Grassroots effort bringing new life to historic Somerset landmark

Yahoo

28-04-2025

SOMERSET, Pa. – Dating back to 1875, the onetime Brinker Building is among the few surviving anchors of 19th-century uptown Somerset.
It's a can't-miss mainstay on the borough's central 'Diamond,' often part of the backdrop in photos chronicling Somerset's festivals and celebrations, said Somerset Inc. Executive Director Regina Coughenour.
It had also become a blight, sitting vacant and deteriorating in the heart of town. But that is changing, sometimes brick by brick, through 'do-it-yourself' dedication and several years' worth of volunteer labor, Somerset Inc. officials said.
And now, a nearly $300,000 Main Street Matters grant awarded this month will enable the group to start preparing the site for new life, Coughenour said. It's part of a plan to redevelop 'Diamond Row' with a mix of uses, with a commercial space on pace to complete construction this winter.
Often remembered as the Brinker Building or for its longstanding Army-Navy store, the site is actually a series of three connected buildings on West Main Street.
The first, a three-story brick building designed in the Italianate style, was built in 1875, Coughenour said. The rest followed about 12 years later. Over more than 120 years, it hosted clothing retailers, a shoe shop and a music store.
'It's an important historic asset to this town, right in the center of town,' she said, adding that many of the surrounding structures from the era were destroyed by fire generations ago.
Somerset Inc. officials hoped the building's history, location and unique – if attention-needy – charm would help them lure tenants to the site nearly a decade ago.
They hosted contractors and prospective tenants. 'Pop-up shops' were staged to offer the community a glimpse inside, with the hope someone would be willing to breathe new life into the Brinker Building.
But one time after another, the response was the same, she said.
'They saw the crumbling plaster ... and structural concerns,' Coughenour said, adding they were often told that it would cost several hundred thousand dollars just to stabilize the site.
It got to the point Somerset Inc. officials realized they might be the building's only chance at revival, she said. They decided to take on the demolition and stabilization work – and reached out to the Somerset community for help.
'We knew we couldn't do this alone,' Coughenour said.
Grassroots effort
Funding through tax credit-eligible contributions from UPMC Health Plan, Somerset Trust Co. and Global/SFC Valve Corp. enabled the group to acquire the property in 2020 and get to work.
Support for that work was possible through the Neighborhood Partnership Program, a tax incentive program that the City of Johnstown more recently joined in 2024.
Somerset Inc. volunteer Morgan Simmons said one of the building's most pressing issues involved an exterior wall that was crumbling due to water damage. The mortar eroded to the point the other side of the wall was visible, he said, and one section needed to be completely replaced.
The group recycled bricks to keep their costs down.
Volunteers replaced the soffit above to protect the wall from future damage, said Simmons, who has an engineering background and is serving as Somerset Inc.'s lead on the project.
Landmarks SGA, of Pittsburgh, is the project's architect.
But inside the structure, it's been a team approach, Coughenour said. Volunteer employees from businesses such as Somerset Trust Co., Habitat for Humanity workers and teams of local gym members put in exercise by removing paneling, drop ceilings and other debris.
And piles of coal. As it turned out, there were tons of it still sitting in a basement space that had to be carried out one load at a time, Coughenour said.
'It was found behind one of the walls, and we had to shovel it into buckets to remove it,' Coughenour said, adding that a local farmer hauled it from the site for reuse.
They've filled seven dumpsters with layers of deteriorated building materials, most of it from renovations that altered the interior over the past 100 years.
Other demolition work revealed hidden beauty, including the building's original hardwood transom and the basement's flagstone floor. A set of pocket doors likely covered for decades were also discovered in an upstairs apartment, Coughenour said.
'We've been saving everything we can,' she said, adding that teams pulled nails from salvageable hardwood planks that will eventually be reused.
Well-worn pieces of tin ceiling are being removed and will be restored, she said.
Coughenour credited a handful of local businesses for donating labor – and sometimes heavy-duty help.
Servpro, Kinsmen Electric and Columbia Gas supported demolition efforts, she said. Paul Miller Masonry helped rebuild the wall, while Lincoln Contracting, of Somerset, and Riggs Industries donated heavy-duty equipment, including a crane.
'Labor of love'
She said the project has been a true 'community' undertaking.
'We're so thankful for the way the community has come together,' Coughenour said. Somerset is 'scrappy,' she said, citing a willingness 'to get our hands dirty, and we're proud of that.'
The project has, at times, been a slow-moving 'labor of love,' Coughenour added, but signs are present that the hard work is making a difference.
Bare walls now reveal rich red brick. Brand-new stairs were built and new framework is in place for future interior walls.
Plans for the project outline a commercial space on Diamond Row's main floor – perhaps a business incubator for start-ups – while a studio apartment and a grand two-story, multi-bedroom apartment are in the works, Coughenour said.
The commercial space could be business-ready this winter, but the residential apartments are envisioned for completion as a secondary phase afterward, she added.
The Main Street Matters grant will enable the group to install infrastructure this year for new utilities, including new plumbing and updated wiring; insulate the space; and continue interior rehabilitation work.
She said Somerset Inc. plans to carry the project through to its completion – and will likely retain the building once it's back in use.
'We want to make sure it's here for the next 100 years,' Coughenour said.