1233 Niagara Street (circa 1899) is in the process of being demolished. Building owner Bill Breeser told me that he had originally hoped that it could be saved, but after a structural engineer told him that he wouldn’t even step inside due to “no solid foundations” and non-stop butchery over the years, he finally decided that there was nothing that could be done.
“There’s not even a basement,” said Breezer. “It’s simply built right on the earth. There’s not even a crawl space. If there was a reasonable way to save it, I would. When I bought it ten years ago, it was in really bad shape. It was half falling down. I’ve had a few different contractors that told me it was beyond saving. There’s a light shaft in the part with the flat roof, with lots of water damage due to rain and snow.”
In recent years, Breeser has had his hands full with numerous preservation/restoration projects along Niagara Street, including Mint, located a few doors down at Niagara and Breckenridge. That said, my biggest fear was that we were looking at a future parking lot, post demolition. Thankfully, he has been in talks with architects regarding constructing a new mixed-use building on the 1233 Niagara Street site.
“I don’t want a parking lot there,” Breeser told me. “I want a structure there. It would be my first new-build development. It makes a lot of sense to build because it’s a real neighborhood, with lots of momentum.”
Speaking of momentum, Breeser mentioned that another one of his buildings located at 1239 Niagara (formerly What’s Pop-In) is getting a re-do, as some sort of sweets-treats shop. A number of cosmetic improvements to the exterior of the building have already been made (see before and after photos below). There are also talks of a possible clam stand being constructed on the north side of the building, in-between the new sweets-treats shop and Pawprints (another building owned by Breeser).
On top of that, Breeser clued me in to a duo of future development projects, not far away on Niagara Street at the corner of Auburn. He’s in the process of applying for historic tax credits for his 1273 Niagara and 1277 Niagara buildings.
“I’m hoping to get those done in 2024,” said Breeser. “They are all gutted out and ready to go. I have an architect looking at them. The plans will be drawn up, with storefronts on the first floor. They will be similar types of projects that I did with Mint.
While it’s certainly sad to see another historic building bite the dust on Niagara Street, it’s good to hear that there is a plan to build anew, and restore a couple of structures that I never thought would make it. Breeser has contributed a great deal to the street in recent years (learn more), and last week he sold one of his Niagara Street buildings to developer Douglas Jemal. There’s a ton of momentum building. It’s almost time to put together a wish list.