Moving the Office

Teitsch-Kent-Fay Architects, P.C. is celebrating the sixth anniversary of our move to the Atwell Mill building (132 Albany Street, Suite M-1).

Teitsch-Kent-Fay Architects, P.C. has had offices in a number of locations over the years, curiously, all of these have been on Albany Street in the Village of Cazenovia:
69 Albany Street (Jack Teitsch founded the firm at this address in 1966)
72 Albany Street (Bob Kent joined and he and Jack worked together until the early 1980’s at this location)
47 Albany Street (Jack, Bob, and eventually Dan were partial owners of this building which was renovated for our offices in the mid 1980’s)

In 2015, as Bob Kent was preparing for retirement, the decision was made to sell the building, requiring the office to find our new (and current) location at the Atwell Mill. This move gave the firm the opportunity to move towards a “paperless” concept. While described above as an “opportunity” this represented a gargantuan task of attempting to digitize the firm’s entire archive.

In addition, having been at our 47 Albany Street address for three decades, there were also mountains of samples, photos, records, etc. that needed to be reviewed, digitized if possible, and eventually disposed of. After having worked with clients for so many years on projects which disrupt their living conditions, there was a certain amount of poetic justice in having to undertake this task. A sort of “penance” was paid as we struggled to come to terms with all of this material.

While more than a challenge at the time, the result has been an enormous improvement to our operations. Files which were once buried in the black hole that was the “attic loft” of 47 Albany Street are now immediately accessible digitally. A complete searchable archival index has allowed us, when a client asks if we have some old information to respond either: “Yes, absolutely we do! I will email it to you!”, or “Our records indicate that we do not have that information, can we assist you in another way”. Either way, it is so much better than the previous “I am not sure, can I get back to you… sometime?”

An unforeseen consequence of the move and all of this archival work has been that in a very real sense, the past has come alive again. Old projects, which were once extremely difficult to access, are easy to find, and can help inform our current work in a much more meaningful way.

On a practical note, our new office space is much more accessible, and parking for our employees and clients is considerably more convenient. While it was a long struggle getting here, the move to 132 Albany Street remains a real reason to celebrate. Please stop by and see us any time, we would love to see you!