Rollin Hellner considers himself to be a real estate dealer. He and his company, Hellner Development, work with commercial space and residential space but what he really likes to focus on is historic preservation.
“The thing I love the most is these old buildings.,” he said. “They’re really these hidden gems.”
It’s from this interest that Hellner has gained a reputation as someone who will work to save a property slated for demolition and bring it back to life.
No roof? No problem. Money? He’s willing to invest. Plumbing, electric, etc. If Hellner looked it over and said it couldn’t be saved, every option was explored in full before the building was torn down for good.
“It just seems like people just dismiss (these buildings), but I’m able to look through and see the bones they have. The natural beauty,” he said.
Hellner will be honored on May 30 as one of the winners of a 2024 Preservation Award for Emerging Preservation Leader at the Buffalo History Museum from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. by Preservation Buffalo Niagara.
Hellner talked about his work in his bar, The Walsh Hotel & Tap Room in Medina, another old building that is seeing better days since he’s renovated it.
“This is the third oldest bar in New York, built in 1852. It’s always been a bar — but with boarding rooms at the time. Now we’re doing apartments. Some Air BnB hotel rooms, too,” he said.
Hellner said what he looks for is a good layout and a good location. He bought the old Cold Storage Building in Lockport on Hawley Street, for example, in 2021.
Hellner said it was going to be knocked down, so he bought it without hesitation.
“I didn’t know what I was going to do with it, but I was going to fix it up, give it another 150 years,” he said. “If you own a historic building, you don’t really own it, you’re just someone who occupies it for the moment. You’re really just a steward. A steward for the building and a steward for the community.”
Hellner said he’d probably keep the building for storage, perhaps never sell it. He just didn’t want to see it “crumble.”
With a lot of plans for future projects, including a completely electric renovated home – this year – Hellner said he intends to build 50 residential houses in Niagara and Erie counties. There’s a housing crisis right now, he said, and he’s trying to make affordable housing, without the connotation.
“I don’t like to use the words ‘affordable housing’ because it ties into something we’re not,” he said. “To me market rate should be affordable. … That’s my goal to provide good housing for people.”
Preservation Buffalo Niagara is a non-profit that identifies, protects and promotes historic buildings, according to its website.
In her letter to Hellner, Executive Director Bernice Radle wrote that “Rollin has been recognized for his extraordinary commitment and dedication to his community and to historic preservation. Without this commitment, many landmark buildings would be gone forever.”