Why Can't Lackawanna? Why?
Published:
February 21, 2011, 7:51 AM
The Tonawandas are experiencing an upsurge in commercial real estate activity, and some hope the high-end housing developments and new interest in restaurants and other recreational offerings could help redefine the area at the end of the Erie Canal.
The biggest of the new projects is a rehabilitation of a giant Sweeney Street warehouse by real estate mogul Tony Kissling. He says the loft-style apartment building, called Remington Lofts on the Canal, is modeled on buildings in Manhattan's SoHo and TriBeCa communities.
"Overwhelming demand gives me confidence," said Kissling, whose project has drawn more than 1,000 inquiries. "It's just that no one has really done work-live lofts here, so some people don't believe it can be done."
Kissling, also a successful New York City developer, is used to doubts. His company has about 25 properties in Buffalo, including several stylish buildings along Delaware Avenue, with more than 10,000 apartments and an occupancy rate of 92 percent.
Jim Sullivan, who works for the City of North Tonawanda in development, has aided the project for five years. "Many things [Kissling] developed took other developers aback at first. They didn't think it would work, but everything he touches turns to gold," Sullivan said.
Other projects in the area include Tonawanda Castle in the City of Tonawanda, a former armory that hosts events and weddings, and a proposed luxury townhouse development in the Town of Tonawanda. The Riviera Theatre is courting bigger, more diverse acts.
Joyce Santiago, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce of the Tonawandas, has said businesses are enthusiastic about the Remington Lofts because the tenants and attractions should provide a new customer base.
"It can only have a positive effect," she said, She also noted years of pent-up demand for waterfront living.
Picture lavish lofts with high-end amenities: a salon and cosmetology school, a yoga studio, personal training and a white-tablecloth restaurant that serves up sushi. You might imagine the whir, hubbub and sizzle of brash Manhattan or Georgetown. But this is the vision for the near future of North Tonawanda, a developer's promise to fuse the ultra-modern with small-town charm.
The Remington Lofts on the Canal is a $28 million work-live project scheduled for completion in November. The primary pool of residential tenants is expected to be workers for the building's retailers. Eighty-one residential units will be available. About 10 have been reserved. Rent for an average unit, about 1,200 square feet, will be $1,500 monthly.
All the planned retail spaces have been rented. A Brooklyn-based computer company has rented two penthouse spaces. A $1.5 million multilevel restaurant will boast a elite Manhattan chef and enviable views of the canal.
Skeptics might wonder: in North Tonawanda?
North Tonawanda Mayor Robert Ortt believes the lofts will be at home in the small city cherished for its quaint Webster Street storefronts.
"Clearly, part of the allure is the aesthetic. We happen to have the perfect building and location [on the Erie Canal]," he said.
Ortt said many restaurateurs have expressed interest in the area.
Ortt embraces the contrast between the lofts and their location as part of a transformational strategy for not only North Tonawanda but the entire region. The resurgence of apartment living in downtown Buffalo serves as a model.
Jake Schneider, the developer behind The Lofts at 136, a student facility on North Division Street in downtown Buffalo, strongly believes such projects can help revive an area. He said he was able to attract Wilson Farms to the former warehouse he rehabilitated with the promise of 300 students as customers.
"The two strongest commercial districts Buffalo has are Elmwood and Hertel," he said. "Strong neighborhoods are what make them vital, because they demand services that are not there. Downtown Buffalo does not have a real neighborhood yet, but we are getting there."
Ed Woodbury, the president of leading Chicago-based developer McCaffery Interests, has experience with rehabilitating buildings in smaller areas and turning them into lofts. He believes his company's success in Pittsburgh has increased similar development and contributed to a newly unveiled riverfront redevelopment plan.
"It has a social impact because it preserves history," he said. "We turned a derelict building into a national landmark. From an economic standpoint, these are very solid buildings, which helps the process."
Ortt sees the North Tonawanda project, which he acknowledges would be more at home in a large, cosmopolitan city, as a step in a broader effort to change the perception of not only North Tonawanda but the region.
Tonawanda's downtown. It can create the demand for the things we do not have at this time."
"We need jobs and this style of housing to retain young professionals. It has the potential to ... redefine North
Kissling is attempting to negotiate agreements for delivery from supermarkets, dry-cleaning businesses and other essential services. The facility will also provide 60-plus indoor tenant parking spaces.
But why did a developer spend $650,000 four years ago for an old, declining building in an odd area?
Scott Lacasse, executive vice president of The Kissling Interests, cited the proximity of the Erie Canal and years of inquiries for suburban accommodations.
Sullivan said Remington has become a "cornerstone" of the city's effort to revitalize downtown. The city is offering incentives on facades and revitalization efforts along nearby Webster and Main streets.
Urban planning professor Ernie Sternberg of the University at Buffalo strongly believes in the project.
"It's an old industrial city. Often those kind of loft spaces are pretty solid. People want to live in them. It's only about one block from the [Riviera] theater, and there are some restaurants."
The city helped The Kissling Interests obtain about $2 million in funding from the state when it encountered unexpected costs from structural damage. The city has also put $155,000 into nearby sewer and water upgrades.
If the building is successful, Kissling says, there may be similar projects in the area.
vsherry@buffnews.
************************************************** *******
I am sorry it is such a long article----I am only trying to show the contrast between "Lack"awanna and Tonawanda.
Yes, there are is Martin Rd Project and hopefully the First Ward new homes project will get the funding needed from the County to build them, BUT........
So many years have passed since "the Plant" went down and we have......WHAT? What Vision did the "family and friends" club use to plan and complete THEIR goals to revitalize Lackawanna? Everytime I drive by St. Barbara's I want to throw up.
Gosh, they travel enough to see what is hip and happening in other places!
Give me an "L", A........C'mon Lets Go Lackawanna!
I hope the club understands what I mean by this post.
And WE get this?! TV News said we would have been blown to Pa.!
CITY OF LACKAWANNA
Demolition order sought on building at Bethlehem site
Published:
February 20, 2011, 12:00 AM
Updated: February 20, 2011, 6:32 AM
Lackawanna Mayor Norman Polanski Jr. said the city this week will seek a demolition order to level a newly constructed building on the old Bethlehem Steel site because the city never received permits for the building.
In addition, Polanski said, four 1,000- gallon propane tanks that were installed haphazardly and without permission were shut down Thursday because they posed an even greater hazard.
“These tanks were put right next to each other. If one of the tanks went up, they all would have gone up,” Polanski said.
There also was concern that toxic chemicals on the site could have been ignited by the propane tanks. The mayor said the unpermitted building on the Bethlehem Steel site was constructed over railroad tracks and was discovered Wednesday by city Code Enforcement Officer Steven Bremer. The site is currently owned by ArcelorMittal, which, Polanski said, claimed to be unaware of the newly constructed building.
************************************************** ***
How/Who............!?