Beginning of Tour - Collegetown Bagels / Cornell Performing Arts Center
Tips: Feel free to walk, bike, or otherwise move through this tour. Some of the points are far and may take more time and energy. The numbers provide a rough indicator of the best way to move through the tour, but you can explore them as is convenient for you. If you are plugged into Wi-Fi or have unlimited data, watch the YouTube video about the Circularity, Reuse, and Zero Waste Development network at this stop.420 College Ave, Ithaca, NY 14850Is it Waste Imagination or Wasted Imagination? With shifts in public imagination, city policies, and practices within design, planning, and construction, we can rethink waste completely.When buildings are demolished, their components end up in the landfill. That's Wasted Imagination.If cities become circular systems, waste is eliminated. Instead of throwing buildings away, buildings and building materials can be saved to be reused again. That's Waste Imagination.The Waste(d) Imagination tour will guide you to physical sites emblematic of a spectrum of building practices ranging from destructive to sustainable. This tour centers on the issues with demolition and aims to present several alternatives. The United States generates more than 600 million tons of construction and demolition waste annually, 90% of which comes from demolition. Demolition can be defined as “the partial or complete destroying, tearing down, or wrecking of any building or structure.” This is how most buildings are removed in the U.S. and in Ithaca today. Heavy machinery is used to collapse the building in on itself, rendering the materials valueless and leading to their disposal in landfills.Demolition is so common because it is quick, relatively inexpensive, and requires very little labor. But demolition has many negative effects as well. Demolition creates a substantial amount of waste, much of which is reusable, recyclable, or, in the case of old buildings, irreplaceable. Demolition also creates toxic dust that can spread to surrounding areas and compromise public health. And by wasting materials that still have a useful lifespan, demolition furthers mining, logging, and the production of new building materials, contributing to climate change.Deconstruction is a preferable replacement for demolition. Deconstruction can be described as the careful process of disassembling a structure to minimize the damage to component materials, enabling them to be saved and reused. Though typically more expensive, deconstruction prevents landfill waste, produces reclaimed material, and minimizes the spread of harmful fugitive dust. Further, deconstruction creates comparatively more jobs, produces affordable used building materials, and contributes to the shift toward a circular economy. A handful of U.S. cities have even passed legislation that requires some buildings to be deconstructed rather than mechanically demolished.Deconstruction should be viewed as an alternative to demolition but should still be a last-resort strategy for buildings that cannot be salvaged. From many perspectives, it is better to keep an existing building in good condition for as long as possible and adapt it through reuse or expansion if its functional needs change. If a building must be removed, it may be advantageous to relocate the whole building so as not to waste the materials, energy, and labor embodied within the existing structure. Only once these alternatives are exhausted should deconstruction be considered. Only if a building is unsafe to deconstruct does demolition become a more viable option for removal. This tour will provide good examples of all these practices to demonstrate how they change the built environment in Ithaca.
Demolition of the Chacona Block
411-415 College Ave, Ithaca, NY 14850Across the street from Collegetown Bagels is the (demolished) Chacona Block - a site where controversy ensued over the demolition of this proposed historic landmark. Ithaca Beer Co. stands in its place. Greek immigrant John N. Chacona built the Chacona Block (now demolished). According to historian Patricia Longoria: "The Chacona Block building is evidence of the energy and enterprise of both Chacona and Wilgus. It is a tangible representation of Ithaca’s history, in a sense a type of historical document that people can 'read and appreciate, just like old newspaper accounts, deed records, diaries, and other sources. Although the Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commission recommended that the building be designated a local historic landmark, the recommendation was overruled, and the building was demolished. The photographs show the destruction of the building. A lonely fridge looks out from an upper-story window.Before the Chacona Block was demolished destruction, some materials were salvaged by Significant Elements — an architectural salvage operation run by Historic Ithaca. In one of the photos, you can see chestnut wainscotting being removed for reuse and resale. In another photo, you can see salvaged historic lion heads and Greek cross medallions, reflecting the history of the site in the new building design. Some doors were also saved. Salvage is an important step that can save some architectural elements that can be used to maintain the character of other preserved buildings. Salvage does not result in as much reused material as the complete deconstruction of a whole building, as will be discussed in other examples on this tour.As Ithaca has changed over the years, so too have the buildings. When buildings in Ithaca are removed, they are typically mechanically demolished. Large machines push, pull, and crush buildings until only a pile of debris and rubble remains. Usually, these materials are then sent to landfill, where they are buried with other undesired materials. In addition to waste, mechanical demolition produces large amounts of toxic dust that can travel up to 400 feet and shower nearby areas. The included maps show the location of each whole building demolition since 2010. Each red dot represents one whole building demolition. If you live within 400 feet of one of these dots, it is likely toxic demolition dust reached your home.
Catherine Commons Deconstruction Project and Community Salvage Effort
Tip: If you have unlimited data or can log in to Wi-Fi (e.g., at Greenstar across the street), you can watch a video from Cornell Chronicle about the Catherine Commons Deconstruction Project.206 College Ave, Ithaca, NY 14850In late 2021, plans for a large-scale, 300-unit housing development on College Avenue called for the demolition of 11 residential structures originating from the year 1910. In close collaboration with the principal developers, Finger Lakes ReUse and the Cornell Circular Construction Lab, with the help of experts from the Seattle-based Building Deconstruction Institute, convinced the building owner to deconstruct - instead of demolish - one of the structures (206 College Avenue). Over five days in January 2022, a crew of up to eight workers methodically carved the 420-square meter, 13-bedroom structure into sections. Panels of roof, walls, and floor as large as 2.5 by 5.5 meters were lifted on a flatbed and hauled to a local warehouse for the materials to be processed, salvaged, and eventually resold. 206 College Avenue eventually became a neat assemblage of valuable parts ready for resale, while most of the ten neighboring buildings became debris in a landfill. Finger Lakes ReUse also organized a group of community volunteers to salvage as much of the several other buildings as possible. This ‘community salvage’ effort drew retired contractors, students, and elected officials, among others. Visit the Cornell Circular Construction Lab website to learn more about this project.We also recommend reading about the project in this Cornell Chronicle article.Directions: You can proceed down the hill to downtown Ithaca. Or if you are staying near Cornell University, you could walk back the way you came and continue onto campus to see many examples of preservation, including Morrill Hall.
Argos Inn - Preservation imagination
408 E State St, Ithaca, NY 14850The Argos Inn is a beautifully restored, historic mansion near downtown that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The inn is the historic McCormick-Cowdry house and one of the oldest buildings in the East Hill Historic District. It is a large three bay, Greek revival house with entablature and gable returns that are parallel to the street. The massive window lintels and sills and the doorway, flanked by sidelights and pilasters, are also original details. The property was inhabited by two different families of Village of Ithaca Presidents from when it was built in 1831 until it was turned into apartments in the 1920s. In the 1940s, Roy Park turned the property and the neighboring warehouse into the world headquarters of Duncan Hines Foods. From the 1960s - 2000s a variety of other businesses occupied the building such as a hair salon, accounting firm, Buddhist publishing company, and various non-profits. In 2009, Ithaca native Avi Smith bought the property and converted the building into the Argos Inn. Renovations were completed in late 2013. The building has been given new life as a boutique hotel and gathering space. Many local actors took part in the restoration process. Whitham Planning Design Landscape Architecture PLLC (WPD) employed local artisans to restore or fabricate intricate architectural details that were lost or covered over – including more than a mile of millwork. The end result showcases the building’s meticulously restored wood, stone, plaster, brick, and glass details. Rejuvenating these classic architectural elements makes the space feel fresh, new, and vibrantly alive. WPD further collaborated with metal, stone, and plaster artists to design an outdoor space that complements the historic building, including an outdoor patio that features an amphitheater seating area for hotel guests, custom cast railings, and site-specific in-ground LED lighting. Projects like this create a mutually beneficial cycle: Smith could achieve a sensitive restoration project because he has skilled local tradespeople to work with, and businesses like Kingsley Woodworking can thrive in Ithaca because there are projects to sustain them.The Argos Inn is a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) platinum-certified historic mansion. Contributing green building features include geothermal wells under the parking lot that provide heating and air conditioning, low-wattage LED bulbs, low VOC building materials, low-flow faucets, and a variety of energy-efficient building materials. In 2017, The Argos Inn won the Preservation League Of NYS Award of Excellence In Historic Preservation; it is the first building in Ithaca to receive this honor. The Argos Inn also received Historic Ithaca’s Preservation Award in 2014.Today, the previously derelict building has become one of the most sought-after spaces for accommodations, specialty cocktails, and events for the Ithaca community.Visit the Argos Inn website to learn more about the inn.
Argos Warehouse - New Use for Old Building
416 E State St, Ithaca, NY 14850The Argos Warehouse is the sister property of the Argos Inn, expanding upon the services of the cocktail-centered Bar Argos by focusing on distinctive classic cocktails, local draft beers, extended hours, and a larger venue for private events.The Warehouse is warm, lush, and eclectic. The space is filled with custom-made velvet couches, repurposed 19th-century industrial tables, a plethora of exotic rugs, a bar made from copper and wood with hand-carved moroccan details, an array of hanging plants, and a large collection of art and decor from local and international artists.Visit the Argos Inn website to learn more about the warehouse
Gateway Center - A legacy of adaptive reuse
401 E State St, Ithaca, NY 14850The Gateway Center is a former warehouse and industrial site at the eastern edge of the Central Downtown Ithaca Business District.In 1925, Tompkins County native Harold W. Dean built a six-story warehouse on the site of his livery stables. This noteworthy building was one of Ithaca’s first cast concrete structures, and was home to Dean of Ithaca Moving and Storage warehouse and offices. It was partially converted into meeting and office space by Don Dickinson in the 1990s, and then fully renovated into Gateway Center by developer Mack Travis in the early 2000s. A six-story, approximately 760 square feet per floor addition houses a new stair/elevator tower, while a clock tower addition establishes a landmark visible from the downtown Ithaca mercantile area. In 2023, the Gateway Center’s office floors were slated for renovation into 46 market-rate apartment units. The project is the adaptive reuse of an existing commercial office building into commercial tenants on the ground floor and residential apartment units on floors 1-5. The apartments were named “The Dean” in honor of Harold W. Dean, the businessman who built the warehouse a century ago. Hayes Strategy led the capital project alongside Stream Architects. Read more about the recent renovations from the Ithaca Voice.
Carey Building - Building on the Past / Expanding for the Future
314 E State Street, Ithaca, NY 14850The Carey Building is an example of vertical expansion, or overbuild, where new stories are built on top of an existing building. The project included both the adaptive reuse and retrofitting of an existing 1920s-era building with new sustainable construction on top. Retaining the original structure conserved embodied carbon and preserved the character of adjacent streets. Overbuild is an important option to consider in Ithaca. There is a great need for housing in Ithaca, and retaining cherished buildings like the Carey Building can honor the past while contributing to Ithaca's unique sense of place.Construction of the five-story overbuild began in 2014 and was finished in 2016 at a cost of $4 million. The Carey Building was expanded to accommodate new commercial space and residential apartments. The top four floors are upscale apartments of 16 studios and four two-bedroom penthouses. The first floor of the Carey Building supports a variety of retail uses and currently houses Greenhouse Café and Cocktail Lounge, Old Goat Gear Exchange, and the Bike Bar. Rev: Ithaca Startup Works is situated on the second and third floors. The vertical expansion is a modern extension of the original historic building but does not look out of place. Instead, the extension’s contemporary style blends into the historic building. Construction workers mainly used the same color palette and materials to blend the extension’s modern style with the historic building. This enabled designs like the arch-shouldered glass and terracotta rainscreen walls, which created a distinctive grid pattern on the south curtain wall. The additions compliment the building’s historical brick facade on the first floors, creating a cohesive architectural visual.During the construction process, the Carey Building was brought into compliance with current building codes. The third, sixth, and seventh floors are stepped back from the street to keep the building from looming over the sidewalk. Balconies were built in the setbacks with sustainably harvested tropical hardwood. The building was also made fully electric. These changes have made the Carey Building the epitome of the past being preserved and fortified for the future. Read more about the vertical expansion of the Carey Building in Ithaca Times and The Lansing Star Online.Researched by Qianling Liu
DeWitt Mall
215 N Cayuga St, Ithaca, NY 14850Saved after the bell! The DeWitt Mall in downtown Ithaca stands as an outstanding example of adaptive reuse, breathing new life into a historic building while preserving its architectural heritage. The building, designed by architect William Henry Miller in 1912, was home to Ithaca High School from 1912 to 1960 and DeWitt Junior High School until 1971. It was slated to be demolished for a parking lot until local architect William S. Downing, Jr. converted the site into retail, office, and residential space. Known today as the DeWitt Mall, the building has been home to a host of local businesses, including the iconic Moosewood Restaurant, founded in 1973. Embracing the spirit of sustainability, DeWitt Mall has become a symbol of Ithaca's dedication to preserving its past while nurturing a greener, more eco-conscious future.Read about its 100th birthday!
Preserving Boardman House in the Wake of Urban Renewal's Demolitions
Tip: If you have Wi-Fi or unlimited data, watch this short video featuring the demise of Ithaca's City Hall for a parking garage and the preservation of the Boardman House.120 E Buffalo Street, Ithaca, NY 14850The Boardman House was one of the first preservation victories after the high-profile demolition of Ithaca's City Hall. This much-needed success occurred as urban renewal threatened and led to the destruction of numerous buildings. The Boardman House was built in 1866 and served as the administration building for the Ithaca Conservatory of Music (today, Ithaca College) for more than 50 years (1911-1968). In 1968, Tompkins County purchased the Boardman House and announced that it would demolish the building. Following community protest over the county’s plan to demolish the Boardman House, it was purchased by Joseph Ciaschi in 1982 and rehabilitated for office use. The Boardman House is not only a historic landmark associated with the Ithaca Conservatory of Music but one that symbolizes the history of preservation in Ithaca. This is music to our ears!Read more about the Boardman House on Historic Ithaca's website.
Old Tompkins County Library - Adaptive Reuse Imagined, Building Demolition Proceeds
Corner of Cayuga and Court Street, Ithaca, NY 14850In 1965, Tompkins County acquired the corner of Cayuga and Court Street. A new building was constructed, and it served as home to the Tompkins County Public Library for many years until a new library was built on Green Street in 2000. The building was then a Community Justice Center and records storage for some time. In 2013, the County began exploring the future of the site. A series of proposals went through a consultation and review process that involved Tompkins County and the City of Ithaca commissions, including the Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commission, a design review board, and the Planning Board. Some Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commissioners favored the adaptive reuse of the old library building. A conceptual design was proposed by Franklin Properties, MCK Building Associates, STREAM Collaborative, Taitem Engineering, and Dr. Marne O'Shae, MD, in 2014. Instead, Tompkins County decided on a redevelopment plan that involved demolishing the building and replacing it with a completely new construction.The old library building was demolished over a period of six to eight weeks in 2018. The property was sold to Travis Hyde Properties in 2017, who announced the construction of Library Place, a senior housing project that would include 67 units in addition to other amenities. Despite the use of a mister to suppress dust, the demolition produced toxic materials that spread to nearby neighborhoods. An adaptive reuse option would have contained materials in place, keeping residents inside and outside of the building safe. It also would have limited the production of embodied greenhouse gasses and the need for a large volume of new construction materials during construction. Making the old Tompkins County Library building an adaptive reuse project could have been a visual reminder of the past that lived long into the future.Read more about the demolition of the old library with this story map See the conceptual design for the adaptive reuse of the old library here. Information compiled by the activist group 'Toxic Targeting.' Read about how they campaigned for asbestos clean-up ahead of the demolition here.
The Red House - Threatened with a parking lot and potential deconstruction
408 N Tioga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850Why does a city designate historic districts? It’s a solid strategy to manage change. Preservation conserves embodied carbon in place while maintaining valued community history.Tompkins County shared plans to remove two buildings on Tioga Street for surface parking. One is considered a “contributing building” in the historic district - the “Red House.” According to the County website, “Tompkins County has not considered demolition of the structure at 408 N Tioga Street. Rather than demolish the structure, Tompkins County is considering deconstruction, a method of dismantling the building while salvaging architectural elements or reusable materials for future use in the community. Deconstruction is a concept being embraced by Tompkins County following the 2022 ReUse Summit and a presentation on deconstruction that cites successful deconstruction efforts of older buildings in the Collegetown neighborhood. The structure (former Baker Dental Office building) at 412 N Tioga Street is slated to be deconstructed following a resolution of the Tompkins County Legislature in 2022.”As for the “Red House,” deconstruction is an improvement over demolition, but it is not enough. The building has been designated as contributing to the City of Ithaca’s DeWitt Park Historic District. The Italianate-style residence at 408 N Tioga Street, also known as the “Red House,” was built circa 1870 for prominent Ithaca businessman Henry L. Wilgus and designed by local architect A.B. Dale. Wilgus owned a dry goods store, now demolished, on E State Street on what is today The Commons. During the 1950s, the property was converted into a multi-unit apartment building. The story of the “Red House” could represent a preservation success, a deconstruction failure, or worse, a demolition. In demolishing the “Red House,” the County would defy the City of Ithaca's historic designation. While deconstruction is preferable to demolition, the deconstruction of a designated historic building, such as the “Red House,” would be a tragic outcome. Deconstruction will produce more waste than preserving and reusing the structure in place. A surface parking lot would be a real shame and detriment to sustainability efforts. Historic Ithaca has proposed returning the building to its original use as a residence.Read more about the Red House and demolition concerns at the Ithaca Voice.
Northside Apartments - A missed opportunity for adaptive reuse or deconstruction
210 4th St, Ithaca, NY 14850Affordable housing is critically endangered in Ithaca. The Northside Apartments complex, owned by the Ithaca Housing Authority, once housed a busy neighborhood of townhouses containing 70 units of low-to-moderate income housing in Ithaca’s Northside neighborhood. In 2021, the Northside Apartments were demolished to make way for the reconstruction of the site, which includes an additional 12 affordable units but with fewer bedrooms (225 bedrooms before, 208 bedrooms after). 70 units of housing were demolished over the course of several weeks, sending a significant amount of materials to landfills and leaving the neighborhood quiet. Former tenants were forced to relocate while the site is being redeveloped and will be given first preference to return to the new Northside Apartments once they are completed. The buildings that once constituted a neighborhood have been erased through demolition, leaving a construction site in its wake. The neighborhood can hopefully reemerge after the project is completed. This site represents the power of demolition to create nothing from something, if only temporarily.Read more about Northside Apartments in this Ithaca Voice article.
Salvaging a façade for Ironworks Ithaca
430 W State St, Ithaca, NY 14850Ironworks Ithaca is a recently developed five-story mixed-use development that is an example of salvaging architectural elements of a demolished building and incorporating them into new developments at the same site. While this does not result in saving substantial amounts of embodied carbon, it does preserve some of the charm and history of the past in place. Ironworks Ithaca was developed by Arnot Realty, which is based out of nearby Horseheads, New York.Historically, the site was notable for the Williams Bros. Ironworks and Foundry, constructed in 1880. These industrial establishments occupied a significant portion of the block's western half and are the namesake of the current development. Next to the foundry, there were single- and two-family homes, none of which remain. By the early 1900s, the site had shifted away from industrial uses to mixed-use commercial, including a grocer, watch repair, barber, and real estate office. Throughout the 20th century, many of the original foundry buildings were replaced with one-story commercial buildings. These buildings were built abutting each other and neighboring properties, creating a solid mass occupying the center of the parcel. Both the north and south sides of the parcel were paved to provide surface parking for the associated commercial businesses. The most recent set of businesses occupying the property was Mama Goose (a consignment store for children’s goods), Mimi’s Attic (a furniture and clothing consignment store), and Bishop’s Carpet One (which presumably sold and installed carpeting). All of these businesses have relocated to new locations in Ithaca, though they are now further from the city's residential core. The upper floors of the foundry building also housed office space and possibly two apartments according to county records. Prior to the most recent demolition efforts, the only significant remnant of the original foundry was the three-story brick building on the corner of W State Street and N Corn Street. With increasing pressure to develop new housing in Ithaca and zoning changes encouraging taller mixed-use buildings in the city’s core, most of the development on this site was leveled in 2021. At that time, the entire site was demolished except for the brick façade of the three-story foundry building on the corner of W State Street and N Corn Street. The remains of the façade were supported on both sides for incorporation into the new building. Read more about Ironworks Ithaca on their website. Research by Adam Bailey
Clinton House - Scaffolding Community Memory
116 N Cayuga St, Ithaca, NY 14850Take a close look at Clinton House. Can you believe that it was once threatened with demolition? The building was nearly torn down in 1973 for the construction of a Holiday Inn. In 1973, Clinton House was nearly town down for the construction of a Holiday Inn. Instead, Historic Ithaca purchased and restored the building, saving it from demolition. Clinton House was later sold in 2009 and is now protected through a covenant. According to Historic Ithaca, the building is an important example of building evaluation and adaptation. Clinton House, designed Ira Tillotson, was built as a grand hotel in 1830 in a monumental Greek Revival style, reflecting Ithaca’s early prosperity. In the building’s long history, it has only been remodeled twice: prominent Ithaca architect William Henry Miller added a fourth floor, tower, and mansard roof in the Second Empire style, and Clinton L. Vivian largely restored the roofline to its original design following a fire in 1901.Read more about this historic building on Historic Ithaca's website. For further reading on building adaptation, we recommend the book How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They're Built by Stewart Brand.
Press Bay Alley - Adaptive reuse that inspires expansion
118 W Green St, Ithaca, NY 14850Press Bay Alley is a unique and vibrant retail development located at the heart of Downtown Ithaca. This shopping experience offers a series of micro-retail spaces that are housed in a converted row of storage bays. These bays once bordered the former Press Bay, where The Ithaca Journal newspaper was printed. This historic location is now home to a diverse collection of entrepreneurs, makers, and doers, all contributing their energy to create a dynamic and engaging environment. Press Bay Alley was developed by John Guttridge and David Kuckuk, founders of Urban Core, an urban property development and operating company. The company’s mission is to create “engaging urban spaces and buildings that draw people in with a sense of delight while also being practical for community use and enjoyment in their daily lives.” When Guttridge and Kuckuk first began conceptualizing the alley, they anticipated some turnover because of the properties’ compact spaces. But the alley was met with community praise and foot traffic. The high density of local businesses - each with their own distinct visual signatures - draws passersby from W Green Street into the space. When the alley experienced an extended period of stability, Guttridge and Kuckuk bought land for Press Bay Court - another set of micro-retail spaces adjacent to the alley - in 2017. Like the alley, the court was mostly empty, except for one residential tenant and a dilapidated apartment. The planning and execution of the court took approximately two years, and the redeveloped space debuted in January 2019. Some businesses that currently operate out of the Press Bay Alley and Press Bay Court include SewGreen, Thread Lightly, Empire Raw, Sparks & Embers, Upcycled, and The Gallery. At the heart of Press Bay Alley is Circus Culture, the county's only circus performance school, adding to the eclectic mix of businesses in this one-of-a-kind retail space. Visit the Press Bay Alley website to learn more about Urban Core and the businesses in the alley. Read more about the development of Press Bay Alley in this article from the Ithacan. Read about past and present businesses operating out of Press Bay Alley in Tompkins Weekly.
St. James AME Zion Church - Preservation Imagination
116 Cleveland Ave, Ithaca, NY 14850St. James AME Zion Church is a historic African Methodist Episcopal Zion church that was built in 1833. It is the oldest church in Ithaca, and it is believed to have been a stop on the Underground Railroad - a network of secret routes and safe houses for people escaping enslavement to use as they traveled to Canada. Impressed by the church's abolitionist work and anti-slavery sentiment, most formerly enslaved people decided to settle in Ithaca. The church also served as an enlistment site during the Civil War for Black soldiers. Since then, it has grown into a strong community anchor with its outreach programs and social events. In collaboration with Historic Ithaca, church members and local city residents have worked to preserve and repair the church. The physical St. James building represents the power of maintenance, upkeep, and historic preservation to preserve history in place.Visit the church’s website to learn more about its history and current capital restoration campaign.
Significant Elements - Imagination that Preserves Ithaca's Bits of History
212 Center St, Ithaca, NY 14850Historic Ithaca's architectural salvage warehouse, Significant Elements, opened its doors in the spring of 1991 with a mission to recycle the significant elements of old buildings. The program's slogan, "Significant Elements is Recycling at its Best!" conveyed its purpose to the community. The program was initially housed in a converted tobacco barn on Elmira Road under the leadership of Charles Pomada. Later, in 1998, the program relocated to an 1880s carriage house on Seneca Street before finally settling in its current home, a century-old warehouse on Center Street, in 2000. Within Historic Ithaca's preservation catalog, Significant Elements is the only architectural salvage program in New York State that provides an in-house resource library and employs trained preservationists on-site to offer expert advice. The program's dedication to preserving the significant elements of historic structures ensures that these pieces of history can be cherished and appreciated for generations to come.
The Red House - Imagination that Moves Whole Buildings
402 Hudson St, Ithaca, NY 14850The moving of the “Red House” in 1979 was Historic Ithaca’s first attempt at moving a building and was a remarkably smooth operation. The house, originally located at 612 South Aurora Street, was sold along with its site to Morse Chain Company, which then agreed to donate the house to Historic Ithaca and contributed $1,000 to assist in its moving. The new site on Hudson Street was purchased in November 1979, and by the end of December, the new owners had already moved into their new home. On the day of the moving, a crowd gathered to watch the house being pulled from its lot, moved around the corner and down the street, and finally lowered into the prepared cribbing at Hudson Street.Read this post about the movement of the Red House from Historic Ithaca.
Southworks: coming (fairly) soon - a 95-acre demonstration of adaptive reuse
620 S Aurora St, Ithaca, NY 14850Note: No trespassing. This is an active construction site. The best place to view Southworks is around Wegmans or off Route 13.Rising prominently from South Hill is one of Ithaca’s most exciting new developments. Planning is underway to transform an 850,000 square-foot former industrial facility, which was constructed between 1906 and the 1970s, into a vibrant mixed-use district with over 900 homes, spaces for businesses and industry, and community gathering spaces. When complete, it is estimated to be a 1.7 million square-foot mixed-use development. Construction is estimated to begin in the summer of 2023, and full build-out will take seven to ten years. The present Southworks site has long been known as a local economic engine for the area and is integral to Ithaca’s history of making. Morse Chain occupied the building between 1906-1928. Morse Chain was founded by the Morse Brothers in Trumansburg in 1880 and was known as Tompkins County’s largest manufacturer. Manufactured components included “industrial chains, automotive parts, and critical components for bicycles, motorcycles, typewriters, and calculators.” In 1928, the BorgWarner Corporation acquired Morse Chain and continued using the site to manufacture automotive components. BorgWarner utilized the site until 1982. Emerson Power Transmission then took over the site until 2011. The 95-acre site straddles the City of Ithaca and the Town of Ithaca, which means that two separate municipalities are involved. Planning initially began as the Chainworks District, but the project was later renamed when new partners became involved in the massive development project. The Southworks Development team consists of SHIFT Capital, L Enterprises, US Ceiling Corp, and Xylem Projects.When realized, the Southworks site will come full circle, from its origins in the making of chains that drove the local economy, to a new driver in building a circular economy through a full spectrum of preservation, adaptive reuse, and building material reuse. The Circularity, Reuse and Zero Waste Development network hopes that building and building material reuse will be a defining feature of this new neighborhood.Read more about the vision for the SouthWorks project.Read more about the team.
Could McDonald's Have Had Waste Imagination? Ponder this at 372 Elmira Rd.
372 Elmira Rd, Ithaca, NY 14850The McDonald’s location at 372 Elmira Road was demolished and rebuilt on the same lot between the summer and fall of 2017, with the new building opening in January 2018. McDonald’s has owned and operated the lot since 1964, and the demolished building was one of the oldest McDonald’s restaurants in New York State. The Cayuga Group, owners of the McDonald’s franchise on Elmira Rd. before and after the demolition and reconstruction, briefly considered renovations before settling on a complete demolition and rebuild (Anbinder, 2018). Demolition and reconstruction were slated for September to November 2017. The cost of the new structure, including demolition, was estimated at $950,000 ($15,000 for demolition and $935,000 for construction). Other costs included new paving, site work, and landscaping for a total estimated project cost of $1,375,000.The replacement building is a commercial McDonald’s with a footprint of 4,400 sq. ft. The new restaurant incorporates McDonald’s Next Generation architectural style and the City of Ithaca Elmira Road-Meadow Street Corridor Design Guidelines. Changes to the parcel design include an enlarged drive-thru, decreased off-street parking, increased landscaping area, upgrades to LED parking lot lighting, and sidewalk and parking lot reconstruction to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards. The access point remained unchanged. According to the site plan review narrative (see Appendix E for a copy of the project narrative), these parcel design changes create “a more pedestrian-friendly environment while still accommodating automobiles by improving vehicular circulation and providing direct pedestrian access to the public sidewalk” (Site Plan Review Project Narrative, 2017, p. 2).Separate from local ordinances, corporate policy can influence demolition and deconstruction practices. McDonald’s is currently undergoing a campaign of rapid modernization to its restaurants, likely resulting in many building demolitions and rebuilds. Restaurants updated at a pace of 10 per day for a total of 3,000 restaurant updates through 2018 (Klein, 2018a). If McDonald’s had been willing and able to implement a corporate policy to deconstruct and reuse building materials at the outset of the “Experience the Future” campaign, there would likely have been a significant impact on the economy, health, and the environment. For example, the site at 372 Elmira Rd. contained asbestos, which is a hazardous material. There is evidence that deconstruction reduces or eliminates the risk of exposure to asbestos compared to demolition due to the lack of debris and the ability to remove hazardous material when it is found (Woolverton, 2016). On a broader scale, deconstruction also provides economic benefits to the community in terms of job training and environmental benefits through waste reduction and material reuse (McCarthy, 2013). The national level at which McDonald’s operates and the volume of building redesigns across the United States would have been a good opportunity to focus corporate policy on deconstruction.Read more on the Just Places Demolishing Stories page.Excerpts from a longer report developed by Brian Toy.
Whole building relocation of Greek Revival House
403 Coddington Road, Ithaca, NY 14850The house, originally located at 341 Coddington Road, was once a vibrant circa 1840s Greek Revival residence. By the early 2000s, the then-vacant historic house had deteriorated. In 2016, the property was offered for free with the condition it would be relocated to a different site. A plan was devised by the house’s then-owner, Orlando Iacovelli, in coordination with Historic Ithaca. This challenge was taken on by Bill and Susan Lessler, and Dexheimer Building Movers and Riggers of Guilford, one of the most experienced building movers in New York State, executed the relocation. The most labor-intensive part of the process involved laying down plywood to create a track for the wheels of the truck bed carrying the house to the paved road. The house was eventually moved to a new location at 403 Coddington Road. Whole-building relocation allows for buildings to be repurposed with all or most of their original materials intact. Additionally, moving structures short distances, as with 341 Coddington, reduces the energy costs associated with transportation.
Morrill Hall
159 Central Ave, Ithaca, NY 14850Morrill Hall, located on Cornell University’s Arts Quad, was the first building constructed on campus in 1866. Named in honor of Cornell’s founding as a Morrill land grant institution, this Second Empire-style academic building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966 and contributes to Ithaca’s Arts Quad local historic district. As one of the university's original buildings, it stands as a proud reminder of the institution's storied past. Through careful restoration and maintenance, Morrill Hall demonstrates Ithaca's commitment to honoring its architectural heritage while adapting to the needs of a modern academic community.
Cradit-Moore House - How moving an entire house preserves history and embodied carbon
172 Pleasant Grove Rd, Ithaca, NY 14850The Greek Revival style Cradit-Moore House was built by prominent landowner and Fall Creek lumber mill owner Isaac Cradit in 1817. In around 1860-1861, farmer Peter Kline added a southern wing to the house after he purchased the property. In 1938, Dr. Norman Moore and Bernice Moore bought the house, which they then sold to Cornell University in 1948, with the stipulation that they could remain in residence during their lifetimes. In 2000, Cornell planned an expansion of their North Campus dorms, which called for the demolition of the house. Historic Ithaca intervened to save the nearly 200-year-old building, which was relocated three-tenths of a mile north of its original location at 128 Pleasant Grove. This type of whole building relocation allows for buildings to be repurposed with their original materials intact. Further, moving buildings short distances, as with the Cradit-Moore House, reduces energy costs associated with their transport.
