>> From WXXI News.

This is Connections.

I'm Evan Dawson.

Our connection this hour was made on January 14th, 2025 when a fire ravaged a historic home in Brockport.

This was the second time that the Morgan-Manning House in Brockport suffered significant damage.

It's also the second time the community has rallied to restore it.

Most recently, the house was named one of Landmark Society of Western New York's five to revive a list of local places, spaces and themes identified for preservation.

This hour, we continue an annual tradition of discussing the Landmark Society five selections while exploring the latest in preservation work and why it matters.

One thing that we like to think about here is that just about everybody listening today, somewhere in your community or maybe your hometown, is a historic structure, an old building, something that you say, I cannot believe they're going to take the wrecking ball to that place, or we need to make sure that that stays.

That is kind of the theme here.

Everybody's got something and the Landmark Society cast a wide net.

We're going to go all around the region today talking about their 2026 list.

Let me welcome Wayne Goodman, executive director of the Landmark Society of Western New York.

Welcome back to the program.

>> Thank you.

Evan.

Hello.

>> And the assistant director of the Landmark Society is Larry Francer.

Welcome back to you.

>> Great to be here.

>> Across the table.

Hello, Paul Kimball project manager and former president for the Morgan-Manning House.

He is also the former town supervisor for Clarkson for 34 years.

Are you the longest serving local supervisor in local history?

>> Pretty close.

I don't know what the record is, but it's got to be pretty close.

>> You'd be close to that one.

Okay, well, welcome to the program.

Thank you for being here.

And Katie Eggers Comeau is with us, who's a senior architectural historian at Bero Architecture and a member of the Five to Revive committee at the Landmark Society.

Welcome.

Thank you for being here.

>> Thank you so much.

>> So great place to start here.

Before we jump into the morning Morgan-Manning House again, we're going to go all around the region and reveal the list here.

But Wayne and Larry in general, what are you looking for?

Wayne?

When people say Five to Revive, it's a big region.

What are you looking for?

>> Well, first of all, it's really difficult.

You know, it's a difficult process.

We have a committee that that does a fantastic job each year.

But when you say cast a wide net, we really do.

And if you think about how many historic structures there are really in Western New York, to, to pare that down to five is, is not an easy task.

So our committee does does a great job in general, we're looking for properties that are historically significant, of course, architecturally significant.

We look for projects that might have a catalytic impact on a district or a community or a neighborhood.

And, and, and properties that really need a little bit of investment.

They need some care.

when we first started this, this initiative years ago, we wanted to make it clear that our list was not a typical preservation list where you, you call like an endangered list.

So, so this list is, is much more of a positive slant.

And we're trying to be a collaborative partner with some of these building owners and these communities.

We've had a great track record and, and this is a good, good list this year too.

>> I take the point that it's not necessarily an endangered list.

I do wonder, you know, Larry, I'm not going to mention the small town that I'm thinking of, but there is a small town that's got this beautiful historic Main street.

And after about 150m in one direction off of a little river there in the middle of town, there is now a gas station and a Taco Bell.

And I found myself going like what was here before this?

And how what was the decision making?

It feels so weird.

And nothing against gas stations or taco bells.

Nobody wants to get sued here.

But in general, how important is it that this this program, I think, addresses character and it doesn't have to be downtown Rochester.

You guys go all across the region here.

>> Absolutely.

I mean, isn't that what we all want?

Isn't that why people live in neighborhoods in Rochester or our small villages and towns?

It's because of that feeling.

It's because of, you know, the fact that they can walk down a main street and feel like they can remember the past, but they can also look toward the future.

There are exciting businesses in there.

So the infrastructure is very important.

You know, when we have these communities with a beautiful smile, but there are some teeth that are missing.

It's really from buildings that were torn down.

It's it's, it just doesn't feel right.

And, you know, I want to also add that it's really important when we're choosing this list that we have a group of activists or just people who are there to work with us.

We're not going into communities and saying, oh my God, that should not come down.

If we don't have people who are saying we don't want it to come down, and we want to make sure that it's revitalized and it's important to us.

So we really work with the communities or the neighborhoods just as much.

>> You can't do everything.

>> And we shouldn't do everything.

>> That's right.

Yeah, yeah.

No, I think that's a really good point.

And over the years, as we've had these conversations, it's always interesting.

We're gonna we're gonna talk to Paul.

We're going to talk to people on the line later this hour who are doing that kind of work.

So if you want to learn more about what the Landmark Society is doing and get in touch with them about perhaps future projects like this, or just to kind of be in touch on this kind of work.

It's Landmark Society.

Let's start with number one on the list here.

It's the Morgan-Manning House.

As we mentioned, it is in Brockport.

And Paul Kimball is the project manager, former president for the Morgan-Manning House.

What is the Morgan-Manning House?

>> Morgan-Manning House is an 1854 Victorian house that has suffered two fires.

This is the second fire.

I was 12 years old when the first fire happened and was actually delivering newspapers to Mrs.

Sarah Morgan-Manning House, my sister in law, at the north end of town.

I remember the fire well.

I remember the controversy that went around to save the house in 1966.

There was fears that the house was going to be torn down for a gas station, but the community did come together in 1966 67, saved the house, and it became a very treasured landmark in town.

every fourth grade class tours, the house every year except for the couple of the Covid years.

And it was remarkable because I had one of the craftsmen come, came in who was about 35 years old and he goes, boy, I haven't been in this house since I was in fourth grade.

but he was excited to come back and to work on it.

>> So what happened in January a year ago?

>> So January in the year ago, we had a board meeting at 7:00 in the evening, myself and two other folks arrived.

the other folks got there five minutes earlier than me at about 10 to 7.

I got there at 5 to 7.

When I got there, smoke was rolling out of the kitchen.

the kitchen door.

They had it propped open.

I attempted to go down in the basement and the smoke drove me back.

In the meantime, they had called the fire department, and the fire department was having a drill that night.

So they showed up within minutes.

of, of the phone call coming in.

What we thought was going to be a minor fire in the basement.

We actually sat in the parking lot for an hour trying to be warm at 12 degrees, turned into a very major event.

there were 11 different fire companies that were called.

There were three different ladder trucks at one point that were set up dumping water into the building.

We were able to go across the street to Nativity Church and use their community center to sort of monitor the fire.

But it was kind of surreal because you were in this big glass opening, looking at the house, almost like you were watching it on TV.

>> Wow.

>> And was it for you?

Maybe almost surreal having having experienced what you did at the age of 12 and then all these years later to see something like that again.

>> It, it was surreal because you're watching it and then all of a sudden the fire pops through the roof and then, you know, you really, really I mean, you knew he had a serious fire.

But at that point, you know, you really had a serious fire.

the next day to walk through it and see everything frozen in time was like walking in the frozen movie, if you will.

water in the back of the building.

There's a high water mark in the kitchen of five inch, 5 to 7in of water flowing through the first floor.

The basement filled up to about waist deep, which at which point it was actually going out the windows.

But the outpouring from the community to save the building this last 14 months has just been incredible, absolutely incredible.

>> Now, this is not my expertise.

I mean, you're describing a fire that's really damaging.

What can you expect in the best case scenario to preserve or sort of restore in that space?

>> Well, we're 14 months into the restoration.

by November, we had the roof completely rebuilt and on had the windows back in, there were 20 windows that were broken during the fire and we had heat back on, we're well on the way to the renovation of the house, if you will.

>> Wow.

And you know, for people who've never been there because everyone in your town has been there, I get it.

Every school class goes through there.

But for people who have not, what is the experience do for a visitor for the first time?

What do you learn.

>> As far as when the house is open?

>> Yeah, when you're able to be there.

>> Yeah.

When you're able to be there.

You learn about the Morgan family.

dating Morgan was instrumental in the production of the first Reapers.

He worked with Cyrus McCormick to build Reapers, and they built Reapers for over 40 years.

The family then went into the cold storage business, and a lot of folks my age would probably remember the Brockport cold storage, which over the last several years has gone through multiple owners.

But the Brockport cold storage is actually the same building where they built the Reapers.

You also learn about the how people lived in that period of time, and how they lived in that house.

The fire's been interesting because it's uncovered different things that have remodeled during the year.

So I found that pretty fascinating.

>> Are you confident that this is going to get to the finish line?

>> Oh, absolutely.

Without a doubt.

>> What do you need to get it there?

>> We're going to have to raise somewhere between probably one and a half to $2 million.

unfortunately, what should have been a $50,000 fire turned into a $4 million fire.

>> Wow.

well, across the table, let me ask Wayne.

And Larry is.

Well, I'll just ask you in general.

I'll start with you.

Larry.

this building, why is this on the list?

Why did it make the five?

>> We really wanted to support the work that this committee has done.

This.

This board of directors just amazed us that they, you know, took the bull by the horns right at the beginning, and they brought in the right people, and they started raising money.

And we wanted to show our support.

We, we, we felt, as Paul said, it's going to get done, but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't shine a light on it for how important it is to the community, how the community has come together and how they are going to bring it back to its beauty and to life.

>> This is what you were talking about, having that help in the community, having that activity.

And, you know, Wayne, for for the cynics who say, look, I mean, $4 million, it's a big price tag.

You know, sometimes tragic fires happen, but sometimes you got to move on.

What do you what do you think the community gains by bringing this building back?

>> Well, you know, I think that, Paul, I think articulated it quite well.

this building like, like a lot of other buildings we see in our neighborhoods and in our different communities, they provide anchor, they provide stability, they reflect community pride authenticity so if you ask some people, they, they may say that, they may say that, hey, $4 million price tag is too high.

But a lot of other people, I think, including the Landmark Society said, well, you know, that's well worth it.

it depends on what you want.

It depends on what kind of community you want to live in.

and I, and I think when the committee discussed this particular building in this project, as Larry said, and we were just taken by, by how quickly that the local folks, Paul included, reacted to this, how professional that they've been and how meaningful the structure is, and not only to Brockport, but really to our entire region.

it's a gem of a structure and and anything that we can do to pat these folks on the back and to encourage them and to assist in the efforts, you know, we're going to do.

>> Well, there's no one more authentic in the effort than Paul Kimball, who happens to live in an 1890 structure himself.

You live in an old blacksmith's shop.

>> That's correct.

>> That is amazing.

>> And what's unusual about it is it has a basement.

Most blacksmith shops would not have had a basement.

>> And it was built in 1890.

>> Built in 1890 by John B Crowley.

>> Became a house when.

>> 18 or 1985, we lived next door in the farmhouse.

The farmhouse was about 1825, sold the farmhouse to our daughter and then moved into the blacksmith shop.

And as a side note, that's actually my first fire job, if you will, in November of 15, my daughter had a fire in the family home that destroyed the home, and I managed that project in 2016, started it in February, and had them in the house in June.

So it was a nice primer for the job that I'm doing right now.

>> You are certainly somebody who sees the value in in character in older buildings.

We don't just have to have homogenous cookie cutter communities.

Do we?

Oh, no.

>> And you know, the amazing thing with the blacksmith shop is that after all those years, the carriage doors in the front of the structure are pocket doors, and they actually still work.

>> That's great story.

Did you want to jump in there?

>> I did, I just wanted to add that over the years since I've been here, especially, and I've gotten to know the Morgan-Manning House it is truly an example of how to run a house museum because it's not just a house museum, it is a community gathering space in their beautiful they have Sheikh on the lake performing.

I've been there for meetings.

I've been there for events.

And you just.

And I probably say this every time I'm here.

Just being in a historic home like that, you just get this amazing feeling and it's not.

I feel the history.

I feel the ghosts.

You know, you just get a centering and there's a beautiful, beautiful feeling when you're in the Morgan-Manning House.

>> Well, number one on the list, the Morgan-Manning House, number two of the five to revive.

And typically the Landmark Society for years has included a thematic listing on their Five to Revive this year.

It's historic LGBTQ+ community sites.

and let me start with Larry.

We'll go around with Larry Wayne and Katie talking about this one.

tell me about this listing here, Larry.

>> Sure.

well, in the political atmosphere we're in now, we were very concerned about people being erased and communities being erased.

And the LGBTQ+ community has gone through a lot these past years.

and we just wanted to make a statement that we, as the Landmark Society, as the preservation community support and appreciate what the LGBTQ plus community has given to the city of Rochester, to the nation and too often these sites of, you know, gay bars or possibly an, a figure who was LGBTQ plus and it would be their home or something that doesn't, that gets lost pretty quickly once either a building is sold or even once a building gets listed on the national register, it doesn't always have that significance of them being a leader in the community.

And we felt it was important.

>> Well, the nomination came from Katie on this one.

Can I read a little bit about what Landmark Society had to say about the nomination?

And I want to want you to tell us why you decided to do the nomination.

because LGBTQ plus communities historically gathered out of public view, often without formal documentation, many important sites have already been lost.

Others remain unrecognized.

Larry's point there, why did you nominate?

>> I was so a couple of years ago, the Landmark Society had a session about this topic at the annual conference that they organized along with statewide partners, the Statewide Preservation Conference.

And one of the speakers said that one of the reasons that this type of history is so important to document is that most LGBTQ plus kids are born into straight families with straight parents.

And that hit home to me.

That's my story.

That's my family's story.

And it really, you know, hit me that I can educate my kids about family history, about local history, about for my son, who's part of the LGBTQ+ community.

I can't really help him with that part of his history.

I don't know enough about it.

and so it's really important that especially for kids growing up, that they can see that they're not the first ones to go through this, that there are people they can look up to who have been part of this community for forever.

I mean, this has always been part of history and that there are places they can go where they can connect to that.

and I know from some work I'm doing now on a statewide project along these lines that there are other places in the state where they've done projects like this.

And often young people are part of it and they talk about how much it means to be in a place, even if the use has changed, just to know that there are people kind of who are their ancestors in this way, who did important stuff there, who were activists or artists or just, you know, living their lives.

And that's, that's really important for young people.

So that's what really made me want to to see something like this happen, especially knowing about the erasure and how, how difficult that is for people.

>> What are some of the sites here in Rochester?

>> well, I mean, first and foremost, which the Landmark Society has already listed is Todd Union on the U of R campus.

And Katie, did you work on that one with us?

>> I didn't, that was your staff.

>> Okay, okay.

Yeah.

which was, which is one of the two in the region that have been listed for LGBTQ plus significance.

The other is in Penn Yan.

It's the Jemima Wilkinson home.

and it is the the public universal friend, which is the who born as Jemima Wilkinson became.

And the significance of their.

Their,.

>> Philosophy, maybe.

>> Maybe philosophy or their work really was not included in the original National Register nomination for the, for the home.

So those are the only two, but I mean, the two gay bars that just closed.

I mean, the Avenue pub and the I should know.

Bachelor forum.

Thank you.

Bachelor forum.

those two were looking at and I was talking with Harry Bronson before this, and he and his staff really want to have an event during pride month where we can, as a community talk about, locations that are important to us.

I mean, there's also the park Genesee Valley Park is very important in terms of having the pride picnic and things like that.

So there are a lot of locations, even strong Memorial Hospital where Aids research was done.

I mean, the Landmark Society started a project years ago and our LGBTQ plus historic sites.

And we have a map and we have, you know, a very long list, but we feel it's important, even though it may not rise to being listed on the National Register of Historic Places for us to celebrate them and maybe do some local you know, plaques and so forth.

>> You know, Evan, I think that for, for this thematic listing this year, perhaps the, I think the overarching rationale behind this is just simply making sure that the Landmark Society focuses on equity and making sure that folks feel like they belong in our community.

we always tout that preservation and its impacts should be felt by everyone.

And, and this is no exception.

I just remind listeners that it wasn't long ago that there was an order that came down from Washington to remove the pride flag from, from Stonewall Inn which we find to be illogical.

And and rather mean.

So it is about everything that Larry pointed out.

It's definitely about everything that Katie has, has spoken to, but in a larger scheme it's just the fact that, that these sites that have been underground by necessity for so long are now, you know, being targeted.

And we, we felt like we needed to be a voice to speak out against that.

>> All right.

So that's the second listing on the list.

The next the third out of five.

And the Landmark Society is Five to Revive is the Cutler Mail Chute Company building in the city of Rochester.

right here in Monroe County.

let me start with you.

What is you want to hit this one?

>> Sure.

Yeah.

So the most folks, I think in Rochester know who who Cutler is.

I think that James Gould Cutler, former mayor of Rochester, an architect in his own right started this company.

And I'm paraphrasing, I'm really making this a short summary, but started the Cutler Mail chute company.

And these Cutler mail shoots ended up in skyscrapers all over the world.

Larry and I were on a on a on a Landmark Society travel tour to Cuba.

And we're in Havana.

And we walked into the Bacardi building.

And wouldn't you know it, right when you walk in this beautiful, art deco lobby, right there is Cutler mail chute with with Rochester, New York on it.

the building itself is highly significant, both historically, architecturally it's been vacant.

When we found out that there were some discussions about possible development on the site yet to be defined development, the the neighbors discovered first and foremost that it wasn't protected.

There was no protection on the building, which we, we thought had to have been some kind of a a mishap over the years where it was just it's not a designated building of historic value.

It's not listed in a preservation district.

It's not individually protected.

So that's when the Landmark Society went forward and supported the Noda Neighborhood Association in an application for the city to designate.

>> In a moment, Paul, you've been in that, right.

Can I ask you to talk about this in just a moment here?

Yep.

Okay.

So but before we do that, I just want to say it is really amazing to think about during the high rise boom in this country.

It would have been not only not surprising, but almost expected that a mail chute from here was in the high rise boom almost anywhere.

This is an amazing story, but what can go in a place like this?

So if you're watching on YouTube, you're seeing pictures of this building that has been vacant.

What what can happen here?

Larry?

>> Oh there there are so many examples.

within Rochester of adaptive reuse projects.

And there's also a lot behind it with a non-significant building, which can be, you know part of this adaptive reuse.

So there can be lots of things that can be in it, I think.

I mean, housing for sure.

And I think that might even have been the plan.

that people saw online.

but it didn't look anything like Cutler mail chute building.

So the assumption was that it was going to be torn down.

>> A tear down.

>> Yeah.

we just wanted to protect it.

>> And just the building on its own merits.

I mean, we feel like it should just be a building that's protected.

There's a lot of different options for reuse here.

And the building is really set up quite well for historic rehabilitation tax credits.

So you can get up to a 40% tax credit on an investment.

and it's probably there's a lot of historic buildings, a lot of significant buildings in our region.

But given this really strong significance about James Gould Cutler and his company and the mail shoots all over the world, it's it's an important building.

>> Katie, how do you like housing for it?

What do you.

>> Think?

>> It's a great neighborhood.

It'd be an awesome place to live.

It'd be interesting.

>> Yeah.

>> Yeah.

So.

And having having had some experience there.

Paul Kimball.

I want to hear about your experience with with number three on the list here as we talked about the Cutler Mail Chute company building.

>> Well, I found it fascinating to go into the building because I worked downtown for 25 years for our G and E and used a Cutler mail chute on quite often because it was in the building.

I do part time electric work with a friend and it was one of his clients.

And I was in the president's.

What is the president's office for the company that was there?

But it's also Cutler's office.

It's untouched.

The fireplace is still there.

When you walk down the hallways, the different petitions to go with the wooden petitions to go in the different offices are all still there.

The second floor is like a step back in time, and it would be just wonderful if that could all be preserved.

It really would.

>> The bones look pretty good.

>> Oh, absolutely.

Absolutely.

>> Is there anything that you don't do by the.

>> Way?

>> Let's see.

I got my real estate license.

>> So you can learn more about the Cutler Mail Chute Company building.

Head to Landmark Society.

Org it's number three on the list of the Five to Revive for 2026.

We got to take a very short break and we're going to talk to Karen Wood on the other side, co-owner of the Seneca Falls Machine Co.

Company building.

We're talking about number four on the list.

On the other side of this break.

I'm Evan Dawson Friday on the next Connections.

In our first hour, we're joined by Steve Peacock, who's back on the program, talking about his experience as a sexual abuse survivor and his work on issues related to masculinity.

The male image in 2026, what it means to be strong and masculine and healthy relationships in our second hour.

It's the WXXI News Friday news roundup talk with you on Friday.

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>> This is Connections.

I'm Evan Dawson.

Every year, the landmark Society of Western New York puts out their Five to Revive a list of five structures buildings, historic sites, sometimes different themes, and the Five to Revive cover a wide, wide range.

We're kind of going far and wide.

We've been in the city of Rochester.

We're going out to the village of Seneca Falls.

Number four on the list is the Seneca Falls Machine Company plant Wayne Goodman.

You want to start by telling us what this one is?

>> Yeah, this is a really imposing structure.

When you enter Seneca Falls, if you and most people, I, I have to just say I've talked to some people and they'll ask, hey, that Seneca Falls Machine company, where is that?

And then as soon as I start describing it, if you get off the Thruway, you head into Seneca Falls.

It's this building.

And they go, oh, wait a minute, I know exactly which building you're talking about.

Everyone knows this building.

so it has this this what I think is this majestic almost presence.

and really is a pretty legendary little gateway building going, going into the village.

it's vacant, but we feel like it has a lot of opportunity.

The history behind this building was, was manufacturing and it started out, I believe, as a manufacturing facility for machines that made auto parts.

it was built in 1916.

It's eligible for the National Register of Historic Places during World War Two, it became a munitions factory.

So it has a long, storied tradition.

And we feel like when we look at that word catalytic impact that we try to consider when we place structures on the list.

This one definitely has potential to be very catalytic for for Seneca Falls.

>> Yeah, we just showed some images on our YouTube channel.

If you're watching along, there, it is a majestic looking.

building.

And the auto parts that Wayne's talking about goes back to the early auto industry.

Like so many different manufacturers in this country, it shifted to supporting the war effort in World War Two.

Artillery shells.

Right?

What an amazing history.

This place here.

And Karen Wood is the co-owner of the Seneca Falls Machine Company building in Seneca Falls.

Hello, Karen.

Welcome to the program.

>> Hello there.

>> So tell us a little bit about your perspective as a local on this one.

Is there, you know, is there momentum for locally for preserving this site?

And what do you want to see happen here?

Karen.

>> Oh, absolutely.

Since we moved into the building a few years ago our business has been doing well here, but we've reached out to others in the community to see what else we could do here.

that is needed.

And there's a lot of older buildings similar to this that are being made into housing, but that's not our vision for this at all.

We actually would like to go forward with a double large venue on the second floor of the main factory, which was actually built in the late 1800s.

then the downstairs portion is huge as it is.

We would like to divide it up into some more community projects.

possibly an entertainment center or an outlet for kids and youth to, to do some things and some other community projects that we've reached out to see if there was interest and everybody's like, absolutely, let's get this building up and running, but we don't know how.

>> Okay, okay, so what do you think you have to do?

I mean, certainly totally fair to say we have a vision, but we don't know how to totally execute it.

But what do you think it's going to take to get this over the line?

Karen?

>> well, it has been lax in repairs since prior to our moving into it.

They were only making a few bits and pieces as needed for older machines for the past 20 years.

So a lot of things have have gone downhill, some roofing and some some electrical, but it's still got good bones.

And we want to help it along.

>> I want to ask the architectural historian on the panel a little bit about this one.

When we see the image of this one, I mean, to Wayne's point.

So I kind of go through this region a lot, and I am absolutely one of the people who would have known.

I wouldn't have known what this building was.

But anybody who drives by it grabs your attention.

It's you see it tell me in your mind the difference between saying, look, some of the bones.

It's starting.

Part of it was condemned before.

They've done some repair.

But why don't you just raise it to the ground, put whatever you want in there versus keeping that structure the same and finding a kind of a mixed use there.

Tell me about the differentiation in your mind between those ideas.

>> Yeah, and there's a lot of different reasons why reusing a building like this makes a ton of sense.

I mean, from an environmental perspective, just to start with, why throw away all that good material and all that work that's gone into that in the past and start over when you've got something there that that can all be recycled, you know you don't get that kind of craftsmanship anymore.

You don't get those kinds of like really solid materials, those big windows, you know, those were made to, to provide daylight to the factory.

We don't really need that anymore, but that gives so much light and, you know, so much, many great opportunities for what you might do inside there.

I mean, I know this owner doesn't doesn't want to do housing and that's fine.

But you know, you think about the loft apartments that people want those big windows, but that's obviously also great for an event space or a community space, any of those kinds of things.

Those big, beautiful windows that they just don't build them like that anymore.

>> You know, this reminds me of guys.

It reminds me of the conversation about, do we just tear down the Chautauqua Institution Amphitheater shell and just build a new one there?

Or can we keep that space there?

I've got family down there.

That was a very emotional fight.

and, you know, so Wayne, if you want to say something about the value of keeping that, that, that shell, that space.

>> Sure.

I mean, well, I mean, Chautauqua, you know, that was listed on the National Trust's 11 most endangered list.

So it was on an endangered list that reflected resources all across the United States.

And that's also a great example because I'm not an expert on I'm not really knowledgeable, I should say, on the new amphitheater, but I know they've had some issues there with the new amphitheater already.

So yeah, I think that for, for a lot of reasons Katy points out just the whole factor, the whole fact that this is sustainable and we always talk about the greenest building is the one that's already here, right?

It's the one that exists and you're not going to get you're not going to get the materials, you're not going to get the same design.

And in this instance, particularly given its location as you're entering Seneca Falls, I think you get there's really two goals here.

One is to reprogram that space community space, residential, retail, community rooms.

anything there's a, there's a plethora of different uses for this building.

So the building in itself is a huge potential just for that site.

But then when you take a look at the community and think about what that might do to benefit the community and to encourage further investment to as you enter Seneca Falls, I think that those are a couple of really, really strong and admirable goals.

>> Karen, before we let you go, is there a price tag in your mind that is going to be required to get this done?

>> not offhand.

We knew it was a big project to undertake, but we we climbed in head first and we're doing bits and pieces on our own.

So it's really kind of hard to put a number on it.

>> I, I totally understand that part.

How long can you kind of hang on, hoping to continue to build enough momentum to get this done before something would kind of give here.

How long do you think you can hang in there?

Karen?

>> well, my family and I have moved our small party rental company into the building and don't have any plans to move out.

>> Okay.

>> So one step at a time.

We're trying to do all these renovations by hand on our own.

So getting the community involved and now the, you know, maybe some opportunity from the state as well would be very helpful.

>> What does it mean to you?

What does it mean to you to be one of the.

Yeah.

What does it mean to you to be one of the five to revive Karen?

>> It's amazing.

we're super excited about it.

This building, we wanted to get a hold of it before there was nothing left to get a hold of and to make sure it's still standing and not torn down for, you know, some more apartments.

>> Well, I want to thank you for taking the time to join us.

And maybe when we talk in a year about their next list, they're going to be talking about big time momentum for you.

And you'll come back on this program.

Tell us about it when things are changing, will you, Karen?

>> Absolutely.

I'd be happy to provide any updates.

>> Karen Wood is the co-owner of the Seneca Falls Machine Co.

Company, building a really, really interesting looking building with a great history in Seneca Falls, Seneca County, and they're part of the five to revive.

We're talking to the team from the Landmark Society about their annual five to revive list, and we've got one more to share with you.

In fact we're going to.

Oh, wait a second.

So I think we've got two.

Do we have two?

We've got John.

Okay, that's the note I just got.

John Zornow is going to be joining us.

He's a board member for the New York Arcadia Historical Society.

And the number five item on the list here for the 2026 Five to Revive from the Landmark Society is the Pearson Cobblestone house.

And we want to tell me about why before we send it over to John.

Guys.

>> I can jump in.

I mean, so cobblestones, I think many people are aware, but if you're not cobblestones are very unique to our region.

The construction, the materials are, are, are a unique Western New York archetype.

So this became, this, this was brought to our attention.

It was a cobblestone in Newark that sits on a campus of Rochester Regional Health and Rochester Regional Health at one point had used the cobblestone for medical space, but it's been vacant for quite some time.

And so again, we felt like just because of the unique nature of, of the cobblestone, we needed to get behind this, really encourage a reuse.

We have had I think positive and really productive conversations with folks with Rochester Regional Health.

So we're extremely appreciative of, of them.

we don't feel like that.

And I think they would agree that they don't have any future use for the structure, but they're certainly open to any, any new uses that we might be able to facilitate.

>> And again, if you're watching on YouTube, that image, what a beautiful, beautiful, absolutely beautiful building.

John Zornow is a board member for the New York Arcadia Historical Society, who's on the line with us?

Hello, John.

How are you?

>> Yes.

Can you hear me?

>> I can hear you, sir.

It's great to have you.

>> Well, I'm down here in Florida, so that's all great.

>> Oh, you don't have to rub it in, John.

>> You could just.

>> You could have pretended you're standing right next to the cobblestone.

Tell us why this one matters so much to you, John.

>> Well, you know, the when the Five to Revive was announced, they did such a great job of it.

I on the media and so forth, that people came to me and said, wow, I saw that on the on the TV or in the paper.

And I didn't know all that about the building.

It's not a heavily traveled road compared to some, but I had been involved in worrying about that building for many, many years.

And well, when a hole in the roof went unfixed, then I got a little more involved and I, rather than get into a fighting match with the hospital, I just said the Gene Davis from the Walworth Historical Society and Cynthia Rourke, who all of you know very well, said to me, let's get Landmark Society involved here because they can they can do it the right way.

And that's exactly what has happened.

>> Well, what are you hoping can happen for this structure in the future?

John.

>> Well, at one time, Cynthia Hawke said to me many years ago, the best way to save a building is to have someone living in it.

And so I never forgot that.

And Oliver Wayne County.

Now there are several homes being restored, one just outside of Lyons, a huge amount of money.

The private owner is restoring it himself, but it's an investment.

And when they get it all done, it'll, it'll it'll have great value and great bones.

And we'll be proud of it.

You know, Wayne County has over 100 cobblestone structures, including a blacksmith shop out in outside of Lyons, four sided cobblestone or five sided cobblestone blacksmith shop.

And that's the type of thing that we have in our area.

>> Well, and you know, Larry talked about the need of that.

The Landmark Society has to have this grassroots help and support here.

What do you need for this particular project, do you think?

Larry.

>> Well, first and foremost was the hospital just being willing to discuss it with us.

And, you asked how we pick these and often things are on the list for many, many years.

And the the Seneca Falls Machine Company plant was on for like five years.

And each year we would talk about it, but there was something else that was a little bit more pressing.

And we finally said, well, are we going to do it or are we not?

And we did.

And this has been on for a couple of years.

>> It's been nominated.

It's been discussed.

>> It's been discussed.

It was nominated a couple of years ago when we first realized there were some concerns about it.

Probably it was John who brought it to us and we couldn't find the right people to discuss it with at the hospital yet.

And it didn't seem like it was terribly endangered.

So we put it off to this year and we were able to, at that point, get in touch with folks at the hospital, and they were very supportive.

And I believe we even have a meeting coming up with them planned to, to discuss what we can do with it.

But I think it just takes people like John and people like the folks at the hospital who really do care.

They just don't know what to do.

And we can, we can help.

That's what we're here for.

>> Well, in the department of they don't build them like they used to.

The cobblestone structures are amazing.

Just amazing to look at.

So we really appreciate just the esthetic beauty of this one.

but John, before I let you go, I'll just say good luck to you.

Are you are you hopeful now, John, that this thing is going to have a future?

>> I am very hopeful, absolutely.

Because of now the word is out there saying this.

This needs to be done.

And the best we can hope for is a private owner who wants to make it a home.

>> Well, John, good luck to you.

travel well, enjoy.

Florida sunshine.

Get back here soon, and we'll talk to you again in the future when there's more news on the Pearson cobblestone house.

Thanks, John.

>> Well, Evan, thank you very much.

>> John Zorn, as a board member for the New York Arcadia Historical Society, that's the five Landmark Society.

Org has the full list.

They've got past lists.

It's really fascinating to look at.

And it doesn't always work out that these things get the momentum they need, but often they do.

You just heard John say what a boost it's been for the Landmark Society to put this thing on the list and put it out there in the community.

So now before we lose this hour, I want to ask Paul a question just in general, having been, what, 34 years is Clarkson town supervisor?

So when you're in charge of local government, there's debate about development, there's debate about what's the right kind of development.

And now you're doing this kind of work in preservation or restoration.

How do you think governments, especially local governments, should balance the need for development while also saying, we need to preserve the character of the past?

We cannot homogenize society and put a bulldozer or everything.

I mean, what's the right balance?

>> So actually, the town of Clarkson was one of the first towns in Monroe County to have a historic overlay district, and took the initiative to save the homes that were in the four corners, if you will.

one of our toughest decisions was a town owned building that was a cobblestone, but it had the second floor torn off of it.

And the face of the building was actually falling off and we had no choice.

I think government does need to step in and help to preserve these buildings so that they are not lost.

we had during my time as town supervisor, they, they built a gas station across from the town hall and we were very involved in not we, I should say the historic overlay committee, the Architectural Review Board was very involved in the type of brick they were going to put up, whether there was going to be a canopy or not.

And I think it's important for government to be involved.

As far as the Morgan-Manning House, you know, we work very cooperatively with the Landmark Society, with the village of Brockport, to make sure that we're going to preserve this house for, you know, generations to come.

>> Katie Eggers Comeau is a member of the Five to Revive committee, but also we've been talking about, as an architectural historian at Bero Architecture, the Landmark Society would be proud of me if they could see my social feeds.

I'm not on social very much, but social does a great job at tracking what it thinks you want and figures out how to how to algorithm you into, you know, stuff to, to look at.

And you know what I get on my feeds, I get well, this is how this is what people ate in, in ancient Rome.

This is, this is how people lived in, you know, 400 B.C.

I'm fascinated with stuff like that.

And maybe that's just me.

Maybe I'm just a nerd for like learning how to like, what were sleep patterns like before electricity?

Like, I'm just fascinated by all this stuff, but maybe most people aren't.

How much does it matter to preserve character?

That helps us literally see and touch what our past would have looked like.

>> I guess I'm that kind of nerd too, because I love that stuff too, and I find it so helpful to have a place you can go to experience that type of thing.

I remember, you know, as a kid visiting the Stone Tolan House, the Landmark Society property, and just wondering what it would be like to actually live like that.

And you can see it.

You can feel it.

I grew up in a historic Erie Canal village where, you know, you could walk to things and you could, you know, see the canal.

And of course, it's different seeing it now than how it would have been, but it's still such an interesting experience, you know, and being surrounded in that type of environment.

you know, it does, it connects you to the past.

It connects you to people who went before you.

It gives life a lot of character.

>> Well, I mean, that's maybe a good way to kind of wind down this hour here.

So Wayne and Larry, we got about two minutes left here.

Wayne, I'll start with you.

What do you want to leave with listeners as they look at not only this list, but past lists and the effort at preservation?

>> Well, you know, this this list is, is sort of our way of, of prioritizing projects.

And, you know, when John said one of the benefits is getting the word out, we've seen over and over again, that's a big important part of it is just to get the word out that the building might be available for redevelopment.

Some folks might need some help with fundraising to get this off the ground.

And so word of mouth and publicity really helps.

And I would just end by saying not only this list, but but other historic properties.

And we have them all over Rochester.

It doesn't have to be a restored museum.

You can go into an adapted historic building.

And I believe that by connecting just a little bit more to our past, it, it really grounds us more in the present.

And it kind of gives us more clarity, believe it or not, for the future.

And I think it happens in all of us, whether we recognize that or not.

And it's been happening for millennia in architectural design.

So it's something we take seriously, and we think it translates into quality of life.

We think it translates into economic development, community impact.

And so that's what keeps us going every day.

>> Larry, final thoughts from you.

>> I think it's it's a matter of timing.

You know, we always, I think every year we say, oh, this is the best, you know, list we've ever come up with.

But I really, really like this list and a lot of things really hit me personally and emotionally.

And it was just time for all of them.

It was time to talk about the Morgan-Manning House.

They, they need help.

They've done great work.

It was time to talk about the cobblestone because the hospital was ready to talk about it and wanted to the, the Seneca Falls machine factory.

There's a couple in there that need help that really want.

They were thrilled.

They were so excited.

At the press conference that they had been chosen this year and chosen.

I mean, it's not a matter of you know, shaming.

Oh, I don't want to be on that list.

They were chosen and they were excited about it.

And Cutler mail chute.

I mean, there's a lot going on with that at this point, and we don't want to lose it and we are going to fight for it.

And of course, you know, for me, the LGBTQ plus historic sites is very, very important at this time for, for our children, for our elders.

They should know about it.

And we should all be proud.

>> Landmark Society.org.

Thanks to all of you for being here.

Thank you for making the time to tell us about the list.

Paul.

Good luck to you with the Morgan-Manning House.

Keep us updated on that.

Thanks everyone.

>> Thank you.

>> Thank you, thank you competition.

>> And from all of us at Connections, thanks for watching.

Thanks for listening.

we're going to be back with you tomorrow or you might see us tonight 6 p.m.

is that right?

Megan Mack 6 p.m.

the WXXI Town Hall on our various platforms.

I'll be there for that.

If not, I'll see you tomorrow on Connections.

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