reconstruction | Ithacating in Cornell Heights

Maguire Ford-Lincoln Construction Update, 8/2019

14 08 2019

The north wing of the Maguire Ford-Lincoln dealership is about as gutted as it can get, with nothing left but the foundation footers, the concrete slab, and the structural steel.

New rebar is being kept on site for the foundation slab of the new additions, with a steel mesh likely intended for the concrete pour. The mesh will be laid into the excavated footprint and used to strengthen the concrete as the slab hardens. It’s a little hard to tell from a distance (the fencing perimeter is quite large, given that some of the site is still actively in use for car sales), but it looks like wood forms have been assembled for pouring and curing of the foundation walls and footers for the northwest addition – the northeast addition is not so clear, because the large soil mound blocks it from view. The trailer on site belongs to Breton Construction of Attica, perhaps for subcontracted excavation or foundation work. G. M. Crisalli & Associates is the general contractor.

The last I checked (drive-by a few weeks ago), work had yet to start on the new Maguire Nissan in the village of Lansing. Nissan will relocate from this site to their new showroom across town when it is ready in about a year. (It’s a strange combination of automakers. Ford and Nissan shared design and mechanical work on the Nissan Quest/Mercury Villager minivan back in the ’90s, but I can’t think of any other overlap between the brands.)

Project information and a detailed history and description of the Maguire Ford-Lincoln reconstruction can be found here.

Final site plan.

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Tags: construction, maguire, maguire ford/lincoln, photos, reconstruction, renovations, retail, southwest ithaca
Categories : construction, construction (planned), ithaca, photos

Chapter House / 406 Stewart Avenue Construction Update, 7/2018

15 07 2018

With 400-404 Stewart Avenue complete, developer Jim Goldman is focusing on the completion of the other half of his reconstruction, 406 Stewart Avenue. This is the property that Goldman originally owned and was destroyed in the spread of the fire that erupted at the Chapter House building. Architect Jason K. Demarest’s 3.5 story design is completely framed and sheathed in ZIP Panels; the panels are then covered in HydroGap, a premium grade housewrap to remove excess moisture while keeping new moisture from penetrating into the plywood sheathing. This is then layered over with (what I suspect are fiber cement) shakes, in contrast to the first floor’s lap siding.

My first inclination was that they needed to be painted, but looking at the design render, it appears as if the project team decided to reverse the brown and red siding bands, so now the first floor is red like the original building, but the upper floors are brown. This is not the first major change to the design, which was approved by the ILPC, but any revisions may have been done out of committee view at the staff level. The fenestration on the third floor is different, and the dormer on the gable roof was deleted. Note the partially glazed-in access stair for the third floor apartments, and the quarried bluestone stair columns and base.

There’s still a fair amount of work to do on the exterior with facade installation, trim and finish pieces and the installation of a steel grate to access the enclosed stair column. The one inside shot shows drywall hung with doors and some trim in place, but some pieces are still missing, the wall needs to be painted and the floors have to be finished. However, it’s not an especially large building (four units and eleven bedrooms as-approved), so chances are pretty good this will be ready to go by mid-August.

As for the Chapter House, a few shots through the window glass show the carpeted staircase leading up to the eight apartment units, and an unfinished 3,000 SF commercial space still looking for a tenant.