Hodgson Russ and Guaranty Building Receive NYS Excellence in Preservation Award

Hodgson Russ was honored with an Excellence in Preservation Award from the Preservation League of New York State for the law firm’s renovations of the Guaranty Building, a National Historic Landmark that serves as the firm’s Buffalo headquarters. The award was presented at a ceremony held May 12, 2010, at the New York Yacht Club, New York City.

Jay DiLorenzo, president of the Preservation League, said, “Adler & Sullivan’s Guaranty Building, completed in 1895, is known as one of the finest office buildings in the country. Despite restoration achievements in the 1980s, stewardship of the landmark building declined, and by the late 1990s its future was uncertain. The law firm Hodgson Russ purchased the landmark in 2002, and with vision, leadership, and unflagging commitment to both the Guaranty Building and Buffalo’s downtown, spent the next seven years on exterior and interior restoration.”

We at Hodgson Russ are honored that Catherine Schweitzer and other friends at Preservation Buffalo Niagara nominated our firm to receive this prestigious award, and we are delighted to have been among those selected to receive it.

Along with the rewards that come from owning and running a business in an architecturally and historically significant building, Hodgson Russ has faced numerous challenges associated with our purchase of this gem. In addition to the many structural problems that come with a building that is more than 100 years old and has gone through long periods of neglect, we were also committing to having our headquarters in an area of the city that was, at the time of our purchase, underutilized, at best.

Thankfully, there have also been countless benefits associated with owning and restoring this downtown treasure. Among them are the pride we take in having the opportunity to foster and maintain one of the great architectural treasures in Western New York and in our country. We are also delighted to be part of what we see as downtown Buffalo’s resurgence. Our commitment to the Guaranty Building is just one manifestation of our commitment to Western New York and all of the communities we serve.

Contributing to the success of our renovations were Flynn Battaglia Architects, Gensler Architecture, GPS,  Morris Masonry, M/E Engineering, and Boston Valley Terra Cotta.