Yeah, I'd hate to see this blight downtown. Much better to look at some earth movers, dirt, and chain link fencing. That will bring everyone down to the area.

Truthfully, I don't know that I ever would have a desire to visit a rewatered canal slip and re-created historical district more than the first time I visit it. This, on the other hand, looks like it has the potential to keep visitors coming back.

It would be nice for the networks that broadcast Bills games to be able to show something like this before commercials - something besides the Falls. Let's see something actually IN Buffalo!

OK, where the hell is everyone getting that we're giving BassPro $25 Million?

We're not handing them a check for $25 Million. The ECHDC is using $25 million in government funding to construct the building and prepare the site for the company. BassPro will still have a significant investment in the site totaling in millions of dollars. Maybe everyone should familiarize themselves with the facts a little more before they comment.

And as far as the comment about Gettysburg, that was a battle field, that has been preserved through history. The Liberty Bell and it's location have been preserved through history. Anything that happens at the canal terminus is a recreation, including the re-watering of it. Besides, the significant structure is the canal itself, not the buildings (that no longer exist, and haven't for decades) that surround it.

We are not talking about bells or statues here. We are talking about buildings that need to be occupied by real people and business. Buffalo should NOT be a Gettysburg! Buffalo should not become a museum--it needs to be a functioning, authentic, MODERN city.

As a long time supporter of the preservation movement, I find I have to separate myself from the local preservation community in their opposition to this project. I really believe that the Bass Pro project and the related commercial proposals catch the spirit of the historic waterfront manifested in a different form. The historic waterfront was, after all, a commercial enterprise and not a very pretty one at that. Old photos show the area chock full of buildings, some interesting and others quite awful and all of them darkened with the dirt of coal soot. The proposed structures capture to some extent the shape of the old buildings but in a much sanitized and "pettyfied" version with no grime (other than that that blows off the elevated highway. The one thing that does unite the past with the future is the spirit of commercialism. Oh, and I too, like Andrew's idea of removing the elevated roadway but leaving the supports. They are totally inappropriate in a faithfully recreated waterfront (which we are not talking about here) but are massive and iconic and suggest Buffalo's version of Stonehenge !

Forget about all of the images of the proposed project. The real benefit is getting the land out of the hands of the public and into the hands of private industry.

Nice pictures. None of them reflect anything to come. They're just massings of "what if" developments. While I don't agree this is 'irresponsible' or 'propaganda' as some above claim, I do wish we and BRO would ignore Canal Side pictures and focus on the proposed concept: A mix of retail, residential, office, and plazas. The concept is simple: take barren, underutilized downtown property and put it to higher and better use. What's not to like?

I would love to see the Chandler house relocated down there instead of a landfill !

Brilliant! I support this.

Looks pretty friggin' great to me.

When I was down at the arena last week for a Sabres practice I was checking out the proposed area for all of this. I could easily picture it all being there and being awesome, and having something else to do. And then I looked up..... I wonder why this 3-d fly through doesn't show the skyway going over all the buildings... maybe it won't be all that bad, or maybe it will be?

This effort to recreate history was a very very bad idea since day one. Thoughtfully designed modern buildings that respect the few actual historic elements on the site is a very good idea. It seems like some folks have an image in their mind and they will not be satisfied until they realize that image on the waterfront. The problem is that the image cannot be recreated--its only a memory. That time has passed and all you can get if you still want to recreate history will be a depressing compromise of an experience. We should embrace the things that most modern urban dwellers want and need on their waterfront. We want things like culture, entertainment, shopping, public space, apartments and people. Many people don't really want faux-Buffalo, plaques or reenactments. Give us our shopping and our entertainment experience and do it well and do it soon.

Awesome. I hope the selfish desires of those ignorant people opposed to this doesnt prevent it from happening. This is an exciting time for Buffalo.

Why all the fuss over 17 acres of waterfront property? It’s because this is the most important historic location in Buffalo, the Western Terminus of the Erie Canal. The Canal not only made Buffalo, it helped make the United States. So it can be said this location is of historical significance to the entire nation. We can’t preserve it all, some already has been lost--the Aud sits smack dab over the top of the end of the Canal and the Skyway slices through the heart of the district. But those support columns do look cool, they’re a keeper…I suggest the roadbed be dismantled, cut down those massive steel support beams and use them in new construction...save money on transport and use them on-site and you have a new twist on adaptive re-use.

Let’s not lose sight of our rich heritage, but don’t stifle economic growth--obviously a historical tribute is of little value without people around to support or appreciate it. We can have it all—if it’s done right.

your promoting a concept and not reality. Posting this as fact is very irresponsible of you.

If you were at the press conference they informed people that the presentation you are offering people was simply conceptual; what they hoped it would look like. In fact they reiterated twice that with the skyway and other possible hurdles that the final project would probably not look anything like this.

So here we are discussing something that has little to no merit other than the fact that Bass Pro is coming to Buffalo. Again, Irresponsible propaganda.

What they dont show you is how dark and grim it is under the skyway. Who wants to be in the plaza under the skyway with dirty water dripping on people, bird poop falling, and lets not forget about the slush flying off the top deck with the potential to injure someone. I would love to see development at the site but either take down the skyway or address these issues now, not after structures are built. Someone posted good designs on skyscraperpage.com for under a roadway in another city. It should get into the hands of the harbor design commitee.

It already is a functioning city. Why throw 25 mil to a retail company? Why not spend that money on something will really attract visitors.

I don't like the Bass Pro Design. It almost puts up a wall in our inner harbor and you lose the connection to the water, thus ruining the aesthetics. keep in mind there the skyway over head which almost incloses the plaza. there are so many other convient places to but bass pro such as the parking lots consumming the cobblestone district. don't you want to create a pedestrian friendly area? well big box tenats such as this one require large amouts of parking spaces. plus this proposal does against our master plan (Queen City Hub Plan) that won an American Planners Association Award

Yeah...I want to go to Gettysburg and see a sign "Here was..." or the Liberty Bell! "Here USED to be the Liberty Bell." Most of you don't care about anything other than SOMETHING happening. Who cares if we have real Frank Lloyd Wright houses. We could have just used signs or some plastic recreation. Yeah. Perfect. I'd rather we had to give $25 million to a retailer who obviously doesn't want to be here...and don't forget that Benderson will be developing it...so it will not look like the rendition, and it will last about 15 years.

The renderings are a self-indictment. Prime Street is cut off from Main, a big box store relegates the development parcels to non-waterfront property, the placement of the historic Prime Slip is nary recognized, a large chunk of developable property is cut out to create a Bass Pro boat slip, and the conceptual massings clearly show a great waterfront vision transformed to nothing more than an Auburn-sized Bass Pro and a "historic theme" parking ramp. It is a formula for a dead waterfront where something great could happen in its place, as the existing community-consensus Erie Canal Harbor Master Plan outlines.

Bass Pro founder Johnny Morris saw these "renderings" for the first time at this fake press event the ECHDC set up for the a couple Thursdays ago, which shows how disengaged the company has been from this entire negotiations process.

The really said this at the press conference last week...

"In fact they reiterated twice that with the skyway and other possible hurdles that the final project would PROBABLY not look anything like this."

I could see them seeing that slight changes may cocur, but" the final project would not look anything like this" would not seem to be the brightest words to come out of someones mouth??

Who was it that siad this?

Sara_k asked where the doubters were "during the meetings." So far as I know there have been no public meetings with respect to anything ECHDC has done or proposed. In fact, there have hardly been meetings of ECHDC as an entity. This does not address the merits of the project, but it certainly makes for an uphill battle in a community that is rightly suspicious of "trust us" planning.

The contrast between the process that led to the currently approved Empire State Development plan for this site, and the process that led to the current ECHDC plan could hardly be more different.

sorry typo's

This presentation only reaffirmed me that this is a great and really cool project. The only bad thing about it is the friggen skyway. If they tear it down I think it would be kinda cool to leave the pillars like it looks in the diagrams. Put lights up on them or something. Now that would be nice to look at after a Sabres game!!

This presentation only reafirmed me that this is a great and really cool project. The only bad thing about it is the friggen skyway. If they tear it down I think it would be kinda cool to leave the pillars like it looks in the diagrams. Pul lights up on them or something. Now that would be nice to look at after a Sabres game!!

What really annoys me with these fly throughs is that they are simply inaccurate. Lets not forget the sky way (and the noise that comes with it) is over a good portion of this proposed area. It should be a priority of the Canal Corporation to remove the thing, I cant imagine that potential tenants will want to be in such an area without getting a fist full of money like Bass Pro.

It's a shame because the proposed development will be attractive, and is well thought out... it will be stigmatized by the monstrosity above it.