Former Seegert’s Dairy building sold at auction
By JOEL CUTHBERT, OBSERVER Staff WriterArticle Photos
SILVER CREEK - The old Seegert's Dairy building, now a crumbling eyesore, is expected to be flipped into a post modern marvel in the near future.
Recently, Chautauqua County officials announced Seegert's Dairy, located at 27/29 Buffalo Street in the village of Silver Creek, was sold at the county tax foreclosure auction held on Sept. 19.
The former dairy, which dates back to the 1920s, has been a longstanding code issue for village officials as well as an attractive nuisance and potential hazard for neighbors.According to Alice Growley, director of the county's Real Property Services Department, the dairy building was purchased at auction by KCDT Family Trust, of Buffalo, for $900.
"It's good news for the neighborhood, and for the community," Chautauqua County Legislator David Wilder said of the sale at a recent Silver Creek Village Board meeting.
With more than $40,000 owed in back taxes prior to the auction, nothing has been done to preserve or salvage the building in years. What's more, the progressively deteriorating structure stands threatening close to neighboring properties.
Following an initial walk-through of the building in June 2008, Chautauqua County Brownfield Coordinator Cheryl Ruth said the building contained general domestic waste, including computers, glass, an abandoned car, and tires. The building, which has a number of openings, is also a prime harborage for raccoons and other nuisance animals, and has been cited for broken glass and raccoons in the past
"The urgency of this site is it sits, literally, in the middle of a residential district," she said at the time. "So, it's not only an eyesore, it's an attractive nuisance, as well as a possible rodent and vermin attracter."
In addition, David Clark, owner of one of the properties abutting the dairy property, previously said the building was in a state of disrepair. The southwest wall was crumbling, the roof over the main portion of the building was caving in, and he said he picks up shingles around his property every spring which fall from the dilapidated roof.
With the recent sale of the dairy property, however, Wilder said the individual responsible for the purchase of the dairy has plans to remediate part of the building - likely the front portion, he added - in order to incorporate it into some sort of housing design. The remainder of the building is expected to be demolished.
"I think he is in the strange-structure housing business or something," he explained. " It's just good that the major portion of (the former dairy) is going to be torn down and it will be turned into a residential property to be put back on the tax rolls."
Although the dairy building was neglected for years by the former owner, Growley said there were no conditions placed on the recent purchase of the property to ensure it is either remediated or demolished in a timely fashion.
"When people come in to redeem their properties, they must have code compliance, but for properties we sell at auction, there is none," she explained. "It's the town's responsibility, and the code enforcement officer of the town, to monitor that at that point."
Comments on this article can be sent to JCuthbert@observertoday.com
