Townhomes added to plan to turn Buffalo Forge site into community (Alexander: apartments, rental)

[videobruce]

The former Buffalo Forge site on Broadway just east of Michigan St. less than a mile from downtown was torn down well over a decade ago and part of the area has already had single family homes built and occupied.
The area is almost 'shovel ready' and finally others has insite to develop the area that has great access to downtown in a open area.

From the Buffalo News;

By Jonathan D. Epstein Thu, May 4, 2017

A development team that hopes to turn a former East Side manufacturing site into a new residential complex will add 25 townhomes to its plan and reduce the number of apartments. Stuart Alexander and Associates and its development partners want to turn the site of the former Buffalo Forge Manufacturing Plant at 490 Broadway into The Forge on Broadway, a residential community with a focus on health and wellness. The developers changed the 230,000-square-foot proposal after hearing ideas from the community at meetings held in April at the Michigan Street Baptist Church.

Plans for the $48 million project now call for 159 apartments, retail space along Broadway and 25 townhomes. The 13-acre project is slated to be considered by the Buffalo Planning Board on Monday. It would also include fitness areas, including a "green roof" for gardening, play space and exercise, as well as a bike-share program, walking track and cooking classes for tenants.

"The team was encouraged and inspired by the conversation and dedication to the community," according to a news release from the development team, which also includes Rhonda Ricks' R+A+R Development and Stratford Capital Group's SCG Development. The team said it wants to "provide housing for many who otherwise are being priced out of Buffalo's growth."

According to public documents, the new plan by Silvestri Architects calls for:

--159 apartments, with 30 in a four-story building fronting Broadway and 129 in a more expansive building along Mortimer Street. The original plan included 185 apartments.
--11,600 square feet of ground-floor retail space along Broadway.
--25 for-sale townhomes along Mortimer and Sycamore streets. Each townhome would have a garage and room for a car outside. The previous plan did not include townhomes.
--Five single-family detached homes also are being considered, although they are not currently in the plans.

About 80 percent of the apartments would be reserved for residents earning at or below 60 percent of the median income of $67,300 for a family of four in Erie County. The remaining apartments would be for tenants earning between 60 percent and 120 percent of the median income, or up to $87,490.

The blue, red and gray facades of the buildings would still feature a mixture of architectural block, brick, aluminum panels and horizontal lap siding. The overall site would include 255 spaces in three major parking areas, including one beneath the green roof, which would feature two exercise areas and two playgrounds. Three more exercise areas, a jogging path, a landscaped berm along Spring Street and other greenery are also planned, according to the documents.

The property is surrounded by residential neighborhoods, but it's zoned as "flex-commercial," which would normally not allow for first-floor residential space. Rather than seek about seven variances under the Green Code, the developers are pursuing the large project as a "planned-unit development" that allows multiple uses within a single parcel. That must be approved by the Common Council and conducted under a comprehensive plan.

The land, which is owned by Howden International, is under contract to be acquired, but the developers won't close unless they have the required approvals in place. The site is in the Brownfield Cleanup Program, which makes it eligible for brownfield tax credits for redevelopment. Alexander said the developers also will seek low-income housing tax credits and funding from the state Housing Finance Agency. Alexander said officials have not decided whether to seek tax breaks from the Erie County Industrial Development Agency. If approved, construction would last about 18 months.

[ckhthankgod]

There is a video I posted on another part of C-D that illustrated the bold print in terms of parts of the city that haven't had as much growth as other parts of the city. I'll try to post it if I can find it.

It is nice to see that a long ignored part of the city is getting some investment and I also like how there appears to be an effort by some in the community to highlight some of the history in the neighborhood. African - American Heritage - Visit Buffalo Niagara

https://www.michiganstreetbuffalo.org

The video: Professor calls poverty “systemic racism” in Buffalo | wivb.com (that info is in relation to the 50 biggest metro areas and the city proper. Illustrates the imbalance that can occur in terms of growth in cities and not just in Buffalo. It also illustrates how some stats can varied based upon if a city can or cannot annex.)

I believe that this is the project they are referring to that was mentioned at the end of the segment: https://www.buffalorising.com/2017/0...ferson-avenue/

More East Side development information: https://www.buffalorising.com/category/metro/east-side/

[videobruce]

I have seen articles from Buffalo Rising, thanks for the links.

There are plenty of other improvements that have been made in the past 20 years that go mostly unnoticed by 90% or better of the suburbs. All they still know is 'tear it down' as if enough wasn't already town down from the 50's on.

To expand on the above, here is what Buffalo Rising had;

by Buffalo Rising March 29, 2017

One of the largest neighborhood-ready sites close to downtown has caught the eye of a development team. Stuart Alexander and Associates, SCG Development and Rhonda Ricks are proposing a multi-phase, mixed-use development for the former Buffalo Forge site at Broadway and Mortimer Street. The Buffalo News had the big scoop today. The attractive project would include 185 apartments and retail space. Residential units would be a mix of affordable and market-rate apartments. The first building would wrap around a covered parking area with a garden and green space area on top creating a central courtyard.

Building height would be predominantly two and three stories, though the portion fronting Broadway would be four-stories, too tall for the Elmwood Village. Future phases include upgrades to a park at Broadway and Spring Street, more residential units, and, based upon demand, additional commercial space. The property fronts both Broadway and Sycamore Street.

The Buffalo Forge site has been vacant for over a decade. In 2006, current owner Howden Buffalo applied for and received permission to demolish the factory covering a full city block along Broadway, Sycamore, Spring and Mortimer streets due to unsafe conditions and structural problems. The development team has the property under contract adding to a stretch of Broadway that has seen a number of redevelopment projects take hold in recent years.

Stuart Alexander and Associates was formed in 1976 and has created a portfolio of over $100 million in development and construction with 2,000 units of high quality, affordable and market rate housing. The firm is currently redeveloping the former School 59 at the corner of Best and Fillmore into 26 apartments.

SCG Development is a leader in the multifamily investment industry with a particular focus on affordable housing and investments benefiting from Low-Income Housing Tax Credits. Since 2007, Stratford Capital Group has successfully underwritten, sponsored and syndicated private equity in 177 multifamily rental apartment properties totaling approximately 21,000 apartment units in 33 states with a capitalized value of approximately $3 billion.

I have no idea what and how the Elmwood Village has to do with this at all. Both articles mention that.