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I recently returned to Buffalo on my way to Canada. We took the 190 from the Thruway to the Piece (of junk) bridge. I noticed 1 remodeled building on the left side of the highway that has changed in the 1 year since I was there. Nothing else except the Seneca building ground level modifications. The city still looks awful to people passing through. I would love to see something done besides renovating old buildings into apartments that primarily benefit the developer.
I recently returned to Buffalo on my way to Canada. We took the 190 from the Thruway to the Piece (of junk) bridge. I noticed 1 remodeled building on the left side of the highway that has changed in the 1 year since I was there. Nothing else except the Seneca building ground level modifications. The city still looks awful to people passing through. I would love to see something done besides renovating old buildings into apartments that primarily benefit the developer.
Just curious, but what exactly would you like to see get done?
Just curious, but what exactly would you like to see get done?
Tear down or rehab some of those decrepit buildings and make the city look nicer to folks driving through. Its not bad around the baseball field but before that its dreadful. Plant some trees, do something to try and beautify the surrounding area.
There are a lot of developers in the area that refuse to take risks. It seems the biggest risks being taken are with One Seneca (which might be stalled), Northtown Plaza and the Eastern Hills Mall site. The project at 201 Ellicott has gone through so many ridiculous changes, that could have been a skyline-altering project.
And yes, the lack of substantial landscaping definitely makes downtown look depressing. Having trees on the sidewalk would provide a canopy of sorts if done right.
Tear down or rehab some of those decrepit buildings and make the city look nicer to folks driving through. Its not bad around the baseball field but before that its dreadful. Plant some trees, do something to try and beautify the surrounding area.
They have a very strong say in the local government in whether any given building can be demolished or not. While I agree that certain buildings do indeed need to be preserved, looking through their site, it seems as though they have yet to meet a building that they think needs demolishing. Looking at the pictures I would think that more than 75% of the buildings they work to preserve are just big old eyesores.
Buffalo & Erie County is viewed in the business world as having a government thats like the mafia and you have to pay to play which has scared all the developers & investors away
I had occasion to take the 33 back and forth from downtown to the Airport and nothing looks different. Nada, zip. A few old buildings turned into "loft" apartments. How does this benefit the area? Its making some developers wealthy. Most of the apartments are "market rate" which means, whatever the market will bear. The project next to the Library is a fiasco in the making. Take away 375 parking spaces and replace them with 200 low income apartments with no parking. The food market is just a small outlet for the wholesale fresh food company that will inhabit the site. The City is better off leaving as a parking lot. The original plan with a Tops and nice apartments with underground parking was a great idea. Now its a mess. I saw some health related buildings downtown. I also saw more rusted cars in a day than I have seen in 2.5 years. All those Buffalo Rising and Buffalo Biz First paint a rosy picture but when you actually come there, its the same old same old. When were some of the posters in Buffalo last? There is nothing I would like better than seeing some real change and progressive not politically motivated private development.
I had occasion to take the 33 back and forth from downtown to the Airport and nothing looks different. Nada, zip. A few old buildings turned into "loft" apartments. How does this benefit the area? Its making some developers wealthy. Most of the apartments are "market rate" which means, whatever the market will bear. The project next to the Library is a fiasco in the making. Take away 375 parking spaces and replace them with 200 low income apartments with no parking. The food market is just a small outlet for the wholesale fresh food company that will inhabit the site. The City is better off leaving as a parking lot. The original plan with a Tops and nice apartments with underground parking was a great idea. Now its a mess. I saw some health related buildings downtown. I also saw more rusted cars in a day than I have seen in 2.5 years. All those Buffalo Rising and Buffalo Biz First paint a rosy picture but when you actually come there, its the same old same old. When were some of the posters in Buffalo last? There is nothing I would like better than seeing some real change and progressive not politically motivated private development.
It's the same in Rochester, I dread going back there to see family, but probably will for about the last time later this year. Sad what the two towns have turned into, but people there carry on as if there's nothing wrong, and everything is on the up-and-up.
The apartment biz is obscene across the two cities, and look at who is responsible for much of it: Corruptocrats. They took advantage of low interest rates and easy financing from M&T and other banks, to slap together cruddy apartments that won't last ten years. That isn't economic development, the taxpayers are being robbed blind for unsustainable "development".
I can't wait for the next downturn to hit, and the bad actors who will be exposed for what they did these last how many years.
The city is changing for the better. Anyone who can't see it is either blind or blindly ignorant.
If people want to do the comparison game with other cities, then no place can ever be good enough, as there will always be something else to compare to.
I grew up in the city, and have seen plenty of changes, both good and bad. For the last 5-10 years the good has outweighed the bad by a considerable margin, and it looks to continue to be a positive trend. There is plenty to look forward to, and I plan to be there to see it all happen.
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