F.N. Burt Building

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2010



Photo credit: David Torke, fixBuffalo, Buffalo Rising, Preservation Studios

Location

500 Seneca Street Buffalo, NY 14204
Google Bird's Eye View
Fillmore Council District
SBL: 111.81-7-1
Erie County Property Info
County Tax Map (loads GIS page)
City of Buffalo Parcel Viewer

Across from: 503 Seneca Street , A&P Tea Warehouse, and A&P Bakery

Owner

Savarino Companies and FFZ Holdings
NYS Corporation and Business Entity Database

Physical Description

400,000 sq. ft. six-story warehouse complex. Original building was timber framed, later addition reinforced concrete.

Current Condition

Renovated into a mix of offices and cultural and business incubator space

History

  • 1896 - F. N. Burt first begain producing boxes.
  • 1901 - Its first building at the current location was built; a five-story, timber-framed portion of the building at the corner of Seneca and Hamburg streets. It was designed by the architectural firm of Niederpruem, Gibbs & Schaaf.
  • 1903 - Two additional wings were added.
  • 1909 - Company purchased by the Toronto-based office supplies company Moore Corporation but retained the F.N. Burt brand name.
  • 1910 and 1916 - Additions constucted.
  • 1926 - The biggest factory expansion occured, when much of the reinforced concrete building was constructed. That part was designed by architectural and engineering Plumer and Mann. Plumer and Mann also designed Trico Plant #1.
  • 1959 - The plant was shuttered when the company moved to Cheektowaga, but one subsidiary of the company (Burt Rigid Box) continues to this day.
  • The building was later occupied by New Era Cap Co. until 2004.

Recent Events and Actions Taken

  • March 2010 - Sam Savarino purchased the structure from New Era Cap Co. for $200,000
  • December 2013 - The Erie County Industrial Development Agency will hold a public hearing for the proposed $35 million project. The project will be the subject of an ECIDA policy committee review on Jan. 13 and a full vote by the agency’s board of directors on Jan. 29, 2014.
  • April 2014 - Plans call for 55 apartments to be included in the renovation plan

Other Pertinent Facts

  • F.N. Burt was the largest manufacturer of small paper boxes in the world, at upwards of four million boxes a day.
  • Located within Buffalo's oldest manufacturing district, the Hydraulics Neighborhood.
  • Sept 2009 - Nomination for State and Local Register of Historic Places submitted for Hydraulics on a Multiple Property Documentation Form, laying the groundwork for property owners to designate other buildings in the neighborhood as historic.

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Added 2013-01-09 • Last changed 2018-03-27