GREENFIELD — Over the next month, the former Rooney’s building on Main Street will be getting a facelift as crews work to remove the 1960s tin facade covering the front of the building, revealing the brickwork underneath.
Rachael Katz, who owns the building that also houses her business, The Greenfield Gallery, said the project will not only spruce up the front of the building, but also address potential structural issues created by the current facade. The work is being done through the town’s Commercial Facade Improvement Program, which covers 75 percent of the cost of the project.
Katz said the first phase of work is estimated to cost $60,000, and she will cover the remaining 25 percent.
Because the project is so large, she said, it will likely be divided into three phases. During the first phase, crews from R.G. Penfield & Sons will remove the tin panels and make the building weatherproof. The work began this week and is expected to last a month.
“We don’t know what’s under there — it could be plywood on the windows, it could be worn out, ugly bricks — we just don’t know at this point. But we’re going to get the tin off and get it weather-tight, and then start picking at it a little at a time and say, ‘Let’s fix a window, let’s repoint a brick,’” she said. “Eventually, we’ll get the whole front of the building redone in terms of restoring the facade back to something close to the original, and redoing the street level facade with new lighting and marquees, and that will pretty up the whole block.”
The building, also known as the Botsford Block, was built in 1874. It was originally four stories with 15- to 20-foot chimneys, but the top floor burned down after being struck by lightning. Katz said the brick facade under the panels is from the 1940s.
When the tin panels were put on the front of the building in the 1960s, Katz said the trend at the time was to make everything look modern and sleek. Now, she said retro is in again — particularly a blend between retro and modern, which includes styles like steampunk and art deco.
She said after the bricks are uncovered, she can work to create a new look that is more timeless.
Katz added that the work is also being done for structural reasons. The tin facade covers the entire front of the building, which needs to be accessed for leaks and holes where animals can get in.
“There are some unknowns, though, because the phase between 1940 something and 1960 something, which is between when this facade went on and when the previous facade went on — there’s virtually no documentation of,” she said. “It’s going to be a little bit of a surprise. We have a vague idea of what the architecture might look like, but no idea really at all what condition it’s all going to be in.”
The 1940s brick facade was also never joined to the first-story 1960s facade, so Katz said some creative marquee or molding work will have to be done to merge the two. “I think (the project) is part of a lot of growth that’s going on downtown, and the facade program is just one of the ways that the city has been working with the businesses to make this happen,” she said.