Buffalo City Hall is a masterpiece of Art Deco architecture standing 32 stories high in the heart of downtown Buffalo, New York. Constructed in 1929 and designated historic by the U.S. Department of Interior, the building features carved sandstone and terra cotta construction with a domed central tower flanked by two side wings. After nearly 80 years of exposure to harsh upstate winters and freeze-thaw weathering, the building required extensive masonry and facade restoration. Graciano Corporation performed the comprehensive restoration program, completed August 2009.
Scope of Work
The restoration addressed sandstone, terra cotta, bronze, and structural elements across the building exterior, from street level through the upper tower elevations.
- Unit stone replacement
- Stone patching and facade pinning
- Stone carving to match originals
- Repointing masonry
- Parapet and coping reconstruction
- Dutchman repair
- Masonry surface rehabilitation
- Masonry cleaning
- Chemical cleaning
- Alkaline and acidic cleaner application
- Paint removal
- Epoxy injection into cracked stones
- Sealant replacement at windows and doors
- Bronze window restoration (first four floors)
- Lintel replacement
- Flashings
- Roof replacement at 15th floor
- Scaffolding installation to 15th floor
- Polyurethane waterproofing
- Corner stone restoration
About the Project
Buffalo City Hall represents one of the finest surviving examples of Art Deco civic architecture in the United States. The carved sandstone exterior and ornamental terra cotta cladding, while monumental in scale, proved especially vulnerable to the severe freeze-thaw conditions common in western New York. Moisture infiltration over decades had fractured stone faces, opened mortar joints, and undermined the structural performance of the facade assembly.
Graciano's craftsmen performed extensive scaffolded access to address conditions at every elevation. Stone carving was required to produce replacement units that matched the original Art Deco profiles -- a demanding task requiring skilled stone masons working from detailed documentation of the existing ornament. Epoxy injection stabilized cracked stone units where full replacement was not warranted. Facade cleaning employed a combination of alkaline and acidic cleaning methods appropriate to the different surface conditions encountered across the building.
Bronze windows on the first four floors were restored as part of the project, preserving the building's original fenestration at the public-facing base of the tower. The 15th floor roof replacement addressed a major moisture entry point contributing to freeze-thaw damage in the upper elevations.