I was in the Harvard Co-op (Harvard Cooperative Society) in Cambridge, MA one day in the mid 1990’s when I first encountered “Buffalo Architecture: A Guide” by Reyner Banham. I was very surprised and gratified to see this book published by the MIT Press. In it, I discovered a Buffalo neighborhood I had never heard of, the West Village. Gathering from commenters on BRO over the years, not that many lifelong Buffalonians have necessarily heard of this neighborhood either.
One of the rehabs I have been following in the West Village is on Johnson Park, and is being rehabbed by Peyton Barlow (see here). It is mentioned towards the end of this recent BRO post. There must be a lot of internal work going on inside the house because I’ve seen workmen and their vehicles around the house for months. Recently, the exterior displayed new fiberglass windows.
Another house whose rehab I have been watching is on Tracy Place. The rehab work is being done by Chris Wan’s Dyno Group, Inc., the same group that rehabbed the white house at 61 Johnson Park. The transformation is wonderful.
The beginning of Whitney Place is also in the West Village. Keith Szczygiel is doing a beautiful rehab at 46 Whitney Place. He has done an excellent job on the fire ravaged interior, while working diligently on the exterior (see here).
Prospect Street is also in the West Village. Just outside of the district’s boundaries is an ongoing rehab of the long boarded-up brick building at Prospect and Virginia.
As you can see from the accompanying photos, it’s making a lot of progress. Another favorite rehab of mine is the total gut rehab of a cottage on Prospect Street.