SALAMANCA — The New York State Board for Historic Preservation has selected 18 historic sites for inclusion in the State and National Registers of Historic Places this year, including a downtown Salamanca building that recently received a facelift.

The Nies Block, located at 63-75 Main St., is one of five historic sites in Western New York and the only one from Cattaraugus County announced Friday by Gov. Kathy Hochul as nominees that represent varied histories highlighting stories across the state.

“I think it would be a great thing for Salamanca,” said Mayor Sandra Magiera, who was unaware the building had been in the running for the honor. “I wonder how it even became nominated.”

Constructed in 1891, the Nies Block is an excellent example of a large commercial Italianate-style mixed-use building located at the corner of Main and River streets. The building was owned by Charles Nies, a prominent pharmacist and business leader in the community, and housed Nies’s pharmacy and saloon.

With four street-level storefronts, the building housed many commercial and retail operations and had apartments and housing on the upper floors. A hardware store, millinery, dry goods store, and grocery store were the first occupants of the building, and this type of diversified commercial offerings continued for many decades.

Historically, the building was the site of pivotal negotiations between the Salamanca citizen’s committee — including Charles Nies and other Salamanca businessmen — and the Seneca Nation of Indians council in 1892. This meeting limited Seneca control over non-native development in the area through intentional manipulation methods by the committee and led to increased construction in the city.

The building is a notable local landmark for its prominent cornice and chamfered corner with a decorative arched pediment reading “Chaz. Nies.” At the time it was constructed, it was the largest business block in Cattaraugus County, and by the time of Nies’s death in 1919, it was still the largest in Salamanca. The building continued to be owned and occupied by members of the Nies family until 1985.

When Salamanca’s Main Street had been the business center for the city, Magiera remembers the Nies Block’s “big corner one was (Walt) Mason’s shoe store. Then there was the Texas Hot in the little one. Then there was the outdoor store.”

Most recently, the building was owned by the Rural Revitalization Corporation, a non-profit housing agency out of Olean, until 2017. With New York state approval, current owner Gary Marchiori acquired the building and took it as private ownership as River Place LLC. A $500,000 restoration project assisted by a $450,000 grant from the Empire State Development Corporation has breathed new life into the building after it sat mostly empty before the coronavirus pandemic.

“They’ve invested a lot of money into fixing it up, and a lot of (spaces) are rented out,” Magiera said. “It would be another positive for our city. I hope they get it.”

New York State continues to lead the nation in the use of historic tax credits, with $3.96 billion in total rehabilitation costs from 2018-2022. Since 2009, the historic tax credit program has stimulated over $13 billion in project expenditures in New York state, creating significant investment and new jobs. According to a report, between 2018-2022, the credits in New York State generated 72,918 jobs and over $1.47 billion in local, state and federal taxes.

The State and National Registers are the official lists of buildings, structures, districts, landscapes, objects and sites significant in the history, architecture, archaeology and culture of New York state and the nation. There are more than 118,000 historic properties throughout the state listed on the National Register of Historic Places, either individually or as components of historic districts.

Property owners, municipalities and organizations from communities throughout the state sponsored the nominations. Once recommendations are approved by the Commissioner, who serves as the State Historic Preservation Officer, the properties are listed on the New York State Register of Historic Places and then nominated to the National Register of Historic Places, where they are reviewed by the National Park Service and, once approved, entered on the National Register.