cleared and everything is packed up and they’re out of there.”
The city issued the permit for the demolition and ADM, owner of the building, hired Empire Building Diagnostics to complete the extensive project. Empire is a local firm experienced in large scale demolitions.
The grain elevator sat untouched for months with extensive wind damage to its north wall sustained in a December 2021 storm and was the subject of extensive court argument over whether to preserve the structure or allow ADM to demolish the historic property. When a New York State Supreme Court justice dismissed the case earlier this month, it cleared the way for the demolition process.
Empire has a licensed engineer on site twice daily to oversee the project, a city inspector visits the site at least daily and the DEC reports the project is in full complaince, says Amdur. Additionally, Empire is also conducting perimeter air monitoring so there is a record of the dust mitigation as well.
Extensive precautions are being taken to ensure the dust from the demolition is contained and most of the rubble that is being removed is recycled.
Amdur tells WBEN one of the challenges the contractor faces in the demo process is the constantly changing wind directions and velocity. Amdur says the wind shifts as many as three times a day.
“The contractor has 3 fire hoses on the work area at all times and then they have a small mister and a large mister," said Amdur, which are all used to contain the dust and make sure it doesn't travel off site. “The trick with the dust is to wet it down so it doesn’t travel.”
Preservations were working legal avenues to attempt to save the structure prior to its demolition and had plans for reuse as well as some preservation and museum aspirations. Amdur says an attorney working with ADM is reaching out the the preservation community regarding the possibility of some level of "historical mitigation."
The demolition work continues daily, Monday through Friday, at the site on Ganson Street.
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