Nassau's historic Octagon Hotel restored

In the mid-1800s, octagon-shaped buildings became a brief architectural fad, supposedly offering optimum space and even health benefits.

Seven of the eight-sided buildings remain on Long Island, with only one in Nassau. That historic structure -- the former Octagon Hotel in Oyster Bay -- is the largest of the group. Now, two years after it was almost demolished, the building has been restored.

After 18 months of work, the three-story building at 67 W. Main St. is occupied by a fitness center, software company and tenants of six apartments.

"I love what they've done," said town historian John Hammond. "It looks like the same structure that was there a century ago."

Some preservationists have complained about use of materials that aren't original, such as planks made from a concrete composite to replace the wooden clapboard siding. But Hammond said he thought "it was a wonderful compromise to preserve the building."

The structure built around 1851 was originally named Nassau House. Philip and Mary Lavavelle bought it in 1887 and renamed it Octagon Hotel.

Its connection to Theodore Roosevelt played a critical role in the building's preservation. When Roosevelt became New York's governor in 1899, his secretary set up an office in the hotel. After Roosevelt became president in 1901, Secret Service agents, reporters and politicians reportedly stayed there.

Sometime after 1910, the building was used as a Ford dealership. Other auto-related businesses followed until 2007, when Bevola Realty Corp. purchased the property.

Citing the years of deterioration and damage from a 2009 fire, the developers planned to demolish the building and replace it with a replica. But zoning rules for new construction required more parking, for which no space was available. The Oyster Bay Main Street Association, other historical and preservation groups and town officials then persuaded the owners to restore the original building.

The groups obtained $16,000 in grants for an engineering report and other studies. "The condition was about as bad as it could be and still be restored," said Isaac Kremer, association executive director.

John Lancia, one of the owners, said "it would have been easier to knock it down." But the restoration "turned out better for us," he said, by giving them marketing tools in the building's history and association with Roosevelt.

"I would say about 60 percent of the original building was saved," Lancia said. The porch, cupola and other lost architectural features were re-created. The Octagon was painted gray, the earliest color found under multiple layers of paint, shingles and siding.

All that remains, Lancia said, is adding shutters and trying to get the building listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

 The Octagon Hotel, by the years
1851. Built for Luther Jackson as the Nassau House. Later renamed Acker Nassau House.

1887. Purchased by Philip and Mary Lavavelle and renamed it Octagon Hotel.

1899. Governor Theodore Roosevelt's secretary kept set up an office in the hotel.

1901. Secret service agents, reporters and politicans stayed at the hotel after Roosevelt was elected president.

Sometime after 1910. Charles Davenport sold the hotel to Edward Fisher, who made it a Ford dealership.

2007. Bevola Realty Corp. purchased the property and started renovations.