Too Late

The Binghamton, as photographed by Greasywheel:

It’s unfortunate that the Binghamton is being demolished. It is said to be the last relic of the steam-powered, double-ended ferries* that were once everywhere in the New York area, crossing the rivers and bays. That era is not coming back and it would have been nice to have some physical reminders of it.

That said, the time to save this ship was not now. It had been converted to a restaurant – not necessarily the best reuse, but a valid one – but that closed ten years ago. Since then, it has not been maintained, and a boat without maintenance deteriorates even faster than a building without maintenance. It’s now such a mess that it would effectively have to be rebuilt to be saved, and that’s not a realistic goal.

I’ve said it here before, but the way to save historic landmarks – whether designated as such and therefore protected, or not – is to keep them in use. A building, or an old ferry, that is in use has some kind of revenue stream to pay for emergency repairs. There are people inside it who will complain if the roof leaks. It is actively on the radar of municipal agencies that protect safety, and therefore its condition is not a forgotten by-default secret.

It should be obvious to everyone that people in conservation are not miracle-workers. We can’t save structures that are literally falling apart without a good amount of money, effort, and physical intervention. If we set aside those owners who deliberately wait until it’s too late in an effort to have neglect demolish their unwanted buildings, then we need to make it clear, again and again, to everyone else that waiting to repair is a bad idea. Weathering damage only goes one way: it gets worse and it does so at increasing speed as time goes on. And sooner or later, it’s too late.

* Here’s an example circa 1900: