Stucco-covered 7 Ontario St. stands at the intersection of Ontario and Lock streets, within sight of the Erie Canal Flight of Five locks and Erie Canal Discovery Center. Presently it’s an eyesore, its new owner says, but with the right kind of investment, it could be back on the tax rolls and contributing to the local economy.
Developer Chuck Bell, president of Harrison Studio and past president of Greater Lockport Development Corp., purchased the property this past January. The building has been vacant for about 20 years, he said.
Bell has a $1 million plan to restore the property as a mixed-use commercial and residential space.
He wants the stucco torn off, and the building’s original brick and stone work revealed. He envisions three, one-bedroom apartments on the upper level and a hospitality-related retail business on the lower level — specifically, a wine bar and bistro looking across Ontario Street toward Lake Effect Artisan Ice Cream and the Erie Canal.
“It lends itself to a food and beverage business. A restaurant with outside seating would be perfect,” Bell said.
7 Ontario Street caught Bell’s fancy in 2020 when he purchased 4 Lock St., which is connected to 7 Ontario. Bell said he wanted to buy the property then, but the owner at the time was not ready to sell. That changed last year, and the sale was closed in January.
Now Bell is looking for grant money and incentives to renovate 7 Ontario. Heather Peck, current GLDC president, is recommending the City of Lockport seek $500,000 from Empire State Development’s Restore New York program.
“Direct investment into this pivotal property will help renovate (it) in a manner compatible with the look and feel of the locks district,” she said.
Bell is redeveloping 4 Lock St. as a mixed-use, commercial-residential property as well; three apartments are being created on the upper floor there, too, he said, and the street-level space is slated to be occupied by a salon and The Locktender, a “bottle” beer store with a small tasting room.
Bell recalled that a 2014 study conducted by GLDC found a need for approximately 200 apartments in the downtown area.
“Harrison Place Lofts (on South Street) will take a big bite of that,” he said, but it won’t completely satisfy the need.
The value of downtown living spaces is the occupants help support downtown shops and stores, Bell observed.