The backside of the former J.C. Penney building in downtown Albany is beginning to look like it did when it was built about 1915.

A two-man crew from Cougar Construction of Albany used bits of recycled glass comprised of such things as pickle and beer bottles to remove age-old yellow paint and expose the original red brick.

The glass comes from recycling bins, is crushed, cleaned to remove glue and then sized, said John Harmon of Eco-blast.com LLC of Tigard. His company developed the waterless and ecological-friendly process to remove paint.

"It's slow work because we aren't sandblasting, we are doing a restoration," he said. "We're trying to do the least amount of damage to the brick. When the paint's off, we'll wash it, dry it and then reseal it against the weather."

To comply with historical requirements, the yellow paint can be removed from only the back of the 26,000-square-foot, three-story structure, said Rick Mikesell, one of the building's three owners. So in the front, the paint will be power-washed only.

The other owners are Ron Nagel and Rick Rebel.

The next step is to install new double-hung windows framed in black-painted wood.

New gutters on the building will be black, and black ornamental awnings will be placed on the front and back.

The metal facing will be ripped from the building's façade to expose the old windows, the old roof will be removed and new white vinyl material put down, and the structure's original skylights will be restored.

Inside, demolition has started with more to do, Mikesell said.

Once finished, a portion of the 8,000-square-foot upstairs will be occupied by Western States Insurance Benefits Planning, Rebel's firm, and the remainder will be leased.

Mikesell is meeting with restaurant owners to find a tenant for the main floor. Pastime Antiques will move from the main floor to the basement.

The goal, Mikesell said, is to have the upstairs ready for Rebel's insurance and benefit planning office to open around the first of the year.

The building was designed by Charles Burggraf, a noted Albany architect who designed public structures all over the state.

The project has received financial assistance from CARA, the downtown Albany urban renewal agency.