The building is valuable because a prominent downtown developer/millionaire wants to spend some of his millions redeveloping it. Say what you want about Keffilanos, but he understands the basics about economics better than anyone at the DEGC, DDA or city, including Dave Bing. It's why Keffilanos worked his way up from being an immigrant dishwasher to being one of the city's most prosperous businessmen. It's why businesses keep lining up for space at the Russell Industrial Center. The Lafayette won't stay empty long once his people start working on it because he understands the law of supply and demand, and will price his space to fit the market. Few other downtown landlords have shown they can do it. If anyone could turn that Lafayette into lemonade, it's Keffilanos. Anyone who can't see this is either blind or deliberately closing their eyes.

Fact:
Demolishing the Lafayette will create a couple of temporary jobs
Rehabbing the Lafayette will create hundreds of long-term jobs
Demolition erases tax base, something a broke city badly needs
Rehabilitation creates millions of dollars in tax base
Demolition will create a blighted vacant lot, make it harder for the Book Cadillac to succeed and destroy the Coney Islands [[see the Statler site)
Rehabilitation will raise property values, maintain the urban fabric and enhance downtown's tourism potential

Letting Keffilanos or anyone else who wants to put their money where their mouth is and rehab the Lafayette is a no-brainer. Letting this opportunity to create jobs, tax base and value pass by at a time when the city badly needs all three would be a complete and utter failure by the DEGC, DDA and city's part.