A demolition hearing next month could determine the fate of a former hotel and office building that now sits blighted and barricaded in downtown Rochester.
“I would not want to make anyone think that this is an idle threat,” said Dana Miller, city commissioner of neighborhood and business development. “If there is no action taken by the owner of this building, we fully would be intending to demolish it.”
The century-old, former Richford Hotel rises nine stories at the corner of Chestnut and Elm streets. Across the street is the also-vacant Hotel Cadillac.
Barricades have surrounded the building since its siding panels buckled and collapsed in April 2022. Streets were blocked off for a time. Nobody was injured.
“We had to get the owner of the property to remove all of the cladding,” Miller said. “They replaced the windows with boards covering the windows, and now the boards are starting to fall off.”
The owner is listed as Midtown Reborn LLC, which is registered to Judith Hain of Irondequoit. A message left with Hain was not immediately returned.
Mayor Malik Evans has sought to crack down on neglectful landlords and property owners. His administration has filed scores of demolition hearing notices this year, demanding repair or demolition.
Miller said the owners have been responsive and working through options. But the time has come for a decision.
And so, on Friday, the city filed notice, saying the structure is dangerous, unsafe and a public nuisance and scheduling a Sept. 28 demolition hearing.
“The fact that we continue to have barricades around it and are providing more security for it than we would provide for other buildings, is an indication of the fact that it is a significantly hazardous building in a very, very highly traveled area,” Miller said.
The owners can contest the city finding and seek more time. A hearing officer then would decide whether to grant them relief or set a deadline after which the city would have permission to demolish the structure at the owner’s expense.
“It's a challenge,” Miller said, describing the building as both an asset and a liability. “The question is always, what would you do with it when it's done? Do you convert it back into a hotel? Do you convert it into office space? What's the market for more office space downtown? What's the market for more hotel space?
“Could we actually improve this building to the level of a Strathallan or Hyatt or even the Hampton? Or is that going to be pretty impossible, given the age of the structure and the deterioration?”
The building has 15 outstanding code violations. It also is laden with asbestos and listed on the state historic register, both of which complicate restoration or demolition.
