2018 saw a larger number of new houses constructed, under development or planned for Buffalo, than in recent years. This was due to Marc Marrano’s Colvin Estates Part 2 project.
Let’s start with the completed houses. The new house on Depew Ave. near Wallace Ave was designed for an adult handicapped person. Its design accommodates that situation. As such, it’s controversial and a prime target for the armchair architect corps.
Another new house was constructed in the Black Rock section of the city on Bush St. As a modular house, it was constructed quickly over Summer and Fall.
A third new house was also constructed this summer on Taunton Place in North Buffalo.
Our final completed house for this year is located on School St. at the corner of Plymouth Ave on the Westside. It’s the first modern infill house in the city that I know of, and its design is also controversial. Another contemporary infill house is planned on the lot across the street from this house and will be constructed this year.
Moving on to the houses that are under construction, we’ll start with a house on Trinity Place that is actually at the rear of an existing dwelling. I became aware of this house from reading about it on a Fall 2017 Preservation Board Agenda last winter, and then drove the Rehab Mobile over to take a picture of it. It was well underway at that time, but it seems to have stalled out on progress since then. I checked on it this morning and I still see Tech-wrap.
Leaving behind the West Village, our next two houses under construction are substantial and in North Buffalo. A new house on Tillinghast Place near Colvin started construction this past fall on a double lot. It replaces the former house on one of the lots that was destroyed by a fire. It’s bigger than the old house and some neighbors and armchair architects don’t like that fact. Ah, McMansion fears!
The second substantial new house is on Nottingham Terrace near Delaware Ave. Construction started on it much earlier in 2018 but has gone through stops and starts. Currently, it looks buttoned up for the winter.
Heading over to the Five Points neighborhood, there is a new Brad Wales designed house under construction at the corner of 19th St. and Rhode Island. I like the tenacity of this house’s developer. His initial plans to build the house were rejected by the Planning Board and his attempts were also met by resistance from neighbors. He overcame both problems and has been working on his project since late last spring (learn more).
Over on Lincoln Parkway, a carriage house is well under construction at the residence of Buffalo’s new leading art patron, Jeffrey Gundlach. The house that he purchased where this construction is taking place is also being extensively rehabbed. I assume this will be a summer residence for this Buffalo native who now lives in California (see here).
As many Buffalonians know, a large number of new houses with the moniker “suburban style” are under construction on Rachel Vincent Way in North Buffalo off Colvin near the city line. This second phase of the Colvin Estates is nearing completion. An initial group of houses on this street was constructed several years ago by Burke Builders. Personally, I don’t like suburban style houses and I really don’t like houses with attached garages. But so what? This is a city with room for all kinds of housing styles. Suburban style houses have already been built at other locations in the city – at the Walden Heights Subdivision near the city’s Pine Hill line, and at the Main-LaSalle Subdivision on William Price Memorial Parkway. If you don’t like suburban style houses don’t drive down Rachel Vincent Way. Property taxes on lots with new houses are better for Buffalo than property taxes on vacant lots.
The last house that is under construction that I have a picture for is a Habitat For Humanity Project in the area around East Ferry and Bailey Ave now known as Bailey Green. Bailey Green is a neighborhood redevelopment project spearheaded by Harmac Medical Products, Habitat For Humanity, and Heart of the City. It involves environmental cleanup, house rehabs and the construction of a number of new homes on Wende St., Zimmer St. and Kilhoffer St. In 2018, three houses are under construction by Habitat For Humanity on Kilhoffer St.
The foundation is down for a new modular house on Covington Rd where a house fire and explosion leveled one house and badly damaged another. The new modular house will replace the house that exploded. Over in Lovejoy, a new house has its hole dug on Longnecker St.
Besides the new house on School St. that I mentioned, building permits have been issued for 2 new houses on Purdy St. in the Masten Neighborhood, and a new house on 7th St. on the West Side. A new carriage house is also in the works for a Park St. house. That’s all I have up to date at this moment. If you are aware of other house projects, please comment.
Stay tuned for the 2019 edition of New House In Buffalo.