Real Estate The Building Collector. By M. Reed Bergstein.

The Building Collector

Al Kaneb

They sure don't build them like they used to. These days modem office buildings are designed with function in mind, leaning heavily on economy and productive use of space. It's a world of the padded cubicle now, an atmosphere of dropped ceilings, beige plastic computer terminals, bland metallic desks and user -friendly yellow foulard neckties.

Such was not always the case. In the early years of this century office buildings were built for dignity, monuments to commerce constructed of marble and oak and gilt. It was a time of cast-iron typewriters, fountain pens and green eye shades. BY M. REED BERGSTEIN

In just about any city you can see these glorious reminders of the architectural past. But too often these older office buildings have lost their luster of elegance and grandeur, succumbing to modem "improvements," or just as likely left to seed, orphans awaiting the wrecker's ball and the bulldozer.

But there is a glimmer of hope for some. Thanks to the dedication and enthusiasm of one Boston developer, two )fPortland's vintage office buildings have been rescued and returned to much of their original stateliness.

In 1984, AIKaneb, president ofthe New Barnstable Corporation, purchased two major properties at Congress and Preble Streets: the former Chapman Bank and Trust Company, and the former Fidelity Trust Company. With a careful eye for restoration and attention to detail, Mr. Kaneb has labored love on these two fine examples of early twentieth-century commercial architecture, and in so doing helped spearhead the renaissance of Congress Street.

The Fidelity (now Commerce) Building at 465 Congress Street, a Beaux Artsbeauty circa 1910,wears its ornate stone facade like a grandame. In the lobby the Sun savings and Loan Association conducts business in an enormous room, reached via tenderlyrefurbished gold-leaf doorways opening into a vast space of veined marble and regal columns. In such a room it's easy to imagine Edward Amold, sporting cutaway morning coat and pincenez glasses, fuming belligerently into a candlestick telephone, or lionel Barrymore, demeanor sour as the gilded eagle perched above the door, wheeling menacinglyaeross the polished floor, intent on stealing the scene and driving Jimmy Stewart into financial ruin.

Directly across Preble Street at 477 Congress the Chapman (Monument Square) Building is a delightful exampIe of Classical Revival, an ahnost perfect knock-off of the Daily Planet:· Small business space is laid out along a gradually sloping foyer enhanced by ceiling moldings, wooden elevators and even a brass post box. To the rear, the space has been connected to the smaller adjacent buildings, and the original detailing of the old theatre lobby gleams with new life. Outside, the building looms majestically, and one can almost expect to glimpse Clark Kent, sans eyeglasses, pirouetting out of an upper story window, chichi in blue tights and red cape from Brooks Brothers.

The energy behind bringing these two buildings back from the brink of obscurity belongs to AI Kaneb. He fosters an obvious affection for buildings of this stripe, and has indeed gone the distance toward revitalizing the best aspects of their design, oft.en incurring costs that do not necessarily interpret into immediate return on investment. Dropped ceilings have . been removed, revealing the lovely, • higher originals. Interior windows have been pushed through walls to open the space. And in the case of the Chapman Building, Mr. Kaneb refinished the skin on the unsightly upper two floors, added in the early 1970s, to help them conform to the original facade. It's a th<;mghtfulcosmetic touch that does more to improve the building's appearance in Portland's skyline than line the pockets of the landlord. "I liked the buildings' proximity to Monument Square," Mr. Kaneb comments, ."as well as being attracted to Congress Street, and the general vitality and quality of growth in Portland. " Along with similar buildings Mr.Kaneb owns in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and Manchester, New Hampshire, these two beau ideals make fine additions to his collection, an opinion shared by Greater Portland Landmarks,who presented Mr.Kaneb a special award this spring for his demonstrated commitment to quality, and the health and resuscitation of the Congress Street business area.

In an era when many developers are infected with a slash-and-burn philosophy, Mr.Kaoeb's effortstoward preserving Portland's noble past show that, just perhaps, the good old days aren't quite as lost as they seem. __

The Monument Square Building, 477 Congress Street, Portland. ,

The Fidelity, 465 Congress Street, Portland, a Beaux Arts beauty circa 1910.

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F/,;' HEWLETT

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28 U.S. Route One Yarmouth, ME 04096 846-5143 - 800-322-5003 ME But it's funny, I coach wrestling at Deering High School, and when I was over at the Lifeline program at USM, where I often work out, warming up, a few Deering wrestlers were over there and called over to me, "Hey Mr. Elowitch, what are you doing over there with those old people?" And I said, "You have to understand, I am one of those old people!"

PM: When you're transferring from your gallery director persona to your wrestling persona, what's it· like? Do certain objects trigger the change, like a kinetic memory or Love Potion Number Nine?

RE: There are certain things, like my wrestling jacket - just seeing it in my bag ... It's sensuous, both in a feeling and a seeing sense, probably more seeing. And getting ready to work out when I leave my (Western Prom) house in the morning. Jeans. Bag. Wrestling jacket. The sight of that jacket alone. stimulates me unbelievably. (With art and wrestling) there is both a separation and a combination. The psychological factor of making a change is almost like fulfilling a fantasy.

PM: Do the other wrestlers know who you are now?

RE: You've got to realize, we're talking about creative, exciting people in many, many instances, but you don't pry. I don't know what they're doing in their lives. It's a closed thing. You enjoy each other's company if you can, just like in the art world. What's impossible to miss, though, is that both wrestling and art have elements of show business.

PM: You mean elements that are staged, that aren't real?

RE: (smiles) There's no such thing that's not real.