ALBANY — Albany’s Nipper building, with its iconic 28-foot-tall RCA dog statue on top, has been tagged with half of an “X” placard by the city amid safety concerns.
The building, located at 991 Broadway in the city’s warehouse district, was once slated to become apartments but has since fallen into legal limbo, and now, apparently, into disrepair.
The building has been marked on its exterior with a placard featuring a single slash across a red background, or half of a letter X, which alerts first responders, such as the police or fire departments, to use “extreme caution” when entering the building. A placard marked with a full X signals that a property is so dangerous that even during a fire, the building should only be entered if someone’s life is in danger.
It is unclear how the placard will impact the potential redevelopment of the building, possibly into apartments. Zipporah Hommel, a spokesperson for Mayor Dorcey Applyrs, told the Times Union that an interior inspection would need to take place before the city would reconsider the designation. She said she did not know the exact date that the placard was attached to the front door, but that the city codes department “makes every effort” to contact the owner to schedule an inspection.
“Our fire department and buildings and codes department work in tandem to properly note vacant buildings. The placing of these placards is important for our first responders, who can have a clear indicator of vacant buildings when responding to potential calls,” Hommel said.
The building has been mired in lawsuits. City property records indicate that a local attorney is acting as the property’s “receiver” and is essentially in charge of the building as the legal process plays out. The Times Union left a message with the receiver, Conor Brownell, an Albany attorney, seeking comment, but did not hear back.
Two other structures in the area of the Nipper building on Broadway were also marked with a half or full X placards, which were placed on their front doors relatively recently.
Nipper, one of the world’s most famous trademarks, originated with a painting, “His Master’s Voice,” by Francis Barraud from around 1898, featuring the pooch staring into a phonograph with his head cocked to the side, according to a previously published article by Times Union Digital Producer David M. Johnson.
In an effort to capitalize on the piece, Barraud offered to sell the image to the Edison Bell Co., maker of the phonograph featured in the original painting. After being rebuffed, Barraud took his painting to Victor Talking Machine Co., an affiliate of The Gramophone Co., and agreed to paint a brass Victrola over the phonograph, which became the iconic final image. That company was eventually acquired by RCA Records and Nipper grew into an internationally recognized logo.
The giant-sized statute of Nipper, rendered in steel and fiberglass, has been perched atop the Albany warehouse since 1958.