Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - An early morning fire on Sunday ripped through the structure at 229 Allen Street in Buffalo's Allentown neighborhood, destroying Mulligan's Brick Bar that has housed on the first floor of the three-story building.
Damages to the 1897 structure and the contents inside the building are estimated to be nearly $2.1 million.
Following an investigation by the Buffalo Fire Department, with the assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the cause of the fire at Mulligan’s Brick Bar has been officially ruled as undetermined, and is being classified as accidental, most likely the result of electrical or mechanical malfunction.
After originally announcing plans to begin demolition of the remaining structure on Tuesday, Acting Mayor Chris Scanlon released a statement Monday night, announcing a temporary pause on demolition to allow for further discussions to explore potential stabilization options for the building.
Should a viable solution not be reached, demolition will proceed as planned on Wednesday at 9 a.m. EST.
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Following Sunday's fire, efforts began immediately to try and discuss plans to preserve parts of the building, as well as potential artifacts with partnerships from the Buffalo History Museum and the University at Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning.
"We're trying to be forward-thinking in this, and understand it's an important piece in all of our hearts. We want to do the best we can in unfortunate circumstances," said Cathy Amdur, Buffalo's Commissioner for the Department of Permits and Inspection Services on Sunday.
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Those discussions among interested parties like the building's owner, Preservation Buffalo Niagara, and other community representatives will continue heading into Tuesday.
While plans to demolish the building remain up in the air, there is still some hope from people in the Allentown neighborhood that parts of Brick Bar, including the outer façade of the building, could still be salvaged.
"Obviously the Mulligan's Brick Bar banner is historic. The front of the building, the pillars that are front-facing, that have always been on Allen, if they can do anything, it'd be beautiful," suggested Phillip Wright, one Allentown resident while speaking with WBEN. "I know it means a lot to a lot of people, even the 1897 up at the top is special. I know the construction crews are doing everything they can to try to take it down caringly."
"Looking back at the structure of the building right now, in the condition that it's in, I'm hoping they may be able to save some of it," added Yamilex Sanchez, owner of El Coquito at the corner of Allen Street and College Street. "But the Mulligan's Brick Bar sign, the actual green and white lettering sign, I think that's one of its big [staples]. So hopefully we could preserve that and keep it around, even hang it up somewhere else in Allentown. That would be pretty cool."
After having lived in Allentown for many years, Gregory Delaney, Clinical Associate Professor at the University at Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning, says it was heartbreaking to see another building with such cultural significance in that community go up in flames.
"It is such a loss, just in terms of cultural memory and the resonance of place that we've seen with the loss of, now, these two bars. And, of course, also in terms of the architecture," said Delaney in an interview with WBEN. "What contributes to our kind of image and understanding, and attachment to place is, of course, the historic fabric of the Allentown neighborhood, which is a locally landmarked district, and a National Historic District, which also verifies the significance of the really strong and high quality of this historic fabric that is the Allentown neighborhood. And this building, a high contributor to that fabric."
Delaney describes the structure that makes up Mulligan's Brick Bar as a remarkable fabric building, one that makes up everyday spaces and neighborhoods, in the City of Buffalo.
"This one is a three-story brick, Victorian era building from 1897 that has some really unique details, and I think that's what is pretty special here," Delaney noted. "There are a lot of historic buildings that are quite self similar to others, whether it'd be in Buffalo or elsewhere across the United States and other cities and neighborhoods. But this one has some really kind of curious and fun details, in terms of its brick façade that also integrates sandstone with these really beautiful arches and lentils, which is a strange combination, actually. So it's kind of, in some ways, really original and playful in its detailing, and just so meticulous. I think that's what's really at stake here, is that kind of meticulous craftsmanship that has gone into a façade like this, both in design and in building and in the preservation of this building."
While Delaney is not directly involved with the partnership between the city, the Buffalo History Museum and the UB School of Architecture, he feels it would be a shame to lose another historically relevant building in the Allentown community. That's why he believes the preservation community locally went to work so quickly to rally and work to save, at least, the façade, if not as much of the building as possible.
"I think that is, architecturally, of course, the part of the building that has the most character. It is what does contribute to Allen Street and to the identity of that stretch, and is ever more important with the loss of the Pink because of that particular block," Delaney added. "If this building were to be lost entirely, then that entire block, in terms of historic buildings, is really now lost, with only the Holley Farms building left, standing as just a single story later building that is not a contributor to the historic fabric of the neighborhood, of that stretch of Allen Street."
With potentially salvaging the façade and keeping it standing, Delaney believes it's possible for someone to rebuild a building behind that façade. However, if more of the shell of the building could be salvaged, then it's possible to rebuild a new building within that brick shell, thus restoring the perimeter wall of the entire building.
If those options are still on the table for the Brick Bar, Delaney says there are plenty of success stories elsewhere around the world that could provide a positive outlook for the future of the structure.
"You can look at countless examples from history, especially in the 20th century and many different cases, looking at post-war Europe and so forth, where as much or less than Brick Bar has so many cases where those buildings have been saved and then rebuilt. Whether that's rebuilt fully as an entire preservation effort, or something contemporary that integrates this façade, I think those efforts are absolutely possible from everything that we are seeing, and are being promoted by the preservation community and by architects and others, like the Allentown Association, that really do care about making sure that this remains a presence, the Brick Bar building remains a presence in Allentown," Delaney said.
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With the threat of fires and other incidents potentially endangering some historical elements in the City of Buffalo, could there be more of a push to ensure that certain landmarks or structures are archived in some form or fashion with institutions like the Buffalo History Museum or the UB School of Architecture and Planning?
While Delaney strongly believes it's a really important effort, it should only be done in a last ditch effort with certain properties.
"The real effort should be to save the building, and save as much of the building as possible, especially in this case, the façade. It's not the value of an individual brick, it's how that brick comes together," Delaney explained. "That's what's so special about the façade of this building is that it comes together in pretty fabulous ways, in terms of this Victorian architecture. And so the brick and the stone details, when brought together, make for something that's really original and really remarkable. That has so much more value than any individual piece of brick or piece of stone."
If the Brick Bar does end up being demolished completely, that's where Delaney feels there is value in preserving materials and/or special details, such as the top block of the building with its name and date of 1897.
"There are those special details that can be saved, whether they're incorporated into future constructions or archived through resources like the Buffalo History Museum and so forth. But that should be the last [resort], if it comes to that, where we should be discussing what it means to preserve materials, details and so forth, and archive them," Delaney said. "Our priorities right now, hopefully should be - and it sounds like are - in the rallying of the preservation community and working with the city as much of an effort as possible to preserve, at least, this façade."
Mulligan's owner Kim Rossi says she will be working with the Buffalo History Museum to donate items of historic significance from the bar for preservation.