By JAMES FINK
Business First

Nearly one year after it went on the market, the historic Calumet building - an anchor of the Chippewa Street entertainment district - may be sold.

The law firm of Kenney Shelton Liptak Nowak LLP, in partnership with Amherst developer Angelo Natale, has put the three-story, 104-year-old building under contract. Patrick Kenney, firm founder, confirmed that the firm has made an offer to its current owners, restaurateur Mark Goldman and Buffalo attorney Arthur Ziller.

"We're doing our due diligence and looking to see if it makes sense," Kenney said.

Terms were not disclosed. No closing date has been set, and the deal has not yet been finalized.

The 24,000-square-foot building, at the corner of Chippewa and Franklin streets, was listed for $775,000 with commercial real estate broker Alan Hastings from Hastings Cohn Real Estate. The law firm is working with Anthony D'Auria from Waterbourne Real Estate Advisors LLC.

Kenney said his firm would occupy the building's two upper floors, roughly 16,000 square feet, while three businesses - Bacchus Wine Bar & Restaurant, La Luna night club and the Third Room, a tavern, will all remain as tenants on the first floor.

With the move, Kenney Shelton Liptak Nowak would increase its office space by 33 percent. The firm currently leases 12,000 square feet in the Rand Building.

Kenney Shelton has been a tenant of the Rand Building since the firm formed in the fall of 1994. The firm has 26 lawyers and a total staff, including lawyers, of nearly 50 people.

"We clearly needed more space," Kenney said. "We rented for 15 years, and figured our money would be better spent if we owned instead of renting."

Kenney said he and his partners considered a number of locations - all in the downtown core - before settling on the Calumet. The building's history and location, along with its available space, proved attractive.

Goldman and Ziller acquired the Calumet in the late 1980s and renovated the circa-1906 building. The Calumet restoration and the subsequent creation of Goldman's Calumet restaurant has been widely credited for helping to spearhead the revival of Chippewa Street into downtown's main entertainment district.

If completed, the Kenney Shelton deal for the Calumet will mark the second time in as many weeks that a Buffalo architectural landmark has gone under contract. Last week, Ciminelli Development Co. confirmed it is negotiating to purchase Bethune Hall near Bennett High School.