Greater Erie Award for Adaptive Reuse

Community Shelter Services receives a 2020 Greater Erie Award for Adaptive Reuse for their recent renovation of the homestead built by John Cochran.

Built in 1801, 2942 Myrtle Street is one of Erie’s oldest remaining structures. Historically known as The Homestead, it was built by John Cochran on the north bank of Mill Creek near what is today the intersection of Peach and Myrtle Streets. The 2928 square foot home is in the Greek Revival Style with a white painted brick exterior and two story pillars. The home originally had a second story porch since removed. Over time the single family home was converted into two living units.  

The Homestead looked over what was once known as Happy Valley.  There Cochran built a sawmill, a grist mill and other industries. In addition to his business enterprises, John Cochran served as an Associate Judge for Erie County, three terms as a State Commissioner and later as an Assistant State Surveyor General.  

In 1849, when President Zachary Taylor visited Erie, The Homestead was the gathering place for his welcoming committee.  

Wells Fargo Bank donated the foreclosed property to Community Shelter Services in 2017. At that time the deteriorated property was uninhabitable.  The roof leaked and the electric and plumbing were in dire need of updating.  The two-story columns were rotted and close to collapse and the entire structure needed painting

Aware of its historic significance as one of Erie’s oldest remaining structures, Community Shelter Services set about raising funds to rehabilitate the property, keeping its current two unit configuration. They plan to rent the units to families in need.

So far Community Shelter Services staff, professional trades people, GE and Erie Rise volunteers have helped with interior demolition, replaced the roof, installed new windows, painted the exterior, and repaired the columns. Electric, plumbing and heating have been updated. Interior work continues on the ground floor. The walls & ceilings have been reframed, drywalled and trimmed, and flooring will be installed by the end of May.   Anticipated finish date for the ground floor is June 2020, and the first and second floors continue to undergo renovations.  

Community Shelter Services is no stranger to historic properties. Its main building, Columbus School, built in 1914, is located at 655 West 16^th Street in Erie. Community Shelter Services, a nondenominational nonprofit was founded in 1973 with mission to preserve the dignity and support the development of individuals who are homeless or at risk of homelessness by providing temporary, transitional and permanent housing options for shelter, as well as supportive services, referrals, advocacy and community education. Today, Community Shelter Services provides shelter and housing for an average of 220 people each day.

Greater Erie Award for Preservation Excellence

If Goodell Gardens & Homestead had a flagship, the Goodell Bank Barn would be it. First set on its foundation in 1885 by George Goodell, this landmark building consists of a circa 1840s barn with hand-hewn beams on the north end and a circa 1860s addition with early sawn beams on the south end. Mr. Goodell purchased these two buildings and moved them to his farm, setting them atop a foundation made of stones pulled from his fields in 1885.

Renovating the barn has been a multiyear effort. In 2013, the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority granted funding to put a new metal standing-seam-style roof on this historic building. In 2016, an angel donor pledged $20,000 toward the repair and renovation of the barn. This gift was made in four installments of $5,000 per year through 2019. In 2018, the Erie Community Foundation granted funding to finalize the fieldstone foundation repair and add temporary electrical service outside of the barn.

In May 2018, Goodell Gardens & Homestead launched a “Buy a Board” campaign. Members, donors, and supporters were asked to contribute to the renovation of the exterior of the historic Bank Barn by “buying a board” to help side it.

The re-siding project took two years to complete. The western elevation on the barn was re-sided during the fall of 2018 and the two most public-facing elevations were completed in the fall of 2019.

The current slate of work for 2020 will address the northern elevation of the building and will include updating and repairing the doors and the ramp leading to them.

Goodell Gardens & Homestead is being awarded a 2020 Greater Erie Award for Preservation Excellence. This award category recognizes buildings, structures or spaces, at least 50 years or older,that have been conserved, stabilized and preserved in a manner honoring the individual property.

Erie County has a strong agricultural heritage. A temperate climate, fertile soil and access to rail transportation make the Lake Erie shoreline ideal for fruit and vegetable farming. Apple, cherry and peach orchards, vineyards and roadside farmers’ markets have dotted the landscape along the lake since 1850. Inland, Erie County farmers specialized in dairying for most of the 20th century.

Agriculture remains an important sector of the county’s economy with approximately 1,100 operating farms. Studies show, however, that the agricultural sector is slowly shrinking, threatening the preservation of Erie County’s agricultural heritage. When Preservation Erie and Wise Preservation Planning completed the countywide historic resource inventory in 2014, which updated data collected during the 1982 inventory, it was noted we are quickly and quietly losing our agricultural heritage.

Our rural communities are just beginning to grapple with two questions: “What will become of Erie County’s historic farmhouses, silos and barns as land is removed from active agricultural use, and how do you determine which buildings are worth preserving?”

The Bank Barn is worth saving. With the rich agricultural history of Goodell Gardens & Homestead and southern Erie County, the barns at Goodell Gardens are well-recognized and loved by the community. The relocation and reconstruction of the 1845 sheep barn, which is now known as the Event Barn, further illustrates the dedication of Goodell Gardens & Homestead to the preservation of our agricultural resources. The Evert Barn is a second example of an historically accurate adaptive reuse project.

Restoration of the Goodell Gardens & Homestead Bank Barn supports the broader regional goals for community and economic development and an improved quality of life for our region. Thank you, Goodell Gardens & Homestead, for helping to preserve and share Erie County’s agricultural heritage!

Greater Erie Award for Adaptive Reuse

In the category of Adaptive Reuse, Preservation Erie is proud to recognize Bastion Studios for their exceptional restoration of the former Daniel Illig House at 2016 Peach Street.  The home, once a grand example of Second Empire architecture, lay for years in an abandoned, dilapidated state after being converted to a storefront and offices in the 1970s.  The owner/operator of Bastion Studios, Bill Kern, has been working hard to restore the home to its former grandeur.  As a master woodworker, he has taken on many of the restoration projects himself, along with his wife Emily Bond, partner Grant Sauer, and General Contractor Will Yagi of Erie Home Repair Service LLC.  

The home was originally built by Daniel Illig and his wife, Mary Schultz, in 1876.  Illig came to Pennsylvania from Germany in 1857 and owned a tailor and clothing shop on State Street.  It was on the success of his business that he was able to build his impressive home and raise a family of 14 children.  It is one of the few remaining examples of Second Empire architecture in the city, with it’s signature Mansard roof, decorative iron roof cresting, and pedimented windows.  

Upon purchasing the home at 2016 Peach Street, Bill, Grant, Emily and Will set to work peeling back the layers of bad renovations that took place throughout the house’s history.  They took down drop ceilings, pried off panelling and wallpaper, took up carpet, and busted through boarded up windows.  Over the past three years of restoration work, they have been able to highlight what is original and beautiful about the house while, at the same time, turning the massive, 7600 square foot space into a functioning artist studio space and gallery.  The grand, 12 foot high ceilings with ornate plaster medallions that were hidden underneath the composite drop ceiling tiles, provide a beautiful setting for the art that is now on display from local artists who are members of the art studio.  The second floor is broken up into separate spaces that contain recording studio equipment for musicians and podcasters, while the third floor (which was completely destroyed when Bill took ownership) has been restored, with original flooring, windows, banister and spindles, into a bright, open studio: inspiring space for drawing, painting, sculpting, etc.  Bastion Studios provides members with equipment for woodworking, blacksmithing, drawing, painting, stained glass, ceramics, mixed media, and music/voice recording. 

When speaking of adaptive reuse, by turning a dilapidated storefront into a space that can be used and enjoyed by the community, celebrating and supporting local artists, while also highlighting the original vision and historic character of the Illig House: Bastion Studios hits all the marks.  Preservation Erie thanks them for their hard work, their vision, and their dedication to restoring Erie’s past with an eye to its future.

More detailed info here: https://www.eriereader.com/article/a-bastion-of-history

Greater Erie Award for Adaptive Reuse

“We’re trying to restore it back to its original look. That’s our goal.”

This is how Jesse Fiske Sr., owner of Fiske Building Maintenance and Restoration, responded when we shared the news that Preservation Erie is honoring his work on the Amos Judson Building at 102 High Street in Waterford with a 2020 Greater Erie Award for Adaptive Reuse. This award category recognizes buildings, structures, or spaces that have been renovated to allow a thoughtful or community-enhancing reuse that respects the historic character of the site. The buildings, structures or spaces must be at least 50 years old.

The Judson Building, which dates to the 1830s, is in the Waterford Historic District, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. The Waterford District is a collection of 42 commercial and residential buildings built between 1820 and 1939. The three-story building now owned by Fiske was built by early Waterford resident Amos Judson as a dry-goods store. Judson’s residence was located across the street from the business, and, today, it is an historic site maintained by the Fort LeBoeuf Historical Society. In addition to its original use as a dry-goods store, the Judson Building has also been a furniture store, funeral home, and, most recently, an auto supply store.

Mr. Fiske purchased the building in April 2017, as Waterford Borough was preparing to demolish it. An exterior wall of the vacant building had collapsed in that March, damaging a neighboring structure and sparking concerns over the safety of the structure. His first project as the new property owner was to secure the building against future collapses.

He and his son Jake have grand plans for the Judson Building. The first floor is being renovated into a coffee shop. The second floor will hold an indoor ax-throwing range, while the third floor, once used for dances and roller skating, will serve as an indoor archery range. Yes, you’ve read this right. …ax-throwing and archery ranges.

It’s taking nearly three years to complete renovations, because, as Mr. Fiske explained, “I work for my clients during the day. I do this (work on the Judson Building) every night.”

And he knows what he’s doing. Mr. Fiske has nearly 40 years of experience in working on historic structures. He’s done extensive work in the historic Pennsylvania communities of Coudersport and Wellsboro, and counts the rebuilding of the top of the Erie Land Lighthouse as one of his favorite projects.

Thus far on the exterior of the Judson Building, he has repaired all of the wood products on the facade of the building, including windows, doorway, pilasters, storefront framing, and cornice. Thirty-six new wood (poplar) sash windows have been made for the south-facing wall to match the existing historic windows on the front of the building. The roof of the original building has been replaced, and the roof of the 25-foot rear addition (which was added shortly after the building was built) will be replaced this summer. He has also dismantled and is in the process of rebuilding the 16-inch north-facing wall of the rear addition that was crumbling onto the building next door.

Interior work has included installation of the coffee shop counter and fireplace, and paneling, painting, and plastering walls.

In support of the Judson Building rehabilitation, Mr. Fiske has received two facade improvement grants, one from Preservation Erie and the other from Waterford Borough. Both grants were funded through the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority’s Mission Main Street grant program.

Mr. Fiske is aiming for a late summer/early fall completion date, although the completion date could change due to the pandemic.

Even though this project isn’t finished, Preservation Erie felt it important to acknowledge Mr. Fiske’s efforts to save and reactivate an anchor downtown building that was so close to being torn down. Thank you, Mr. Fiske, for seeing the potential in the Judson Building, investing your own personal resources into its rehabilitation, and paying attention to the architectural features that make this building so special.

When the planning committee members began work on the 2020 Greater Erie Awards last year, they never guessed that, nine months later, our community and communities around the globe would be dealing with a pandemic. No one did. But, it’s thanks to this nearly year-long planning effort that Preservation Erie is still able to recognize the great work happening in Erie City and County in the midst of a stay-at-home order.

The Greater Erie Awards is Preservation Erie’s signature annual event. The awards program is used to recognize individuals, businesses or organizations that are exceptional stewards of the physical and cultural landscape that is Greater Erie. The awards reception, which typically takes place in or around May, National Preservation Month, also includes a keynote address given by an acclaimed lecturer in the fields of historic preservation and urban planning.

This year, in lieu of an event, we are using Preservation Erie’s website and Facebook page to announce awardees throughout the month of May. Twelve awards covering four categories – Adaptive Reuse, Preservation Excellence, Education and Advocacy, and Planning – are being given in 2020, and we plan to announce three per week for the next four weeks.

Please join us in acknowledging twelve amazing projects that are contributing to the greatness of our region by liking, commenting, and sharing our blog and social media posts. Let’s show them some love!

2020 Greater Erie Awardees

Amos Judson House for Adaptive Reuse (Announced May 5, 2020)
Bastion Studios for Adaptive Reuse (Announced May 7, 2020)
Goodell Gardens & Homestead Bank Barn for Preservation Excellence (Announced May 9, 2020)
Community Shelter Service’s Cochran House for Adaptive Reuse (Announced May 11, 2020)
Union City Borough’s Historic Preservation Plan for Planning (Announced May 13, 2020)
Erie Times News for Education and Advocacy (Announced May 15, 2020)
Mayor’s Office & Erie City Council for Education and Advocacy (Announced May 18, 2020)
Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority for Education and Advocacy (Announced May 21, 2020)
Church of the Nativity for Preservation Excellence (Announced May 23, 2020)
Grace Church for Adaptive Reuse (Announced May 27, 2020)
Jeff Kidder for Preservation Excellence (Announced May 29, 2020)
Performing Artists Collective Alliance (PACA) for Preservation Excellence (Announced June 3, 2020)

Preservation Watch List

0.5 Miles South of Wheelertown Road

The Dewey Road Bridge over French Creek was built by the Wrought Iron Bridge Company in 1889. It has a 3-ton load limit and is 13’-0” wide and has 9’-0” of vertical clearance, which allows for one lane of two-directional traffic over French Creek. The bridge is owned by LeBoeuf Township and was closed to traffic in July 2013.

The Wrought Iron Bridge Company of Canton, OH was one of the most prolific bridge companies in the U.S. prior to 1900 when it merged with the American Bridge Company. The company specialized in the fabrication of metal truss bridges like this one.

An evaluation of the Dewey Road Bridge conducted in June 2016 by Gannett Fleming and TranSystems on behalf of PennDOT concluded that the bridge is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

This is a unique, one-of-a-kind bridge with many distinct features. Significant features of the bridge include the truss form, method of connection, top and bottom chords, vertical and diagonal members, portal bracing, and upper lateral struts. The bridge also features a plague that reads “1889, Wrought Iron Bridge Co. Builders, Canton Ohio,” which is the original bridge plague.

The bridge was closed due to structural deficiencies.

Options for rehabilitation include dismantling the entire bridge and storing it for future use, relocating and rehabilitating the bridge for vehicles and pedestrians at another location, or maintaining the bridge at its current location and improving the structure to make it accessible to and safe for public use.

Without action, the bridge will continue to deteriorate.

Preservation Watch List

23-25 S. Main Street, Union City

The Higby Building, which was built in 1889, is located within Union City Borough’s commercial corridor and the National Register listed Union City Historic District. On May 28, 2013 a tornado developed near Edinboro, PA and traveled 18 miles to Union City, PA with wind speeds of 100-105 mph per the National Weather Service. The two story brick veneer structure at 23 S. Main Street was significantly damaged by the storm: most of the brick and sheathing was pulled off the second story of the front façade and the roof was significantly damaged. The building was repaired by putting on a temporary roof, and framing a new wall with vinyl siding over a portion of the second floor. In the ensuing years, the roof has leaked significantly, and the interior framing has deteriorated.

In 2018, and in conjunction with Union City Downtown Development, Union City Pride sought proposals from individuals or entities willing to accept free-of-charge and redevelop the Higby Building. Even though proposals were received, no viable option for the property was identified. As a result, the property remains vacant and continues to incur damage from the elements.

A report prepared by consulting firm City Studio in 2020 states that, “While the building is not a danger to life and property at this time, it is not fit for occupancy and should remain secured against entry. Because of the historic value of the block, it may be desirable to preserve the building without investing what it would take to make the building ready for occupancy. It seems likely that it would be possible to address issues with the center bearing wall, shore up the roof, and not address the issues in the first and second floor framing but stabilize the building. All exterior wall issues could be addressed from the exterior without affecting the interior floors. This way the building and its historic value would be preserved, and the costs of interior fit out could be deferred until such a time that there is a buyer or tenant. Regardless of the chosen course of action, partial interior demolition of finishes to expose framing would be a necessary first step. From there, an appropriate scope of repair and stabilization could be developed.”

Preservation Watch List

203 W. 6th Street, Erie

The Shannon House, which is currently owned by Gannon University, has been vacant for more than three years. The home was built in the 1840’s and remodeled in the 1880’s, giving it its Queen Anne style. It is located within the National Register listed W. 6th Street Historic District.

The current condition of the building has been brought on by years of deferred maintenance that goes beyond the period of time the building has been vacant.

The Shannon House is being threatened by development pressures as Gannon University looks to expand.

Update (August 2020): A new roof was installed, which indicates that the future of this building may look positive.

Preservation Watch List

2300 Cranberry Street, Erie

Roosevelt Middle School, built in 1922 and named in honor of President Theodore Roosevelt, is owned by Erie’s Public Schools. The district closed the school in 2007 because of on-going maintenance and safety concerns. It is a large property, consisting of a 99,000 sq. ft. building on 8.5 acres of land. The school is adjacent to historic Ainsworth Field, a district owned baseball field that twice hosted baseball legend Babe Ruth.

School buildings generally need major renovations every 20 to 30 years. Roosevelt was last renovated in 1975.

With the cooperation of the Erie School District and district architect Bob Marz, a design charrette was conducted on May 30, 2008, by Preservation Pennsylvania, the Commonwealth’s only statewide private, non-profit historic preservation organization. Preservation Erie helped make the arrangements and participated in the charrette.

Experienced architects from Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, and Erie toured Roosevelt Middle School, reviewed the school’s architectural plans, and studied educational specifications by the school district, which envisioned using Roosevelt as a K-8 elementary/middle school for 700 students. At that time, all three architects believed the school was an excellent candidate for continued service as a school and recommended repairs, such as new windows, doors, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical systems, and restoration of the building envelope including a new roof.

In 2017, Erie’s Public Schools received approval from the School Board to market its vacant buildings. Of the six buildings available for sale, Roosevelt was the only candidate for demolition if a buyer could not be found.

Update (May 2020): Erie’s Public Schools announced earlier in the month that demolition of Roosevelt School will begin in June/July 2020 with the removal of asbestos. The district has also confirmed that the tile panels depicting the life of Teddy Roosevelt around the fountains and other significant architectural features and artwork from Roosevelt were removed from the building in 2015 and are in storage at one of the district’s storage facilities.

Preservation Watch List

829 Parade Street, Erie

Many German clubs were organized in the mid-19th century as benevolent societies, singing societies, and fraternal organizations. Philharmonia Hall at 9th and Parade was built in 1873 and taken over by the East Erie Turn Verein in 1880. The current building was built in 1890.

Per the club’s founders – Moomy, Ohler, Kuntzle, Weber, Steimer, Waggner, Gross, and Detzel – the original focus of the verein (club) was to promote athletic excellence. In 1919, the club was renamed East Erie Turners.

As industry, manufacturing, and transportation grew Erie’s overall economy through the mid-20th century, East Erie Turners became a popular post-workday gathering place. At its peak, the club’s membership exceeded 5,000 individuals.

In 1970, East Erie Turners signed an agreement to sponsor Gem City Bands, a collection of big-band musicians and conductors. Gem City Bands regularly played at East Erie Turners, and, during its peak in the 1980s, drew crowds of 400 people or more per concert.

The club was hit hard in 2014 when a shooting occurred just outside their doors. Even long-standing patrons feared visiting, and East Erie Turners closed shortly after the incident.

Today, East Erie Turners remains closed with no plans to reopen.