The owner of the Brandreth Pill Factory on the Ossining waterfront began demolishing it today.

The factory building is on the National Register of Historic Places and is Locally Landmarked as well. The Village of Ossining Building Department and Police Department stepped in and stopped the demolition crew, but much of the front façade had already been taken down.

Plateau Associates LLC of Pleasantville owns the property. The owner of the building was due in Ossining village court today at 2 pm for other violations with the building, said Joanna Tall, chair of the village's Historic Preservation Commission.

"We are all amazed at this owner's brazen attempts to destroy this structure," Tall said. Neighbor Miguel Hernandez posted on the About Ossining-A Town Square Facebook page that by the time the work was stopped it was too late.

Here's the Wikipedia entry:

The former Brandreth Pill Factory is a historic industrial complex located on Water Street in Ossining, New York, United States. It consists of several brick buildings from the 19th century, in a variety of contemporary architectural styles. In 1980 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1]