Otis Bed Manufacturing

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Photo credit: Mike Puma, ViewsOfBuffalo

Location

170 Florida Street, Buffalo, NY 14208
SBL: 89.82-5-72.1
Masten Council District
Google Bird's Eye View
Erie County Property Info
County Tax Map (loads GIS page)
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Owner

KARPIO DANIEL M per City of Buffalo Property Information
Recently (April 2016) purchased by Common Bond Real Estate

Physical Description

Two story, 46,000 sq.ft. industrial building complex on 1.5 acre parcel along a linear City park

Current Condition

History

  • History via Mike Puma at Views of Buffalo
  • 1880s - The company was incorporated as the N.P. Chaney Company
  • 1911 - The company began building on Florida Street with a two and a half story concrete section.
  • 1912 - By now the company was known as George A. Otis Bed Manufacturing company, and had grown to one of the largest in NYS.
  • 1923-1925 - The two-story brick and tile buildings were built
  • There were several other additions and outbuildings created over the following decades.
  • WWII - The factory was used to produce plastic products by Bernard Oshei, the brother of John Oshei, the founder of Trico.
  • post-1948 - It was used by several different manufacturers after Bernard’s death, including DuBois Plastics and Fibron Products
  • Mike Puma, April 2016: "It was built by the Otis Bed Company, which made and sold mattresses, box springs, and bed frames. They also had a patented mattress rejuvenation machine for cleaning the feathers in the mattress for re-stuffing when required. Otis is still in business today, although no longer located in the City of Buffalo. The next occupant was Bernard Oishei of Dubois Plastic Products (later Fibron), which occupied the building until its bankruptcy in 2006. The building was then purchased at the In-Rem foreclosure auction in 2007 for a cool $25,000, which sounds like a deal until you add the near half million dollars invested by the previous owner to get the building up to snuff for storing building salvage materials."
  • Irving Air Chutes, a parachute manufacturer, was located at 1670 Jefferson in the 1930s. This is the parcel across Jefferson, now a Canisius College parking lot. Reports of Irving Air Chutes being in this building are doubtful.
  • (Not sure about this) According to WNY Heritage Press, the building was also once a factory for Irving Air Chutes. Leslie Irving, a California native, made his first prototype on a borrowed millinery sewing machine in Buffalo. His company started in June 1919 and produced most of the world's parachutes in the 20s and early 30s. By 1939, Irving had 6 factories, including one in Buffalo. The company still makes parachutes in California today.

Recent Events and Actions Taken

  • 2007 - purchased by Dan Karpio at the in rem auction for $25,000
  • 2014 - listed for sale
  • 2016 - bought by Common Bond Real Estate.

Other Pertinent Facts

  • Located in the Hamlin Park Historic District

Availability

Not currently for sale
From the July 2014 listing: Price: $750,000; Taxes: $5,093; Square Feet: 46,002, 5,000 sq. ft. of heated floor, 1.5 acre property, large paved and fenced parking lot, 400 amp service, newer roofs, sprinkler system throughout, truck level loading dock, radiant heat.

Links


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Added 2014-07-18 • Last changed 2016-10-14

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