Crews Tearing Down Crumbling Pre-Civil War Building

ALBANY – Crews are working to tear down a pre-Civil War building in downtown Albany after a roof collapse.
Officials said the roof collapsed Thursday at the state-owned E-Comm Square building. The brick structure was built in 1849 and housed industrial and mercantile businesses for decades. It had been vacant for years.
Crews began work on the four-story structure Thursday. Demolition is expected to last into the weekend.
New York state bought the building and neighboring properties in 2010 for a convention center project.
The facility wound up being built a few blocks away.
The Times Union reports the $675,000 demolition cost will be picked up by the state’s state Albany Convention Center Authority.