Century Old Bowling Alley Demolished, Apartments to Be Built in Its Place

It was a sad day in Upstate New York when an irreplaceable part of history was permanently destroyed.

A bowling alley that's sat proudly at the corner of Amherst Street and Elmwood Avenue since 1892 is no more.

Despite the protests from local historians and residents, excavators and bulldozers razed the structure in a matter of hours.

WGRZ reports Voelker's Bowling Alley in Buffalo has been standing vacant since 2021.

Buffalo Common Councilman Joe Golombeck told the outlet that the building had become an eyesore and needed to go.

Read More: Iconic Upstate New York Music Venue Saved from Abrupt Closure

"I'm on that street almost every single day and there's broken windows, there are boards that are being ripped off," he said.

A bunch of the neighbors have me on speed dial and call me and send me text messages on a regular basis and I got to the point where it was a safety issue and something had to happen there.

Due to the possibility of injury, a housing court judge ordered the demolition two years ago.

Despite repeated pushes by local bowling leagues to restore it to its former glory, and a petition to preserve the Voelkers' tavern, the building's owner sold the parcel to local developers.

Instead of a piece of history will now stand apartments and retail space. Construction is set to begin sometime next year.

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