See this old bakery at Broadway and Krupp, well, it will soon be gone.

I got the info off a list published online in a story by Buffalo News reporter Aaron Besecker.

The sad part about the article is that most of the properties are in Polonia.  I grabbed the part of the list that shows the scheduled demolitions for B-F.

[click here to view – pdf]

The scary part is I don’t know if there is any type of method to what is scheduled for demolition.

I do understand that a lot of properties are past the point of no return.  But is there a plan or strategy as to what buildings go the way of the wrecking ball?

To me, I am surprised at what gets demolished sometimes and equally surprised at what doesn’t and what probably should be.


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13 thoughts on “Demolishing Polonia

  1. People keep electing Franczyk over and over again. This man has been the managing director of this neighborhood’s failure for a quarter of a century.

  2. Some of the houses listed such as 49 clark, 149 clark and 50 Gibson are in bad shape.

    As to looking at reuse, it is a challenge. The East Buffalo GNPA was asked to respond to the city demolition strategy, it is hard to get the question what next. There have been numerous questions raised not just in regards to Polonia, but about the demolition by neglect strategy in general for sections of fillmore, masten and ellicott.

    The Fillmore Concept plan pointed out in 2000 that several of the structures being demolished were unique historical assets such as the Bork telescopic houses. What was unique about the fillmore concept plan was its recommendations on how to modernize and upgrade these houses.

    The other side of the coin is resident living nearby because of vandalism and drug problems want the houses gone. Several like 49 Clark have set there years empty. The scavengers come take out all of the plumbing, the wiring and do it in such way, they damage the envelope the structure, take off the boards on windows, and leave the structure exposed to Buffalo’s winters.

    Request have been put to the GNPA to start taking a strategic approach to this issue. But this is met with resistance. One model suggested has been employing the Cleveland approach to visioning the potential for neighborhood redevelopment.

    The other issue is unless someone or an agency steps up to rehab/save a house, after while, the only option is demolition.

  3. As I read the list there are many houses right in the area that I grew up in- one right next door to the house I grew up in on Ashley Street! This is a very sad sight, but driving through the neighborhood to get to work on a daily basis, it is probably the best thing to have these knocked down, if just to keep the entire Beltline from going up in smoke at one time! How many people remember that area as being known as the BELTLINE? All that needs to be done is just a few more houses and pretty soon you will be able to stand at the corner of Swinburne and Broadway in front of St John Kanty and look south and see the railroad tracks without any obstruction at all!

  4. Looking at the list and looking at the picture above makes me sad and heartbroken. What can any of us really do? It is like watching a family die slowly and painfully.

  5. Sad, I see my Grandparents house listed on Brownell. I pratically grew up in that house. I still own & live on Armbruster, but it will not be for long. If the Police,Courts & City could just get rid of the dealers,prostitutes & welfare scum that have taken up “residence’ in the homes we all once loved…. but some dreams just do not come true.

  6. You can only blame Franczyk for years of doing nothing, but was only worried that he would not be the Council president, which, Thank God, he lost. Maybe he will finally do something for the Fillmore District.

  7. The strategy of demolishing near schools and community centers is misguided, these are the houses that should be invested in the most. Let’s bring in more people with nothing to lose, like those from Occupy WNY. Let them establish roots in the troubled neighborhoods. Give them all the support we can. Park the police cruisers on the street corners of these troubled neighborhoods, or even better, get the Police out to walk a beat like Mayor Brown promised. Buffalo isn’t going to improve by accident, it will take conscious and deliberate actions to make this work.

  8. Image seems to dictate everything. Over the years I’ve been vocal about home ownership in this area. In the course of 1 or 2 blocks we have people paying as much rent in 2 years as it would cost to buy and refurbush the house almost next door and own it free and clear. However, the renters have no means and the people with the means have no desire to invest here. They will invest 10 times as much to be anywhere else because of the reputation of the area . Meanwhile the police do little to affect change because the revolving door judicial system simply spits them back faster than the ink on the paperwork dries. we can blame the elected officials all we want but the reality is it’s the citizens fault for fleeing, turning a blind eye and being afraid to speak up…even if you are told by police, “you should move to a better area”…I have been told this after having a problem with known repeat offenders. THERE IS low cost value here for those willing to make the effort…Too many are too lazy for that.

  9. As for the building in this picture, the roof on 3/4 of it has already fallen down on top of it. I get that no one wants to knock it down, but where was this love of the neighborhood in the 80’s when everyone left and moved to Cheektowaga? I was a kid during the exodus and watched this happen. No other area in the city vanished in twenty years but Polonia, and that’s because everyone got nervous.

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