I thought a bunch of retailers were already picked and ready to set up here when completed? And I agree with William, this area just doesn't have the foot traffic and seems so far away when looking at it over the massive parking lot. Untill M&T gives it up to developers and we can create a mix use block on it, I don't see how 100 units and one grocery store can really support a retail idea like this. Speaking of the Market Arcade Building, I thought it was also going to have retailers fill up at least the first floor when re-opened a decade ago. And all it has to offer is an art gallery, a deil that is never open, a visitor center that should be open more often and the rest is all non-profit offices. Shouldn't a project like this be put on Main St? It already has the foot traffic, the spaces are there, the metro rail, and even visitors stay on Main St. because they think just because it's MAIN St. and has a rail line, it should have some kind of activity, retail, etc.

There is supposedly one tenant secured, and that's get dressed..I think they're currently in a temporary location at the Belesario retail space. I know somebody who was very interested in putting a couple concepts into action in this space, but ran into a lot of issues with the incubator concept. First, being that this is supposed to be an "open air" space, different businesses and business owners are esentially all working in the same room, just with dividers that don't actually close the spaces off from one another...who wants to do that? Second, the price that Rocco was quoting wasn't that affordable, and there is retail space in the heart of the Elmwood Village that rents for less. I'm not sure if Rocco has lowered the rates since then. And Third, I'm going to have to agree that this part of town, while seemingly up and coming, still feels very separated from the rest of the city. I don't think it is the most ideal location for a retail corridor downtown. Being that the 700 block of Main is going to be the first with 2 way traffic, I could see that being the best area to start.

I'm OK with the location and concept but because this part of the project has been brought into focus as a retail incubator for downtown, there's going to be a strong need from many interested parties to know how leasing is working out and what the numbers are on day to day foot traffic. Since the design of the retail area seems unusual and new for many downtowns, my hunch for success would be to have an established anchor in the middle of this retail tunnel or corridor or small pedestrian mall that this thoroughfare will become known as. The best bet , in my opinion, would be a restaurant or club or a combination of both that will be an instant draw. A magnet anchor is definately needed here.

have we forgotten the retail spaces at the renovated block at the corner of main & virginia? while the residential aspects have been occupied, there still hasnt been a tenant on the ground floor. Kind of disheartening

Spoiled - Uh..........What's a ladies suite ?

I do not understand why some are so against National anchors being brought in? It not only shows a 10-20+ year lease committment, but it also lowers the level of apprehension about the overall surrounding district trying to be formed. In previous posts, people nag about these retailers, but if you go to any thriving shopping district in any major city - Boston, Chicago, Pittsburgh - you will find national tenants abound. The reason we are mainly against them is because we see them in our covered shopping malls planted next to thruway exits i.e. Galleria, and that leaves us with an image of big box, or general negativity. A two-story Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, H&M, Urban Outfitters, Starbucks - or even Coffee Bean Co. or countless others in a densely packed area of an emerging district not only gives an alternative to Elmwood, but a truly urban atmosphere. This is evident in the architecture of the buildings, and the complimentary services that each will help to aid others. Hopefully if Benderson does it right, these will be some of the components the Canal Side will draw in.

I wouldn't pigeonhole the Market Arcade as exhibit A for retail not working in Downtown Buffalo. Like many other projects in Downtown that Buffalo's naysayer corps likes to bash, the Market Arcade opened for business with no immediate parking for anyone coming to this location. The only retail enterprise outside of a coffee shop that I can recall being in the Market Arcade was a retail t-shirt store opened by the Advantage Co. shortly after the building reopened . There had also been much talk at the time about Jim Kelly opening up a bar in the Market Arcade that everyone thought would draw big crowds. That situation never came to pass. Instead, Kelly was wooed down Main St by the management of the Main Place Mall where his nightclub/restaurant crashed and burned. Kelly's night spot was scheduled to go into the same space where 3 subsequent restaurants have failed. At the time of the Market arcade's re-opening, the Chippewa night scene hadn't really developed yet either.

The failure of the Market Arcade on many levels can be attributed to the City of Buffalo’s insistence on having a anchor restaurant in the facility when past experience and professional advice suggested otherwise, a night life scene around the corner on Chippewa that is a 3 day-a-week enterprise, a huge disconnect from Chippewa because of the dead space between Chippewa and Pearl and the east side of Main and Chippewa and the usual suspects of a lack of parking and the Ghost Town atmosphere of the Main St Pedestrian Mall at night.

What the future might hold for the retail incubator is anyone’s guess. Certainly, parking WILL NOT BE a problem when anyone looks at the streetscape surrounding the place. Maybe this experiment is too soon. Maybe it needs a larger residential base and also more nearby office density to work. What it certainly doesn’t need is to be damned at the get go.

Downtown Bflo,

I spoke with Michael Attardo at GetDressed after the rumor circulated on BRO that he was going to move into this space. He has said that he is not moving from his Main St. location. He showed me all the space that he has available to expand. Its a really cool space with lots of potential. The Main St. location is more centrally located and a better location for retail IMHO.