January 21st, 2009
Richardson Complex Update
A status update on the former Buffalo State Hospital Kirkbride appeared on Buffalo Rising yesterday: Richardson Complex Update. According to BR, some stabilization work has been completed, more is in the works, and a laser scan of the building is ongoing. There will also be a public meeting on Tuesday, January 27 in Rockwell Hall, Buffalo State College where The Richardson Center Corporation will give an overview of the work completed so far. It’s great to hear that preservation of this architectural treasure is moving forward.
So is this preservation leading to just the preservation of the building for historical purposes like tours, or something else?
That’s a good point, what are their main ideas for reuse, or are they only looking as far as stabilization at this point?
There are plans for an “Architecture Center” in the admin of the Kirkbride which will serve as a sort of tourist information center about the architecture of Buffalo in general as well as the Kirkbride and Richardson’s work in particular.
Aside from that, there’s nothing more definite that I’ve seen except that the Richardson Center Corporation envisions a “mixed-use, multi-purpose civic campus of public and private activities,” which sounds like something along the lines of what’s happening in Traverse City.
If you want to find out more about what’s going on, I suggest visiting The Richardson Center Corporation’s web site: http://www.richardson-olmsted.com/
and maybe looking around at all the related posts on this blog for links to articles in the press about this: http://www.kirkbridebuildings.com/blog/tag/Buffalo-State-Hospital