Just when you think a downtown eyesore couldn’t get any worse, the owner of 495 Main Street has painted the building black. The exterior change was not approved by the Preservation Board. The former Burger King restaurant is a non-contributing structure within the 500 Block of Main Street Local Preservation District. According to the City’s website, the Preservation Board regulates exterior alterations in local preservation districts and requires owners to “obtain a Certificate of Appropriateness before beginning any exterior painting, especially if you are changing the paint colors.”
April 18 Exterior
The 5,856 sq.ft. building was constructed in 1978 and has seating for 140. Current owner DC Wholesale Inc purchased the property in 2012 for $140,000. The building was listed for sale in early 2025 for $1.5 million, likely hoping to cash in on Douglas Development’s buying spree in the area. Douglas Development picked up three buildings on the 500 Block, the Casa di Pizza building on E. Mohawk, the Mohawk Ramp, and the Century parking lot at Washington and E. Mohawk Street behind the Burger King property. The corner building would have provided a Main Street presence for a Century parking lot new build.
The two-story brick cube at Main and Mohawk has been empty since Burger King closed in September 1998. Downtown lost several other fast food restaurants at about the same time including an Arby’s at Main and Genesee, a nearby Wendy’s, and two McDonald’s- one across from Burger King and one in the Theater District. The fast food exodus from downtown accelerated after the closing of AM&A’s/BonTon, LL Bergers and Sibley’s…