The Webster Furniture Strippers building is like a lot of troubled properties.
It's stood vacant at the corner of Gravel and Ridge roads in the hamlet of West Webster for roughly 20 years. Town officials say that though the building is structurally sound, it has deteriorated considerably in that time.
And as the site of a former furniture stripping business, there are what Webster Supervisor Tom Flaherty calls "legendary stories of what the contamination might be at that building."
Town officials have tried to find someone to rehabilitate the building, but without success. Now, the building could soon come down. The town solicited bids for demolition of the building and removal of its foundation, and officials will open them on May 30.
"The building's becoming a threat to health and safety, so it's probably in the best interest for the general public, at this point, if we were to take it down," said Josh Artuso, Webster's director of community development.
Over a year ago, the town bought the property at 600 Ridge Road for $1 from Monroe County, which had tried to sell it at foreclosure auctions year after year. Each time, there were no takers.
The town has completed some initial environmental testing that did not bear out the "legendary stories" of pollution, though the studies did find trace elements of chemical contamination on surface soil. After demolition, it plans further investigation to determine whether any remediation will be required, and it has received an EPA grant to pay for that work.
Flaherty and Artuso hope that clearing the site makes it attractive to a developer and encourages further investment around that key intersection in West Webster. In 2023, the town finalized a revitalization plan for the hamlet, with an end goal of creating a walkable community with the feel of a small downtown.
The plan said addressing the property will be essential to that effort.
"It has to be resolved, or the rest of it ... is somewhat of a pipe dream," Flaherty said.
