Schenectady, NY
Some of the salt-and-pepper shakers are still on the tables.

But everything else about the tiny art deco building on Erie Boulevard, from the water-stained pin-striped curtains to the sagging roof, shows obvious signs of wear.

The Silver Diner sits on the cusp of rubble piles generated from the demolition of the former Robinson furniture building on State Street. The city ordered an emergency demolition of Robinson last month after it was determined that the structure was unsound.

The 71-year-old diner, once comfort to the growling stomachs of countless General Electric workers, is not part of the demolition. But because the diner is so close, questions have been raised again about what to do with it.

Schenectady's economic development arm, Metroplex, announced Wednesday it will pay a Niskayuna construction firm $3,000 to determine whether the diner is salvageable.

If it is, Metroplex said it will consider a loan of up to $75,000 to help get the building back up to code. The company doing the report, Prize Construction, would then apply for National Historic Register designation to make the project eligible for tax credits and other benefits.

"Now is the time to address this, now that we're addressing the Robinson building," Metroplex Chairman Ray Gillen said.

The topic of revitalizing the diner has come up on and off for years. After a few years of closure, the city took over the building around 2000 because of delinquent taxes. Getting someone interested in purchasing it, however, has been a problem. The diner's owners bought a 1918 railroad car for $100 to create the diner, which opened on Election Day in 1936.

Gloria Kishton, chairwoman of the Schenectady Heritage Foundation, went inside the diner with an engineer about a year ago to assess its condition. A deteriorated roof has let in water that has permanently damaged the floor. But Kishton said the basement, where a bathroom existed and some kitchen preparation was done, is stable. Also, the original booths, counter stools and some woodwork could still be saved.

"The diner seems to really touch the heartstrings of people," Kishton said. "Just because we may find economically it's a crazy thing to do, it may be somebody's dream (to redo it)."

Gillen said if Metroplex's report shows the diner is beyond repair, the city could donate it or parts of it to the American Diner Museum, a group based in Providence, R.I., that relocates and helps save diners throughout the country.

Daniel Zilka, museum acting director, wrote an architectural report on the Silver Diner for the Schenectady Museum in 2003.

Zilka at the time said the diner was salvageable, but that it either had to be relocated or covered up to stop continuing water damage. The diner's roof was never reinforced. But he said he is still confident the building can be preserved. The museum would have to find a taker for the diner in order to accept it as a donation. But finding someone would be a priority, Zilka said.

"There aren't many railroad cars left that were converted into diners," Zilka said.

Originally published online here: http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=627242&category=SCHENECTADY&BCCode=&newsdate=10/5/2007