Governor Andrew Cuomo’s State of the State address brought big news for not only New York State, but for Buffalo as well. Governor Cuomo announced a $1 Billion economic development package for the city to promote large investments in growth industries to locate or relocate to Buffalo. “New York State is on the way to coming back stronger than ever before. By working together in a bipartisan manner and putting the people first, we have established the credibility to govern and to lead. Now we must build on what we have already accomplished to begin to undo decades of decline.…
Author: Mike Puma
Adapted from a press releaseMark C. Poloncarz signed five Executive Orders as his first order of business since being sworn in as Erie County’s eighth County Executive. The orders concerned a number of issues including: the Buffalo Bills Stadium Lease, the creation of a Medicaid Anti-Fraud Task Force, the County’s electronic time keeping “swipe card” system, updating Equal Employment Opportunity (“EEO”) guidelines and the County Attorney’s use of outside counsel. “As a candidate, I promised to implement many of the recommendations that I made as Comptroller, that were, unfortunately, ignored by previous administrations,” said Poloncarz. “Today, as my first order…
Although the future of St. Matthew’s Church remains uncertain, there are some great things happening on the block. The former convent, rectory, and school have all been reused in recent years and there is some new work currently underway. This is the first part of a two part series highlighting the good things happening on the St. Matthew’s Campus. The former convent and rectory have been purchased and rehabilitated for the treatment, job training, and safe housing for homeless veterans. It’s called the Peter Young Altamont Program, named after Father Peter Young. The Altamont program is funded by the federal government…
Behind the boarded windows of the historic Calumet building, big things are starting to take shape. Work is currently underway, restoring the historic fabric of the building and preparing it for new tenants. The law firm of Kenney, Shelton, Liptak, & Nowak (KSLN) partnered with Frank Parisi and Angelo Natale to purchase the building from Mark Goldman and Arthur Ziller in January 2011. Carmina Wood Morris is the architect for the project and Natale Builders is doing the actual renovation work. Bacchus Wine Bar is still occupying the first floor, but has recently expanded their footprint in the building. The…
This week the Erie County Industrial Development Agency (ECIDA) approved over $1.2 million in various tax abatements for several different projects throughout the region. The aid is expected to create over $12 million in private investment while also creating 150 new local jobs. The ECIDA signed-off on a $300,000 brownfield redevelopment program grant from National Grid for the Bethlehem Steel Rail Improvement Project. The ECIDA, Erie County, Tecumseh Redevelopment, Inc., South Buffalo Railway, and National Grid have partnered to relocate an existing rail corridor. The grant from National Grid will be used to redevelop 400 acres of the former Bethlehem…
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher have approved UB’s NYSUNY 2020 Challenge Grant application. The grant will provide a critical piece of funding to enable UB to move ahead with its UB 2020 plan for academic excellence and move its medical school to the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. “UB 2020 will create jobs, facilitate private investment and help turn the University of Buffalo into a national leader amongst public research universities,” Governor Cuomo said. “This is a real investment in revitalizing economic development in Western New York. I look forward to seeing how this plan transforms…
Come out and join preservationists, urban planners, architects, and laymen for a great drinks and even better conversation about historic preservation in Buffalo. Buffalo’s Young Preservationists (BYP) are hosting their monthly happy hour at the Essex Street Pub (530 Rhode Island Street) tonight from 6pm to 9pm. It’s a casual event with great opportunities for networking and discussing future BYP projects and events. Buffalo’s Young Preservationists is an inclusive group that welcomes interested young people from all related fields to join in celebrating our region’s built history through preservation-related events as well as innovative new partnerships to specifically engage this…
The Seneca Nation of Indians have filed for arbitration claiming New York State has violated its gaming compact. The compact guarantees the Nation a 14-county Western New York exclusivity zone for casino gambling. It defines the term “gaming devices” to include slot machines and video lottery gaming devices. The zone essentially covers all land west of State Route 14, which bisects the state from Sodus Point to the Pennsylvania line. After more than a year of unproductive discussions with state officials, the Seneca Nation of Indians have taken action. The Nation has withheld over $350 million in payments to NYS and…
Western New York is receiving over $100 million from New York State for a long list of different projects. While there is a lot of money being spread throughout the region, Erie County alone is getting over $51 million of the $100.3 million. Among the big “winners” was the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus which is receiving funding for several projects. $5.1 million will support the Roswell Park Cancer Institute Genome project to build a robust approach to personalized medicine. The approach will enhance the study of genetic sequences, the health information data associated with individuals’ genetic sequences, and enable analysis…
Last week a small group of advocates worked together to halt the demolition of twenty-four city-owned properties. David Torke of fixbuffalo, Daniel Ash of Farmers and Builders, Mark Kubinec, and myself documented the existing conditions of the properties to determine if demolition really was necessary. Check out this Google Map for the locations of the properties which was generated by David. Now before anyone cries obstructionist or declares how necessary and wonderful shovel-ready sites are, let me explain. The City of Buffalo has no strategic demolition plan. That means if they own it and cannot sell it, they will tear it down. As a result, two…