Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Over the past several weeks, there was a growing sense that demolition of the Great Northern grain elevator was imminent in Buffalo's "Old First Ward".
The building's owner, Archer-Daniels-Midland, had been moving in equipment for some time to prepare for demolition, in addition to setting up other measures to tear down the historic 1897 structure. These efforts ramped up after a temporary restraining order against the emergency demolition of the building was officially lifted on Aug. 12.
A little more than a month later, crews took to the building's damaged North wall, opening up the hole in place even more to commence the demolition process. The crane on site then began tearing apart the steel grain bins and other metal structures inside the building.
When all is said and done with the demolition process, it could be anywhere between 6-8 months before the Great Northern grain elevator is completely torn to the ground.
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Friday's commencement of demolition on the Great Northern certainly left plenty of preservationists and other residents upset with the way things played out.
"I think it's a really sad, sad day. I wish it would have been able to been saved," said resident Donna Renier, watching the demolition take place.
"I had a sinking feeling it was going to be coming after they kind of got a green light [Thursday] with the judge throwing out the Campaign for Greater Buffalo's last appeal, even though that was needed for Campaign for Greater Buffalo," said Mike Pesarchick, standing just outside Wonder Coffeehouse with a sign protesting the demolition. "Coming over the bridge and seeing the dust clouds, my heart just kind of sank. I didn't expect it to happen today, I was hopeful we'd have a couple more weeks, at least. So I'm still kind of in shock that it's actually happening. It's such a shame.
As the demolition process got underway at the Great Northern, a number of preservationists gathered across Ganson Street to speak out against tearing down the historic grain elevator. Also in attendance for the rally was New York State Senator Sean Ryan and Director of the Campaign for Greater Buffalo, Tim Tielman. However, Asst. Professor Gregory Delaney from the School of Architecture at the University at Buffalo saw it more than just a preservationists rally.
"This was a really big mix of people representing all kinds of interests, and mostly citizens of Buffalo, as people that are interested in our history and what this building means for us," said Delaney. "But also, I think in recognition that this building is not just important to Buffalo, this is a building of international significance.
"We had people at this rally today, there were people from the community; I spoke with a woman from the 'First Ward', who just felt heartbroken that her family - she's traced all of her family history as Irish immigrants to the city working in the grain elevators as scoopers, as stevedores - this is her history, and this is what she's seen demolished and that history erased. So many different groups have come out in support of this. It is not just a preservation movement, this is a Buffalo movement. Even the grain millers, the local union, came out in support of this, the people that work in ADM and for ADM."
While the Great Northern grain elevator has sat dormant for a number of years, there are plenty of people that understand the significance of the building, even before the Dec. 11 windstorm blew a hole open in the North wall of the structure.
"It's a very unique building. I think it's the only one left, and so there'll be none after this," Renier said.
"This building, it is the most unique, I think, in all of Buffalo. It is actually the building that cuts across so many levels of significance to so many different and diverse groups of people," Delaney said of the Great Northern. "We're not just talking about a building that is beautiful that we want to preserve because we like looking at it. We're talking about a building that was important, in terms of the history of not only architecture, but engineering, innovation, the history of electric power as its associated with Buffalo and Western New York and Niagara Falls, the history of labor, of industry, of immigration. This building was on the cover of Scientific American three months after [it was built] on Christmas Day of 1897. It's really just an absolute tragedy that this kind of came through City Hall in a way that skirted all of the protections around it."
As the process has played out leading up to Friday's start of demolition, a number of people have asked ADM Milling Co. that if they were to follow through with the demolition they would try to preserve some aspects of the Great Northern for the potential of having future generations being able to look and understand its significance.
However, with the way the crane and demolition equipment were attempting to remove the steel grain bins inside the grain elevator, it left some people wondering if ADM really cares about that potential of them preserving anything from the historic structure.
"I think it was just kind of, 'Oh yeah, just let us tear it down, we'll save it.' And then, 'Oops, we accidentally knocked it all down. Sorry,'" Pesarchick said. "I can't think of a single good reason to tear it down. If it was structurally sound, and I bet you it's still structurally sound even though they've been demolishing it for the last couple of hours, I don't think ADM is going to give us anything else. They're not going to throw us any other bones. I don't think we're going to get even a sign on a little placard on the sidewalk, like we have some of the other silos as you walk down the Outer Harbor. I don't think ADM is working in good faith with us. I think they've wanted it gone for the last 30 years. I don't think they want to give us anything."
"I think the biggest problem here is that we, as a city, City Hall, we've done nothing to hold them accountable," added Delaney. "This is a Fortune 500 company with prophets in the billions that we have not held them accountable over the last three-plus decades, in terms of their legal obligation to maintain this building. They've tried to tear it down several times in the past, those attempts have been unsuccessful. So it's no surprise that we're here today after this storm event, which was, of course, brought on by the winds, but also all of the decades of neglect, that mean that this building was waiting for an event like this and ADM clearly waiting for an event like this."
While the demolition of the Great Northern comes as no surprise for Delaney, at this point, perhaps the biggest surprise for him is the reaction of the City of Buffalo being OK with the destruction of such a historical building.
"I moved to Buffalo 11 years ago and, of course, moving to Buffalo at that time, you hear all the stories of the fights to save the Connecticut Street Armory, the fights to save Shea's, Central Terminal and the Richardson Olmsted complex, and this reminiscing of what it took at those times to stop these really unbelievable demolitions. It just felt in the last decade like we were beyond this as a city, that there was so much hope and promise and potential and economic interest in development that there was a new safeguarding of our history and real value of our history," Delaney said. "It's a real travesty, and just a place I never thought we'd be because of, seemingly, where ideologically we stand today as a city."
While crews will continue to works towards tearing down the Great Northern grain elevator, the legal battle to preserve the building continues thanks to the work of Tielman and the Campaign for Greater Buffalo. While the dreams of preserving the structure still seem like a stretch, the next step for Tielman is to obtain another temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to halt demolition efforts from an Appellate Court in Rochester.
Tielman was hopeful that he could obtain the temporary restraining order from the court as soon as Friday.
If Tielman and the Campaign are successful in their efforts to halt demolition and win their case to preserve the Great Northern, what are people hoping to see come of the structure when it's revitalized?
"I love Doug Jemal's plan for a monument. I love the renderings of having 'Buffalo' in huge letters right on top on the workhouse. I think that would be a terrific sort of gateway monument to the city. As you come over the Skyway, look to your right and see this magnificent old grain elevator, last of its kind, probably in the world," Pesarchick said. "This is a city that prides itself on its industrial heritage, its blue collar culture, and then you turn around and knock down the biggest monument to that. I would love to see it as a monument, I would love to see the union use it as a meeting place, as a museum. But I think if we really want to be risen from rust, as we keep saying, let's have a monument to that."
As for Delaney, he says that any future plans for the Great Northern, if it is saved from demolition, should start with an engaging conversation with the public to get a gauge of what the people would like to see done with it.
In addition, Delaney believes Buffalo can look to other cities around the world for ideas they have come up with for old and worn down buildings similar to the Great Northern. He references a pair of projects in both Essen, Germany and Minneapolis, Minnesota that argue that no structure should be taken out of the discussion for something greater than it is in today's world.
"People look at this and think it's an eyesore, I hear that all the time," Delaney said. "Of course, yes, the site today leaves a lot to be desired, but just because something is an eyesore now doesn't mean that that's its future. I think we've proven that all over Buffalo time-and-time again, especially in the last decade, decade-and-a-half. So we have examples, both kind of regionally and beyond, that really can open up that conversation to what this could be in the future."