Syracuse, N.Y. — The former owner of a massive brick building demolished by the city of Syracuse claims he’s not responsible for paying off a $2.2 million judgment stemming from the work.
East Syracuse-based developer Bryan Bowers has asked a judge to remove him and two of his limited liability companies from a monetary judgment the court approved in November to cover the city’s costs to demolish an empty seven-story warehouse at 400 Erie Blvd. W.
Sometimes referred to as “Big Red,” the building hovered over the corner of Erie Boulevard and West Street for more than a century. City officials took legal steps to knock it down last year because it was in danger of falling onto a busy road.
In court papers, Bowers said that he no longer controls a fourth LLC that is the property’s legal owner so he bears no responsibility for any bills connected to the site.
The city urged state Supreme Court Judge Joseph Lamendola to reject Bowers’ request, saying in court papers that Bowers was simply trying to “avoid any and all financial consequences resulting from his failure to maintain his property.”
The city argued that Bowers waited too long to try to get himself off the hook. Until recent weeks, he never tried to remove himself as a defendant in the city’s 2024 lawsuit seeking a demolition order and the city’s motion for the judgment made last fall.
In a proceeding Jan. 15 that included a roughly 20-minute private conference in the judge’s chambers, Lamendola agreed to adjourn the matter until March 12. But he made his initial feelings known.
“It’s not lost on the court that (Bowers), in many respects, has been thumbing his nose at the city,” Lamendola said, noting the city was being “gracious” to agree to more time to see if an agreement could be reached.
The judge used the same phrase — “thumbing his nose” — in December 2024, when he granted the city’s request for a demolition order. The order included language holding Bowers and the LLCs responsible for the costs incurred by the city and preventing the sale or transfer of the property until the work was completed.
But court records in an unrelated legal proceeding show that Bowers lost control of the LLC that owns the Syracuse property, called 400 Erie Boulevard LLC. In June 2025, a lending company that’s foreclosing on six properties Bowers used as collateral to secure mortgages acquired multiple LLCs controlled by Bower via a forced Uniform Commercial Code auction.
That lender, Abinger Capital, began foreclosure shortly after acquiring the mortgage debt from the original lender. Abinger’s foreclosure petition said Bowers and his entities defaulted on $18.6 million in debt.
An attorney now representing 400 Erie Boulevard LLC and several other entities formerly controlled by Bowers in the foreclosure case told syracuse.com he was not aware of the demolition judgment involving the Syracuse property. The Buffalo-based lawyer, Jon T. Powers, declined further comment. The property also has $46,000 in delinquent property taxes dating back to 2021.
Neither Bowers nor the attorney representing him before Lamendola on Jan. 15, Syracuse-based Brian D. Roy, returned messages seeking comment.
The city has not received any documentation confirming new ownership for 400 Erie Boulevard LLC, spokesperson Sol Muñoz said. No one representing the LLC has contacted the city, either.
She said Syracuse agreed to the court’s adjournment because “the attorney for Mr. Bowers expressed an interest in resolving this matter without the need for future motions or court appearances and requested an adjournment to allow the parties to discuss a resolution. As a general matter, the City is willing to consider settlement offers to resolve litigation matters.”
Syracuse code enforcement first issued Bower an emergency order in the spring of 2024 directing Bowers to demolish the building by June 24. He told the city he could get the work by the end of the summer, so officials the timetable. But when minimal work had taken place, the city took him to court in November 2024.
Bowers had also said he would build an apartment building at the site with 125 to 150 units.
The warehouse, built in the early 1900s, was long used as a cold-storage facility for the Bartels Brewing Co., according to the Onondaga Historical Association.
Demolition is underway at the warehouse at 400 Erie Blvd. W. on the outskirts of downtown Syracuse, seen Wednesday, July 24, 2024.Jon Moss | jmoss@syracuse.com