The Genesee Gateway project has been under construction for many months; work started in late-2008. Seeing construction crews transform the long vacant block has been a welcome sight and the transformation is upon us. The revamped property at the corner of Oak and Genesee streets will open for tenancy late summer.
Genesee Gateway encompasses 60,000 sq.ft. of office and retail space located at 111 Genesee Street. While it may not be the largest project in the city, it has attracted an abundance of attention on these pages and elsewhere due to its strategic location at the gateway to downtown and was a billboard-scared, windowless shell for over 20 years.
Doug Swift partnered with the Wendt Foundation to rehab the block. Piecing together five century old buildings into a viable commercial project has not been easy, or cheap. The development group is spending $10 million on the effort and retained Flynn Battaglia Architects to create a reuse plan that adaptively reused the historic buildings.
Mark Wendel, project manager and an associate principle at Flynn Battaglia Architects, said the block's structures were originally built in the 1870s and 1880s, and much of the design of the renovation was inspired by the original and historical character of these timeless buildings. However, the architect was also inspired by the more recent 1940s mansard roof added to the corner building at Genesee and Oak that was completely destroyed and in unrecognizable condition when the partners of Genesee Gateway purchased the property. Now this beautiful roof detail has been redesigned and reconstructed.
"We did an extensive search at the start of the project to look into the history of the buildings," says Mark. "We did our best to renovate the buildings to the character they had at their time of significance."
Mark says the greatest challenge was connecting the various buildings horizontally to create useable floorplates. Individual buildings had different floor elevations that had to be rectified.
New brick facades in the back mimic the existing structure with similar sized windows and fenestration. Stair towers and access corridors added in the rear have been enclosed in glass to allow views of the historic brick facades inside.
As is the case with buildings of this era, the historic buildings had stacked rubble foundations that needed to be reinforced. Constructing a new wedge-shaped, mid-block building in between the adjacent historic buildings was another challenge, and this four-story structure completes the street wall along Genesee.
With a finish date set, the leasing team of Heidi Nuessle and Chris Fetter of Hunt Commercial Real Estate are set to ramp up marketing of the property.
The U.S. General Services Administration has signed a lease to house a diplomatic security office and the first Passport Office in Western New York. The Passport Office will occupy 8,400 sq.ft. of ground floor space stretching from the main entrance at mid-block to Eddie Brady's. The Department of State will also lease 2,000 sq.ft. on the second floor.
That leaves 4,020 sq.ft. of ground floor space available in the highly-visible corner space closest to Oak Street. The old bar previously located in the ornate Werner Building and said to be purchased by a previous owner from a defunct Charlie Bubbles restaurant has been dismantled and moved to this portion of the complex. It could be used by a future tenant if a restaurant or bar operator is found for this space.
"We want retail for the space," says Chris Fetter, an agent with Hunt Commercial Real Estate marketing the property. "It is a highly visible location for retail or for a coffee house, café or restaurant, but the end use of the space we feel will be tenant-driven."
If you are looking for unique space, with unique and cool layouts, 111 Genesee Street is for you. The exposed brick walls and high ceilings are ideal for loft-like tenant build-outs. Suites as small as 800 sq.ft. are available.
"We are courting small to medium-sized firms desiring unique downtown office space," says Chris. "We are talking to a number of tenants. It's just a matter of time before we have additional space leased."
Due to the layout of the space, two suites are multi-level including the third and fourth floors of the mansard-roofed building creating a 1,914 sq.ft. suite. The third and fourth floors of the Werner Building make up the 2,553 sq.ft. Werner Suite; the two-level space will have 1,433 sq.ft. on the third floor and 1,120 sq.ft. on the fourth and includes an open loft area incorporating the signature waterfall window. You'd be challenged to find a more unique office space downtown.
Several of the suites have the potential for access to outdoor space with views of downtown. Including a mid-block forth floor suite that has a 326 sq.ft. private patio already designed for construction.
Tenants will have access to a limited number of free parking spaces at the parking lot located at the northwest corner of Genesee and Ellicott streets. Additional parking will also be available within several lots in the immediate vicinity of Genesee Gateway.
"Genesee Gateway is a prime location that provides a seamless segway with the nearby residential projects such as IS Lofts, Ellicott Commons, and Ellicott Lofts to the north, Oak School Lofts and Buehl Block to the south, the Theater District and Fountain Plaza to the west, and the near east side continuing to fill in what has already been accomplished nearby," says Chris.
An improved streetscape will help with the gateway theme. "The project team is talking with the City about updating the streetscape from Elm Street to Washington Street," says Chris. "If approved, it will include trees and other landscaping. The barren concrete triangle at Genesee, Chippewa and Ellicott streets would also be landscaped and the NFTA bus shelter at the corner of Oak and Genesee is likely to be relocated mid-block."
"We're very excited about the project and eager to see it begin its new life," says Mark. "It is a project we'll all be proud of."
Get Connected: Heidi Nuessle and Chris Fetter, Hunt Commercial, 716.880.1923
I hope they redo some of the expressway that leads up to this corner. I'll never forget seeing a car come off the 33 and blow the light, hit a car and drive straight into the corner of this building at 50 miles an hour.
I'm so glad someone is finally doing something with this block. looks good