Statler Towers Are Falling Down, Falling Down…
Well, at least the Skyway is perfectly safe, right?
Masonry experts inspected the exterior of the Statler Towers today after a piece of the building’s stone cornice crashed 20 stories onto the pavement Wednesday night.
Part of the cornice on the historic structure’s northwest corner at Delaware Avenue and West Mohawk Street gave way shortly after 8 p.m. Pieces of debris flew as far as 60 feet, but there were no injuries.
A one-block stretch of Delaware between Niagara Square and West Huron Street will remain closed for an undetermined amount of time, officials said. West Mohawk Street between Elmwood Avenue and Franklin Street also will remain closed. Some of the sidewalks on several streets near the Statler also are off-limits to pedestrians.
James Comerford, the city’s inspections chief, was at the scene today with experts from Highland Masonry and Empire Building Diagnostics. They were assessing the situation and plotting a remedial plan. The work will likely take a couple days, officials said.
I’m just glad that a) no one was hurt, and b) my commute wasn’t drastically affected.
Matt Margolis is co-author (with Mark Noonan) of Caucus of Corruption: The Truth About The New Democratic Majority. He also blogs at Blogs For Victory. Follow Matt on Twitter.