The video above includes footage from a December 2021 walkthrough of the mansion.

ELMIRA, N.Y. (WETM) – Two years ago, the historic and domineering mansion at 615 Columbia St. in Elmira went viral online when it was listed for $100,000. Months later, it had a new owner with big plans to turn back the wheel of time and bring the house to its former glory.

But two years on, New York City-based owner Mehdi Hasan said that very little work has been done on the house. The reason: a struggle to find local contractors.

Hasan owns Metro New York Housing, LLC in Queens, N.Y. His contracting company, under the name Metro Restoration, especially specializes in limestone and brownstone restoration in New York City.

In late 2021, when Hasan let WETM into the Elmira mansion to look around, he explained his endgame is to restore the house as close to its original state as possible, flush with things like restored or antique furniture or a new wrought iron fence. At the time, Hasan said these renovations should take about two years.

But that didn’t happen.

Based downstate, Hasan explained that it wasn’t feasible to bring his own crews five hours up to Elmira. So, he needed local subcontractors based in the Southern Tier.

However, according to Hasan, nobody’s jumped on board, delaying the work.

The house was built in 1876 as a single-family home for the Webbers. Over the years, it changed hands several times and new owners split it into apartments and removed pieces on the exterior. But Hasan said he wants to turn it back into a single-family home and possibly even work with the Chemung County Historial Society to make it a museum of sorts that the people of Elmira can enjoy.

Anyone interested in working with Metro Housing to restore the mansion can contact the company at 718-521-1435, info@metrorestoration.net, or at the company headquarters at 10623 75th St, Ozone Park, NY 11417 in Queens.