Community Name & Location:
City of Oswego, Oswego County
Challenge:
With an economy no longer driven by manufacturing, the City of Oswego needed a tool for revitalization and growth. The City planned to rehabilitate a vacant, deteriorated 5-story brick commercial building in Oswego’s waterfront historic district into retail, office space and residential space.
Vision:
Become a tourist destination using links between the downtown and waterfront, and the attraction of the City's many surviving historic structures.
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City officials and staff worked closely over the long-term with the developer and various partners to put together project financing and related incentives. Rehabilitation financing includes private funding for purchase and initial stabilization work; facade improvement grant and loan from the City; Industrial Development Agency funding; historic preservation tax credits; commercial revolving loan fund; and Empire Zone benefits.
In June 2002, private developer First Oneida Corps. of Rochester purchased the building as a long-term investment with plans to redevelop the four-story brick building into a mixed-use facility with office, retail and residential space. They plan to spend approximately $100,000 in the initial phase of rehabilitation, retaining as much of the building's architectural integrity as possible. Additional improvements will be made as leases are signed.
First Oneida purchased the building with private funds, but will rely on a variety of funding sources for building redevelopment. The City of Oswego is assisting the developer through its facade program, which provides up to 80% of facade restoration costs up $20,000. In return for financial assistance, a facade easement is placed on the building and all facade work must be done in compliance with plans and specifications prepared by the program's architect. |
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Rehabilitation in progress. Rehabilitation work will include roof replacement, facade cleaning and repair, replacement of windows that have been boarded for many years, creation of a new entrance on the Oneida Street side of the building to improve access to upper floor apartments, and demolition and reconfiguration of interior spaces to accommodate new uses. Oswego has a contract with an architecture firm to provide design assistance and assistance with preparation of historic preservation tax credit applications on this and other projects. |
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Oswego expects to continue rehabilitating buildings in the waterfront historic district, working closely with prospective developers and property owners. |
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The City's vision and plan demonstrated to the private sector that an investment in Oswego's downtown could be made with confidence because there was broad-based public support for the community revitalization.
How/why is this a success?
The City worked with a developer, providing technical assistance and important incentives to preserve architectural integrity and overcome development obstacles. Oswego's recently completed comprehensive plan spurred development of the facade program and the strong collaboration between the City, Oswego County, and the Heritage Foundation of Oswego.
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O’Donnell Associates (Developer); City of Oswego; NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation; Oswego County Industrial Development Agency.
2002 - present
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David Turner / Joseph O’Donnell (Developer)
Community Development Director, City of Oswego / O’Donnell Associates
20 West Oneida Street
Oswego, NY 13126
(315) 343-3795 / (585) 339-9668
dturner@oswegony.org
Kevin Millington
NYS Department of State, Division of Coastal Resources
41 State Street
Albany, NY 12231-0001
(518) 473-2479
kmilling@dos.ny.gov
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