County planning deconstruction and salvage plan for downtown buildings; SHPO site visit scheduled

Tompkins County staff and consultants told the Facilities and Infrastructure Committee they are planning a deconstruction‑first approach for three downtown buildings and will submit documentation to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) this week, with a site visit scheduled for April 10.

Kat McCarthy of the county Department of Recycling and Materials Management presented a briefing on deconstruction practices, markets and the “spectrum” from adaptive reuse through full deconstruction. "Deconstruction is the careful, systematic dismantling of part or whole of a building structure in order to recover materials for reuse, resale and recycling," Kat said, citing CROWD’s white paper and New York State solid‑waste guidance.

Committee members and project managers said they have coordinated consultant work to inventory building materials. Holt (the county’s consultant on the downtown facilities project) will prepare designs and abatement plans and will help identify reuse or recycling outlets early in the design process, staff said. The county reported Cornell students and consultants walked the buildings and are completing material inventories; staff said those deliverables are expected soon.

The deconstruction discussion focused on operational constraints and opportunities: where recovered materials can be staged, how quickly outlets can be found, contractor capacity in the region and the time required for deconstruction compared with conventional demolition. County project lead Irel (and consultant representatives) told legislators that full deconstruction will take substantially more time than conventional demolition; Holt estimated the Baker Building took four months and said these buildings could take longer, perhaps up to six months for deconstruction work in the field.

Historic material ownership also surfaced. Committee members reported that some ornamental ironwork removed previously from 308 (the Professional Building) was taken by a third party after a sale agreement included a clause giving the buyer rights to certain fixtures. Christine O’Malley of Historic Ithaca was identified in committee discussion as the recipient of some salvaged elements; staff said the county lacked legal rights to prevent that removal after the sale agreement language took effect. The committee asked the county attorney to confirm the precise legal status and to document any claim to architectural elements.

Staff emphasized the county will try to avoid long‑term on‑site storage of salvaged materials because space is limited and markets must be lined up early. They said reuse options could include local salvage organizations, municipal uses, or regional buyers; but markets for large items such as specialty window glass or large ornamental metal can be limited and costly to transport.

The committee agreed the early, coordinated approach is appropriate and asked staff to continue work with Holt, the recycling materials department, Cornell partners and potential downstream vendors to develop a staged deconstruction schedule, market list and a plan for staging or transporting salvaged materials.

The SHPO application and scheduled April 10 site visit are intended to inform the county’s historic preservation obligations and the timing of any deconstruction activities; staff said they expect a SHPO response in late April or early May.