Summer 1992 Table of Contents
Hamlin Park Survey Hamlin Park Building Saved From Demolition
The oldest building in Hamlin Park, 60 Hedley Place, has been saved from demolition through the efforts of the Preservation Coalition, the Hamlin Park Community and Taxpayer's Association, Council Member David Collins and the owner John Eberhart.
The stone building was originally a farmhouse and was built between 1840 and 1850. It has been vacant for many years and the owner has been cited for a number of violations of the housing code. After the owner received a notice of emergency demolition from the city, meetings were held with the city inspection department, the owner, the Coalition, the Hamlin Park Association and Council Member Collins.
The city's Director of Housing and Property Inspections, Frank Gizzo, agreed to the request to remove the building from the demolition list.
The owner has agreed to support an application being prepared by the Preservation Coalition to designate the building a Buffalo landmark. This application is one in a series that the Coalition is preparing in conjunction with the Hamlin Park Association to have the neighborhood declared a historic district. The landmark survey is being supported by a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts.
The Hamlin Park Association would like to purchase 60 Hedley Place, renovate it and use it as their headquarters.
Owner John Eberhart, Preservation Coaliton President Susan McCartney and Preservation Board member John Conlin examine 60 hedley Place.
The residents of Hamlin Park had another victory in their efforts to preserve their neighborhood with a special zoning overlay district going into effect. The district requires that building improvements of $5,000 or more, or over $10,000 on the Canisius College campus, will require approval from the Common Council.
This legislation was a result of neighborhood concerns that too many residential buildings were being taken over and turned into student housing or demolished for campus purposes resulting in increased noise, traffic, parking problems and a diminution of property values.
There was an attempt to have Canisius College excluded from the district but that was defeated with a compromise raising the on-campus spending minimum to $10,000.
Canisius has been recently cooperating with the neighborhood in a beautification project to put planters filled with flowers throughout the area.
The New York State Council on the Arts has awarded the Preservation Coalition of Erie County a grant for the research and survey of Hamlin Park structures. The research will be used to submit applications for local landmark designation of Hamlin Park, which may become the city's first East Side historic district.
The project is being coordinated by Dr. Carolyn Schaffner, vice president of the Coalition, who is working with volunteers from the Hamlin Park neighborhood, students from the University at Buffalo, and the Coalition membership.
After a recent Buffalo News article appeared about the efforts to save the stone building at 60 Hedley, we received a call from a relative of a former resident of that address.
A meeting followed with several children of Clara Olson Cronin who, according to family information, was born at the Hedley House in 1881. Our appreciation to Susan and Dan Yox for hosting the meeting at their home. And a very special thanks to Lorraine Batchelor, Robert and Marie Cronin, and Melvin and Grace Geyer for sharing their photos, newspaper clippings, and family stories about the house and its past residents.
The area gets its name from 19th century sugar king Cicero Hamlin, whose descendants were responsible for much of its development. The Coalition has scheduled a bus tour of the Hamlin Park area as part of the 1992 Buffalo Tour series. The two-hour tour begins at 1 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 16, rain or shine. Cost is $10 ($8 for Coalition members). To purchase tickets, call 873-3626.
