Press Conference Regarding Vacant Buildings

Via Historic Albany Foundation on Facebook:

Tomorrow-Monday Sept 12th at 2 PM-- a press conference with County Legislator Chris Higgins and others about a proposed Window and Roof Repair for Vacant Buildings. Be there! at 125 Jefferson Street, corner of So. Swan, site of the most recent building emergency.

The building emergency referenced is the roof collapse at the former fire station detailed in the previous post here.

Another Building Collapse - Swan Street Fire House

This morning, the Times Union has a report of a partial building collapse at the corner of Swan and Jefferson Streets. The building in question is a former Albany firehouse overlooking the New York State Museum and Empire State Plaza.

The yellow brick firehouse has been vacant for many years and, according to the TU, is privately owned. According to an official at the scene, it is the buildings roof which has collapsed. Not doubt the recent heavy rains - first from the remnants of Hurricane Irene and additional rains over the past few days - contributed to the damage. I'm no structural engineer, but the brick walls seem largely intact at this point. I could see debris in the otherwise empty interior.

The simple yellow brick facade dates to 1938 and was part of a Works Progress Administration project to modernize several existing firehouses. However, the building itself apparently predates the WPA and may have been built shortly after the 1867 reorganization of the Albany fire department. The location was chosen in part because the site sits atop a slope making it easier for horses to draw the fire trucks downhill.

The Americanus Engine Company Number 13 was assigned this station in 1867. The neighborhood just west of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception was slowly being developed as new houses were built along Madison Avenue and parallel streets. When Company 13 disbanded two years later, Steamer Number 6 was assigned to the new station. Originally a steamer company, it motorized in 1918.

The decision to close this firehouse in 1986 was met with criticism and protests (including a demonstration outside the Governor's Mansion on nearby Eagle Street, one of the buildings covered by this fire station). The building was auctioned and has remained unused since.

As of 11:30 this morning, National Grid crews were on the scene, along with officials from the fire and building departments.

More as this story develops.

ETA: According to an updated story in the TU, the building will not be demolished and the owner is working with the city to stabilize the structure. The flagpole on the roof is being removed as a result of the roof collapse, but the tower near the rear of the building is said to be in no danger. The article also notes that the old fire house is actually several buildings combined within the yellow brick exterior. This can be see by the entrances on the Swan Street side; the smallest one was access for hose carts and the large for the horse-drawn (and later, motorized) fire trucks.

Bicentennial Plaque No. One - Fort Orange

Located on a retaining wall under the tangle of ramps just a few yards north of lower Madison Avenue, this plaque was the first in the series of bronze tablets erected throughout Albany during the City's Bicentennial in 1886.

This plaque was originally mounted on a granite base in the long-gone Steamboat Square near the foot of Madison Avenue (not to be confused with the modern public housing building of the same name located a few blocks south). Moved several times over the years (first in 1930 during the construction of the original Dunn Memorial Bridge and again in the 1970s with the building of I-787), it is virtually lost in a drab concrete wasteland behind the Holiday Inn Express on Broadway.

Despite its unappealing location, this plaque was designated the first in the series with good reason as it commemorates the origins of the Albany and, arguably, its most significant historic site - the first permanent settlement at Fort Orange.

Despite being designated a National Historic Landmark and excavated by archaeologists in the early 1970s), the Fort Orange site is now completely buried beneath the ramps and overpasses of I-787 and the South Mall Expressway.

It is a pity that this marker, the only tangible commemoration of Albany's earliest days, is hardly visible, except as a glimpse from a passing car.

The plaque reads:

Upon this spot washed by the tide, stood the north east bastion* of FORT ORANGE
Erected in 1623, Here the powerful Iroquois met the deputies of this and other colonies in conference to establish treaties. Here the first courts were held. Here in 1643 under the direction of Dominie Johannes Megapolensis, a learned and estimable minister, the earliest church was erected north west of the fort and to the south of it stood the Dominie's house.

*While the plaque is currently located on the site of Fort, it is no longer located at the exact spot of this bastion.

More on Fort Orange
The Bicentennial Tablets

Trinity Church Demolition

Chuck Miller has an excellent set of photos documenting the demolition of Trinity Church, including the work to salvage the historic building's stained glass windows (which are believed to be Tiffany).

Trinity Demolition Photos

Added 7/15 - Chuck also has a blog post about the demise of Trinity Church to accompany the terrific photos:

The Final Days of Trinity Church

Breaking: Church Collapsing On Trinity Place

From today's Times Union, the loss of another historic structure:

19th-century Trinity Church collapsing

This blog, from 2009, has a photo and addition information on Trinity (as well as another vacant historic Albany church):

Hope For Albany's Decaying Churches

ETA: The photo above was taken around noon today from the corner of Westerlo and Trinity Streets shows the area around the church blocked off by police. Heavy equipment was parked in front of the building, but no demolition had begun at the time.

According to the book, "Architects In Albany," the structures twin steeples originally featured decorative wooden gables and pinnacles.

This church was the work of architect James Renwick, Jr. whose works include New York City's Grace Church and Saint Patrick's Cathedral, as well as the castle-like Smithsonian Institute. Trinity Church, built in the late 1840s, was his only work in Albany.

WNYT's coverage includes a photo of the badly damaged interior.

The Historic Albany Foundation has long been concerned about the deterioration of Trinity Church and, in 2005, placed it on their list of Endangered Historic Resources.

CBS 6 has a video report on the collapse now:

Historic Albany Church To Be Demolished

Demolition of the structure was scheduled to begin tomorrow, adding another building to the long list of lost historic buildings in Albany. However, a photo just posted tonight on Twitter by Daniel Boyce shows work has already begun at the rear and Fox 23 News has more on the story:

Crews Tear Down Crumbling Historic Albany Church

7/13 Update - Photographer and blogger Chuck Miller has an excellent picture of the rear of the church as demolition work continues:

All Over Albany - What's Left of Trinity Church

Happy Fourth of July

In honor of the holiday, a quick collection of related posts from this blog and its companion blogs.

Independence Day Memorial Plaque
The appropriately named Liberty Park
Burgoyne Plaque
Philip Livingston, Signer of the Declaration of Independence
Lafayette Park
William Paterson, Signer of the Constitution
Walter Whitney, Revolutionary War Soldier

Independence Day at The Schuyler Mansion

On Monday, July 4, the Schuyler Mansion will hold an Independence Day Celebration from 11:00 A.M. to 4 P.M.

The event will include a balladeer, games, magicians, tinsmiths, ice cream, and other family-themed activities at the Mansion on 32 Catherine Street (South End).

For more information, contact the Schuyler Mansion at 518-434-0834