Image from USA Niagara Development Corporation
With land almost worth more than gold in New York, Niagara City Lofts is using an acquired $5 million state grant to restore the vacant, 86-year-old South Junior High School building in the Niagara Falls area into apartments. Competitors of the grantee are questioning using state money for a private commercial business.
BuffaloNews.com reports the restoration of this building is being lauded by others as a good example of a “reuse project that has the potential to positively impact a neighborhood but that couldn’t get off the ground without government help.”
The old school building is to be made in to 52 loft apartments. Commercial and community areas will be made out of the auditorium, pool, and gym and would be restored according to LEED environmental standards. If the restoration of this project was not backed with a state grant, the building would not be cost effective. With rent starting as low as $495 for a 450 ft2, going up to $1,842 for the largest apartment, the income made from tenants would not cover the restoration and reconstruction costs. The subsidy received would fill in the gap of lost capital and help the management company attain market rates, which would also help the surrounding community.
Not all restoration is done because of a disaster. In today’s green world, developers are looking at unused building with new eyes that see what needs to be fixed and improved-not reinvented.
Tags: New York restoration, Niagara Falls, South Junior High School building