I just heard from some of our Blackrock friends that the Breckenridge Meeting House (aka Union Meeting House) is in the process of getting a new roof. "So what?" you ask. Well, the Breckenridge Meeting House, formerly the Breckenridge Presbyterian Church, is Buffalo's oldest church building.
It was built in 1827 (that's EIGHTEEN TWENTY SEVEN), almost 200 years ago (that's TWO HUNDRED YEARS), by the American War of 1812 general Peter Porter. The building has been underutilized and in a general state of neglect for several decades, reportedly receiving many code violation citations in recent years. I am told it is owned by the multibillion-dollar Buffalo company, Rich Products.
A roof is the first line of defense in protecting historic buildings. In Buffalo we know all too well what happens when owners neglect to invest in roof maintenance. The Webb Building was recently brought back from the dead after its roof collapsed due to lack of roof repair.
White's livery also partially collapsed due to lack of roof maintenance. It has been partially demolished and awaits the start of reconstruction as an apartment building. The most recent roof related historic heritage disaster is the Summit Building on Main near Allen. Its interior also collapsed due to water leaking through its roof. It now awaits a half million-dollar grant from the state, to be used to shore up its walls while a development plan is put together. It has been reported that a $50,000 roof investment 10 years ago would have avoided all of this damage. $500,000 or $50,000 or tear down the building - which is the wise investment?
Thankfully, Rich Products has chosen what I would deem the wise investment. A new roof on this massively historic Buffalo building will at minimum save it for another generation. In that amount of time a new use could be found. Anyone want to bet that there is a nice party in a renovated Breckenridge Meeting House in 2028? For those who don't do math in their heads that would be its 200th birthday.
Images are
from Buffalo as an Architectural Museum, where you can find a more images and a
history of the building, as well as more on General Porter.
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The Union Meeting house once commanded quite a view of the Niagara River and Erie Canal. Even today standing at the foot of Breckenridge St. one can get a sense of the dignity and presence of this building sitting on a slight rise above the street.
The roof problems at this building were ignored by Rich Products for many years. Even after repeated calls to the building inspector Rich made no effort to make repairs. In the past 2 years large areas on both sides were wide open to the elements resulting in untold interior damage. I spoke to the building inspector about 2 months ago and he assured me Rich would soon address the outstanding citations. Incredible that they were able to avoid responsibilty for so long without ending up in court.
I stopped by to take a look at the job and was dismayed to see large sections of the beautiful dentil moldings broken away and missing from the frieze that was previously intact. The roofers made no effort to preserve this original and irreplaceable millwork nor did they salvage the shingle mold that was attached to the original fascia. This building certainly deserves better and Rich Products should be ashamed of their lack of good stewardship.
how disappointing. Good they're putting on a roof. Bad they're doing a poor job. What was/is Rich's motivation for owning?
City records show the last sale in 1993, @ $225,000 . I would guess that Rich just wanted the lot (182 x 161), maybe for parking.
I believe they just wanted to increase their footprint for future developement. They may have been unaware of the buildings significance and decided after the fact that demo would be controversial. The building has sat unattended ever since, maybe to allow it to become unsalvageable.
In 1978 Rich demolished the Stickney House. It was built in 1819 and was considered the oldest house in the city. It stood next to their outlet store on Niagara. They had assured then Councilman Joel Giambra they wouldn't tear anything down without prior consultation but early one Sunday morning it was reduced to a pile of rubble.
Rich Products is certainly an asset to our city and I realize their focus is not historic preservation. Still acquiring historic buildings brings a certain degree of responsibility and Rich certainly has the means to preserve this important structure.