The East Side will soon be the beneficiary of a large scale business park funded by Buffalo Billion and orchestrated with the help of the Western New York Regional Economic Development Council.
The State is forecasted to deliver $6.7 million to the park project, which is anticipated to change the face of an entire community. The 50 acres of land in question, identified as the “Northland Avenue Belt Line Corridor” (see map), is to be purchased and redeveloped by the Buffalo Urban Development Corp. for designated uses that include advanced manufacturing, tech, green, energy, etc. The land is currently vacant, industrial or underutilized, and is accessible by operational rail. The site will be repurposed and updated with new infrastructure. The City and the State have been looking for new large scale shovel ready sites, since the latest positive developments at Riverbend, a former brownfield.
“Reclaiming this land will revitalize a distressed neighborhood and make this vacant property home to an advanced manufacturing hub that will attract jobs and investment,” Governor Cuomo said. “Western New York is on the move and this Buffalo Billion investment will only add to this momentum.”
Howard Zemsky, Western New York Regional Economic Development Council Co-Chair and Larkin Development Group Managing Partner, said, “Funding through the Buffalo Billion will help us continue to focus on revitalizing the City of Buffalo to increase density in the city’s core, create new employment clusters and attract private investment. With this investment, the East Side of Buffalo will be poised and ready to capitalize on the projected growth of our manufacturing and energy sectors.”
Empire State Development President, CEO & Commissioner Kenneth Adams said, “The Buffalo Billion is enhancing Western New York’s competitive edge by creating an economic climate that attracts new developments in fast-growing, high-tech fields. The Northland Avenue Belt Line Corridor redevelopment plan is a great example of the progress being made since it will create jobs and bring new life to Buffalo’s East Side.”
The Northland Avenue Belt Line Corridor is bounded by Fillmore, E. Delavan, Grider and East Ferry.