Go Green: Landmark Society Helps Preserve Old Buildings

There's a group in Rochester working hard to make this a sustainable community.  They're doing it by preserving old buildings. 
They are pieces of Western New York history.  Buildings with a new story to tell.  The Landmark Society of Western New York is working hard to keep them around.   And, the environment is benefitting.  

"The building that already exists, we say is the greenest building that does exist.  Because of all the energy embodied within that building," says Wayne Goodman, the Executive Director of the Landmark Society of Western New York. 

One recent project was a stone store in Clarendon.  It was in danger of demolition when the town decided it didn't want to keep it.  But the Landmark Society got involved, and now the building is for sale for $1.  The future possibilities are endless.   "The building was structurally sound and it made more sense for the town to give the building away than spend 20-25 thousand to tear it down," says Goodman.  

The Landmark Society has been in Rochester for 75 years and the building it is located in, in Corn Hill is one of it's biggest success stories.
"Any time we go out and preserve a building, we feel like that's certainly sustainable,"  adds Goodman. 

The Landmark Society uses grants to help save these old structures.  The idea of getting more people to live back in the city center is another way to save resources. 

"The infrastructure already exists, water, sewer, electrical, it's all there.  Even shade trees, sometimes people forget about that.  Tree lined streets provide a canopy really help in cooling our homes during hot summer months.  So there's a lot of advantages on focusing on a historic district when it comes to the environment," says Goodman.