Cobblestone District fire causes $1.1M in damage

Katie Skoog

June 19, 2024 at 10:24 AM·3 min read

Cobblestone District fire causes $1.1M in damage

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A two-alarm fire broke out at 110-118 South Park Ave. in downtown Buffalo’s Cobblestone District Tuesday evening.

The fire was first reported around 7:50 p.m. Officials said it started on the first floor of the vacant building and spread throughout.

The fire was reported to be under control at 2 a.m., with damage totaling an estimated $1.1 million. It’s not clear what caused the fire.

Officials told WIVB News 4 Wednesday that the city will not be pursuing an emergency demolition of the structure.

“We have to maintain our standoff distance because a couple of walls are compromised,” Renaldo said. “We have bricks falling, things of that nature.”

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(A look at the scene Wednesday morning)

Tuesday night’s firefighters were the same crew who fought the fire at The Old Pink early Monday morning.

“As you know, it’s a really sad day in the Fillmore District, yet again, as The Old Pink was also in my district,” Buffalo City Council Member Mitch Nowakowski said. “These are two catastrophic fires, which could potentially lead to both of them being demolished.”

The building’s owner, Darryl Carr, had been fighting the city in an eminent domain case. Carr wanted to redevelop the space while the city wanted to save it. Nowakowski said the building has been in and out of court cases for 15 years.

“Why is it so ridiculous that I as a councilmember don’t want a historic structure to fall down for a surface parking lot?” he said. “This has been a fight, and to me, I think if you’re going to call yourself a Buffalonian, you have to love our beautiful architecture that can’t be replicated ever again.”

Carr said that squatters have been in and out of the building, but he did not see any squatters coming in before the fire. He hypothesized that spontaneous combustion could have started the fire, citing the lack of ventilation in the building paired with Tuesday’s hot weather.

Executive Director of Preservation Buffalo Niagara Bernice Radle said Carr has wanted to demolish the building for a decade.

“He hasn’t listened to housing court requests to fix it up nor has he listened to the community who has begged him to secure it,” Radle said.

She said preservationists have been fighting to save the building, which dates back to the 1800s, from demolition for decades.

In a statement released on social media Wednesday morning, Preservation Buffalo Niagara pushed to salvage two buildings.

“This is within the Cobblestone historic district and a critical contributing building – pre-civil war, Erie Canal era. We have so few of these left across our City and they’re special and deserve another 100+ years of life. A construction expert is saying it can be saved. We just need to ask the mayor and his team to fight with us,” the group posted.

Multiple road closures are still in effect in the area and will continue to be closed for some time, according to officials.