Write a commentThe group Save Oswego’s Historic Sites (SOHS) gathered at the Oswego Public Library to discuss the status of the Cahill building on Jan. 7.
The discussion, led by Mercedes Niess who is the director of the H. Lee White Marine Museum, touched upon the city’s pending litigation on the old Cahill building. The group gathered to brainstorm solutions to save the building.
“It’s city property and it should be cared for and maintained while they figure out the developer,” Niess said.
SOHS’ mission is simple: to advocate that the City of Oswego seek a developer that will preserve and restore the historically-significant Nationally Registered Cahill building and to further develop and follow a historic preservation plan for the city.
Niess, who is not originally from Oswego, is an advocate for preserving the city’s history, including the oldest buildings in town.
“If we don’t act now, it will be a ‘demolition by neglect’ situation,” Niess said. “It’s an actual term. Buildings aren’t maintained as they should be, and eventually, they fall.”
SOHS set the previously-demolished St. Louis Church as a prime “demolition by neglect” example.
“It was a fairly simple fix,” Niess said. “All they had to do was clean out the gutters but nobody paid attention to it. We need to change that.”
As SOHS reminisced about the fate of the church, their passion and dedication to save the Cahill building heightened.
“We need to raise awareness to the city to spend money and time on this building to preserve it,” Niess said.
SOHS set a petition goal of 1,000 signatures to help save the building. The petition will then be presented to the City of Oswego to show support for the building.
SOHS will be holding its next meeting within two weeks; an update will be made to whether the meeting will be open to the public.
Visit the iHeart Oswego office, 29 W. Seneca St., to sign the petition. For more information, visit SOHS’ official Facebook page solely dedicated to help save the Cahill building.
