Buffalo Then and Now.. Seems like the old town is doing somethin right (Broadband)

[leets]

I was digging around my old photos and came across some interesting stuff. Everyone knows that Buffalo has hit a rough spot but few know that there is a definite rebound. These images show how bad buffalo had really gotten in the late 70's and 80's and contrasts that with some of the recent good that has happened. A few of these images are a bit sad. Some stuff is gone that would be good to have around but overall it gives me confidence that the Buff is moving forward


Dun Building:
this beauty was in rough shape back in the 70's. It is a gorgeous thin building with great masonry work.

THEN


The building is in great condition today but it has lost its wonderful cornice
NOW

[leets]

Theater Place:
A very beautiful group of buildings which had hit very hard times by 1980. The empty storefronts had been decorated by these artistic barricades

THEN


They have been renovated into an active part of the theater district

NOW

[leets]

Fountain Square:
this block used to be a collection of small decrepit commercial buildings. Many were architecturally interesting including the early modern style grants department store. These images show the block in its last days as it was being cleared for what was to become Fountain Square (imaginative name)

THEN
This images also shows subway construction on Main. The beautiful large brick building in the center was soon doomed as well as part of the new Hyatt Hotel



NOW
[/

[leets]

Lancaster and ELmwood:
This great Victorian was being torn down for a bank parking lot

THEN


Today the Parking has been replace by a new healthy foods supermarket
NOW

[leets]

The Mansion:
One of Buffalo's many mansions lining Delaware Ave. This one fell on very hard times for some reason. It sits next to Buffalo's most prestigious business club but was vacant for many years. Notice also the building in the lower left corner. At the time of this picture that building was also vacant. Today both are restored to use.
THEN


NOW

It is now a 4 star hotel

[leets]

Market Arcade:
A wonderful highly detailed building, it had fallen prey to the degeneration of this whole strip of main street.

THEN


Today this stretch of Main is fully restored and the Market Arcade is restored to life

NOW

[leets]

Birge Mansion
This house sits on one of buffalo's beautiful public squares across from the home of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. How could this have happened?

THEN




The house is now in good hands. It was restored in the 80's and is actually undergoing a new renovation right now as a new corporation is set to occupy the site

NOW

[300miles]

Awesome thread Leets! It's great you had those old pics to compare how bad it had become downtown.

I had no idea.

[therising]

Great job!

[steven]

outstanding! much better and thought provoking then the same old "why are we here when are we leaving" threads.

Hats off.

I noticed this immediatly but I was gone for twenty yrs so I understand that some dont even realize how much has gotten better since the 70's

[absolivious]

Great start of a thread, leets!

These are only a few of the examples of what can and should be highlighted as a cornerstone of WNY tourism.

I have to believe that most of these restoration efforts were done with primarily private funds - Bravo!

Public grant money may have been involved in a few - but only in concert with a substantial investment by the property owners.

That's the one argument I have with the some of the more vocal preservationist groups - SHPO among them.

Except for government facilities, historic preservation should NOT be government's (the taxpayer's) job.

However, when it comes to good-faith efforts of architectural restoration in renewable projects, there needs to be provisions for relief from various absurd state and municipal building codes that bureaucratic zealots would apply.

There are more than a few could-be restoration projects that have been sidetracked or abandoned because of our state's most-archaic building codes.

[WestCoastPerspective]

OK Senior Members- Anyone know the story about the building next to the present-day Hyatt? Who owned it, what condition it was in, why it was taken down as part of the Hyatt construction. The building is incredible- its too bad it got demo'd! I do recall that even the Genesee Building was proposed to come down for an all-new Hyatt Hotel- so at least someone was lobbying for preservation!

Leets- awesome job as usual!

[leets]

Originally posted by WestCoastPerspective
OK Senior Members- Anyone know the story about the building next to the present-day Hyatt? Who owned it, what condition it was in, why it was taken down as part of the Hyatt construction. The building is incredible- its too bad it got demo'd! I do recall that even the Genesee Building was proposed to come down for an all-new Hyatt Hotel- so at least someone was lobbying for preservation!

Leets- awesome job as usual!

The geat Victor building was also demoed on this block for the Hyatt. I have some pics of that too. I will put them up when I get a chance.

[buffy]

thanks for posting; do u have any pics of the interior of Century Theater?

[therising]

The older building that is now part of the Hyatt....What was that originally?