Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - There's not much debate over this. The city of Buffalo might look vastly different if it weren't for Tim Tielman. For decades, he has been a champion for historic preservation.
"I'll take that as a compliment because I hear that from both sides," he told WBEN Tuesday.
Tielman just retired as Executive Director of the Campaign for Greater Buffalo History, Architecture & Culture.
"I've always thought it is really important to save the big major monuments,
the tent poles if you will. And the smaller buildings, the neighborhoods and the ways of life that enrich us."
Tielman has been involved in countless battles over the years that he has won and lost. A lengthy bid to save the Great Northern grain elevator from demolition came to an end in 2023. The effort he is most proud of, he said, is Canalside.
"That was literally going to be excavated and we would have water lapping
at Main and Scott Streets right now. Instead, we had an opportunity to recreate the things that made Buffalo what it is. The Canal District. The terminus of the Erie Canal and Commercial Slip."
Tielman then read off a list of buildings that he helped save from demolition.
"The Richardson Complex, The Martin House, Central Terminal, Churches, neighborhood bars. Our organization achieved quite a bit in reminding people what's worth saving." he added.
Tielman believes it's better for the environment to preserve buildings that exist rather than expend energy to create new buildings on the sites of demolished ones.
Who is Tielman's successor? "That's to be determined by the board," he said. "I'm sure a leader will emerge and I'm really looking forward to working with them and teaching them whatever I can."
