Then and Now: Proof of Life After Death
32 St John's Place, built in the late 1800's served as a grand residence for many years. After gradual decline to status as a rooming house it had finally sunk to a devastating low point following an arson fire in 1998 followed by owner abandonment. The house sat open to the weather blighting this very picturesque urban street on the western edge of the Allentown neighborhood. Even though it was structurally sound and was part of the Allentown Historic Preservation District (listed on the National Register of Historic Places) it was in grave danger of being torn down. The overly common first reaction to situations like this is to call for demolition. This knee jerk action may solve a problem in the short run but eliminates so many potential benefits in the future. This way of thinking would have you believe the building is not repairable and that the neighborhood does not justify the expenditure of money needed to make it habitable again. Fortunately for Buffalo a new way of thinking about the city is emerging and gaining strength led by dedicated neighborhood groups who cherish the irreplaceable city fabric that makes Buffalo's streets so extraordinary.
After the city of Buffalo took possession of the house for non-payment of taxes in 2000 (to my knowledge no other penalty was leveled against the owner) citizen activist groups (Allentown Association, the Kleinhans Community Association Block Club, and Preservation Coalition of Erie County) joined forces to save the building. They actively marketed the building and made efforts to seal it against further damage. The local neighborhood group, Kleinhans Community Association Block Club, posted regular updates on their web site and made sure that city officials knew that area neighbors were fully in support of saving this valuable piece of urban fabric. Without this kind of grass roots effort by regular citizens this building (and neighborhood) would most surely have been lost.
Because of active involvement in their surroundings the people of Buffalo are starting to take back the city. They no longer wait for someone else to step in and do something. These kinds of activities, more than anything, show that the Buffalo of today is a very different place than in the recent past. This house and its street were saved due to this kind of activism. It has a new owner who is currently performing a first class renovation including new high quality historically accurate windows, a new porch and new cedar siding. The interior will be completely new as well. It will include a small apartment with a majority of the space dedicated to the owners home. They are reportedly spending over $200,000 on the project. This in a neighborhood where prices for a house can be as low as $10,000. In the past a major investment of this kind would have been unthinkable in an edgy neighborhood such as this. Now houses are commonly selling in the 6 figure range. There is much work to be done in this and many other Buffalo neighborhoods and the old "tear it down mentality" is still very strong. But, stunning examples of renewal like 32 St. John's will gradually shine a light on the path Buffalo needs to follow to its rebirth. Welcome to the world again 32 St. John's!
Wow!!!! When I was on the Garden Walk last year, I recall standing in front of this house and thinking what an eyesore this house was. I started a conversation with a St. John resident about the house and she told me that the house was going to be renovated. I cynically told myself that such a renovation "will never happen aound here". I'm glad I was wrong. This renovation is a prime example of a new day in Buffalo. I can hardly wait to see this house next weekend.
Job well done [applause in background]
Congrats to the groups who kept it alive, but who are the owners? Those are the real heroes, aren't they? They could have easily OP'ed (Orchard Parked) their $200K, with 100% guarantee of a good return on their investment.
Anyone who knows anything about the city will know that this neighborhood and community is one of the BEST in the city. Centrally located with huge homes on tree lined streets and involed fantastic neighbors...suburbs be damned.
To the new owners:
CONGRATULATIONS AND THANK YOU for making my neighborhood a better place!!!!!!
I think the new owners realized that there is more to life than a return on an investment. There is something to be said about owning a piece of the city in a neighborhood like this as opposed to spending money with the sole purpose of recouping at a later date.
A thing of beauty is a joy to behold.
WOW!
Ted and Sherill Flemming are the saviours of this home after a couple years of work by the Kleinhans Community Association to find a new owner with a vision for the property. It started in 2004 through the efforts of David Granville and Chris Brown when they began a marketing effort to find a new owner for this house. See:
http://kleinhansca.org/0503news.htm
i went through this home a few years back and it was destroyed on the inside! you had to wade through garbage and debris to get to the staircase, and couldn't even make it to the front of the house! i was almost certain that this house was a gonner! What a tremendous effort and example for this neighborhood and city!
A HUGE CONGRATULATIONS and THANKS to the Flemmings. No doubt this project was about love not short-term return on investment. If this can be done outward and west from this street there will be even more to cheer about.
For those of us who are unashamedly daunted on how to even fathom the process and what it would really take to duplicate the effort, it would be ideal if the above-referenced organizations could (do?) provide documentation on "how" to make it happen and "who" can reliably do the skilled labor (electrical, plumbing, carpentry...) so others can make it happen elsewhere. (Just so my BRO knows, I'm not 100% lame: I can do demo/painting/landscaping.)
To have the same know-how available for half the Flemmings' $200,000 budget would spur and enable more investors and prospective owners....and me...to take the plunge.
BUFFALO RULES :)
Nice piece and nice job. I believe the address is 32 St. John's *Place*, though.
Stories like this help me to know that I have made the right decision to move to Buffalo next Spring. I have lived in several States (am currently in Washington State) but Buffalo has been "calling" to me for th past couple of years. As far as a return on my investment when I buy an old Buffalo beauty; I feel it will be given back to me in spades as I live out my life surrounded by caring, involved neighbors, amazing architecture, art, music, nature and the soul satisfaction of living a fully engaged life in a special corner of the world.
Thanks BRO and all Buffalo citizens who care to make a difference.
We all have the chance to "be the change we want to see".
Here's another honkin' big pat on the back to the Flemmings and everyone in the Allentown Association, especially Chris Brown, who fought for this house for years until the right owner showed up.
Sounds like a good story. At first I thought you were talking about St. James (between Elmwood and Delaware), can anyone clarify where this street is for me?
quinnyarch:
That's what we have Google Maps for, silly. :)
http://maps.google.com/maps?oi=map&q=32+St+Johns+Place,+Buffalo,+NY
Thanks for the map! i was having map difficulties.
Isn't that across the street from a shelter? I could never fully understand what place was in the corner.
Echoing M, I was in this house a few years ago with City and PresCo staff... was heart breaking to see it in that condition. It is so tremendously inspiring to see the rebirth.