Nine Not to Ignore: No. 7

In April, inspired by the NYS Preservation League's Seven to Save list of endangered sites throughout New York State, Gossips began its list of endangered buildings in Hudson. After a little hiatus, the list resumes today.

7  The Gifford-Wood Building

Tucked out of sight, at the end of a street that was created for no reason other than to give access to it, is the building that was constructed in 1910-1911 to be the new home of the Gifford-Wood Company. The company was established in 1814 by Elihu Gifford, the father of Hudson River School painter Sanford Robinson Gifford. In 1905, Gifford Brothers merged with William T. Wood & Co. of Arlington, Massachusetts, to form the Gifford-Wood Company. In 1911, the company moved from the building shown in the picture below, which stood at the intersection of State and Green streets, to the building at the end of Hudson Avenue.  

When the company made the merger and the move, it was headed up by Elihu's grandsons, Malcolm and Arthur Gifford.

The building was last used as a manufacturing plant for McGuire Overhead Door. McGuire closed the plant in Hudson in 2006, and since then the building has stood vacant. Recently, however, it went on the market with an asking price of $7,625,000. The online listing includes historic pictures of the building and of the tools created there, as well as a photograph of Sanford Gifford and some of his paintings. It also includes this description of the building's location:

The trends in the area include a roster of commercial uses that could be considered as part of an adaptive re-use initiative and/or redevelopment. Local development trends on Warren Street are for gentrification with new investment focused on building-up the Warren Street corridor with new investment in hotels, galleries, restaurants, stores, offices and more. The spillover of this gentrification has transformed older homes and commercial properties nearby to a less degree but generally the area is experiencing new investment originating mainly in New York City and perhaps Boston. The property is walking distance to the train station and the Hudson River waterfront. The site is located n a quiet section of the city of Hudson, the very close to Warren Street, the focal point of the community and the gentrification.

After thirteen years of standing vacant, it seems something new may be happening for this building. Of course, "adaptive re-use initiative and/or redevelopment" does seem to leave the door open for demolition. One can only wonder what its future will be.
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