If These Walls Could Talk… Interesting Facts about Bethune Lofts

Bethune Lofts, located at 2917 Main Street, is one of Ciminelli Real Estate Corporation’s historical, residential renovation projects. We developed 87 loft style apartments, beautiful common areas, and outdoor spaces to compliment various lifestyles. Since the building was originally built in 1917, it is full of rich history that sets it apart from other residential buildings in the Buffalo area. While reminiscing on Bethune’s history, we thought we would share some of the building’s most interesting facts:

Bethune Lofts was originally a daylight factory.

Although it seems as if the building was created to house unique loft apartments, Bethune Lofts had a much different use in the early 1900s. On October 1st, 1892, George B. Bassett established the Buffalo Meter Company in order to manufacture water meters from his own patents. In 1915, the growth of his company facilitated the need for a new building to house operations. The company enlisted the nationally prominent firm of Lockwood, Greene & Company, based in Boston, Massachusetts, a firm also known for their role in designing Buffalo’s Pierce Arrow Factory and the Larkin Exchange Building. Construction of the new Buffalo Meter Company Building, now known as Bethune Lofts, began in 1915 and was completed by 1917.

The building is named after the first professional, woman architect – Louise Blanchard Bethune.

On May 27, 1971, the University at Buffalo purchased the former Buffalo Meter Company Building. Beginning in 1973, the building was used by the University to house the Department of Art, the Architecture Department, and portions of the Division of Continuing Education. It was renamed as the Louise Blanchard Bethune Hall, after the first professional woman architect and the first woman fellow of the American Institute of Architects. Ciminelli honored this history and renamed the building Bethune Lofts, not only retaining its history, but also highlighting its new use.

Bethune Lofts made a special appearance in the movie “The Natural”

The building had a role in the 1984 movie “The Natural” starring Robert Redford; an American sports film, based on a novel, which recounts the experiences of Roy Hobbs, an individual with great “natural” baseball talent. Bethune Lofts was one of many Buffalo-area buildings and sites filmed for the movie and was used as a stand-in as an early 1900s industrial building. Some other famous Buffalo landmarks that make an appearance in the film include Buffalo Central Terminal, War Memorial Stadium, Parkside Candies, and the Buffalo Psychiatric Center, now known as Hotel Henry Urban Resort Conference Center.

The building houses a total of 87 loft apartments.

Bethune Lofts is an excellent example of a historic, adaptive reuse, and was renovated to accommodate 87 loft apartments. The original layout of the building was protected in the renovation process to enhance the individual units. This creates unique and exciting apartments that give potential tenants the ability to choose what layout best fits their lifestyle. There are a total of 28 different unit types, each featuring their own distinctive amenities. One of the most interesting units in the building is the penthouse style apartment that occupies the fifth floor and offers exceptional city views. For more information on each unit style, visit the Bethune Lofts website.

LEED Silver Certified

LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is the most widely used green building rating system in the world. LEED provides a framework to create healthy, highly efficient, and cost-saving green buildings. Tenants of Bethune Lofts realize unmatched energy efficiency inside the walls of the historic building. Substantial resources were dedicated to ensuring the building was comfortable and energy efficient for tenants, sustainable within its surroundings, and of little impact to the environment. The true measure of our success is the achievement of Silver level certification from the US Green Building Council.