Buffalo-Boom/Bust II

[ckhthankgod]

Downtown's dilemma: How to thrive with 20,000 fewer workers: https://buffalonews.com/news/local/b...3c7028c31.html

"Downtown Buffalo has a big problem.

According to city officials, there are, on average, nearly 20,000 fewer people coming into the city’s core every day during the week than there were five years ago.

That’s a drop of more than one-third – a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and the remote-work trend that has taken hold in its aftermath.

And while the number can fluctuate from day to day, observers say they don’t expect the hybrid work arrangements at many employers to go away anytime soon, now that workers have tasted the opportunity.

For downtown Buffalo, fewer people is a big challenge.

That means fewer people walking the streets, fewer people patronizing restaurants and shops, and fewer people filling the offices and buildings in the central business district and surrounding areas, just as downtown Buffalo was starting to come back from decades of doldrums.

Fewer people downtown led to the decision by M&T Bank to cancel the Plaza Event Series, a staple of downtown Buffalo lunch hours for more than two decades, as attendance dwindled.

Fewer people downtown was a big factor in the new Braymiller Market seeking a bailout from the City of Buffalo and its landlord. Its owner, who had been counting on downtown office workers as regular customers, said the lower foot traffic, combined with the struggles of restaurants coming out of the pandemic, led to severe financial problems.

And the downtown Rite Aid pharmacy closed, leaving the central business district without a drugstore just as new apartments are being built and more people are moving downtown.

That’s why business leaders and public officials like the city’s economic development commissioner, Brendan Mehaffy, are worried.

“It’s called the urban doom loop,” Mehaffy said.

“Fewer people come down to the offices. There are fewer people to support our small businesses. There are fewer people on the streets, which provides that feeling of safety for individuals,” he said. “The value of the buildings go down. There is less of a tax base. There is now less of an ability to provide the services that increase the safety and security. And that sets off the next cycle of going even lower.”

Mehaffy, however, remains hopeful – even confident – that the city can still turn that around through new efforts to transform the central business district from a traditional eight-hour place to work into more of a vibrant 24-hour place to live and play.

“In every city, it’s an enormous concern. It needs the attention of everybody, at every level of government,” Mehaffy said. “People can be either slow to react to this and deal with the consequences, which will likely be more difficult to resolve the longer that time passes. Or we can be proactive.”

And being proactive means encouraging the transition of downtown from a transient office market to more of an urban neighborhood with a growing core of residents to support local businesses.

“Downtowns change all the time, and we’re the type of downtown that will reinvent itself,” said Buffalo Place Executive Director Michael Schmand, while noting that it’s not all doom-and-gloom. “We’ve always wanted a 24-hour downtown. This downtown has been through a lot. We always seem to figure it out.”

A big drop hits businesses

The Covid pandemic first hit downtown Buffalo by sending office workers home during the lockdown. And the rise of remote work continues to put a damper on activity downtown, with hybrid work schedules bringing fewer people downtown each day, especially on Mondays and Fridays.

“This isn’t a Buffalo problem,” said Dottie Gallagher, CEO of Buffalo Niagara Partnership. “It’s every city in America.”

In Buffalo, according to city officials, there were 54,000 employees working in the central business district prior to the start of the pandemic in March 2020, based on traffic counts from location-based cellphones tracked by Streetlight Data. As of 2022, it was just below 36,000, and had only reached 37,000 last year, Mehaffy said.

With such a significant drop, restaurants, shops and other businesses are now struggling to survive when the early morning, lunchtime or late-afternoon traffic they relied on isn’t there.

“That lunchtime period was really their sweet spot,” said Brandye Merriweather, president of the Buffalo Urban Development Corp.

It’s forcing those businesses to adjust their hours and staffing just to stay open.

“It is devastating to the restaurants and lunch crowd,” Gallagher said. “Throughout the city, you have to call ahead to make sure they’re open for lunch.”

Reversing that work trend will be difficult, if not impossible.

“I don’t think the workplace is changing anytime soon. There will still be this hybrid workspace,” said Karen Utz, Western New York regional director for Empire State Development.

Mehaffy, building owners, developers and others say the key lies in remaking the city’s downtown so it’s not reliant as much on the daytime workers but rather on its new permanent residents, evening diners, nighttime revelers and weekend visitors.

“We recognize that downtown is already one of the fastest-growing neighborhoods, and is going to become more of a neighborhood,” Mehaffy said. “The reality is way more people are coming downtown at this point in time at night.”

That’s why he and others in the city are pushing so hard to accelerate the transformation, by converting more of the outdated and empty office space, by creating new places to live, eat and shop, and by enhancing the city’s streetscapes and infrastructure to make it both attractive to be there, and easy to get around.

“People really want that vibrant outdoor experience to mirror the experience they have inside,” Merriweather said. “This is about trying to enhance the experience in and around Buffalo.”

Coming back from pandemic

Buffalo is still working its way back from the pandemic, as are most cities. M&T Bank invested $58 million to create its new technology hub as the anchor of the redeveloped Seneca One tower, but it’s still not fully occupied on a daily basis, despite the bank’s efforts to bring employees back. So are many other offices, both large and small, leading companies to downsize because they can get by with less space.

“There’s still a lot of real estate that people are paying leases on that are sitting vacant,” Gallagher said. “I don’t think any of us have our arms around what that is.”

Meanwhile, restaurants and entrepreneurs that opened prior to or during Covid have had to close their doors or reconfigure their operation. Braymiller’s Market at 201 Ellicott St. – opened with great fanfare in 2021 – needed a $562,000 bailout from the city and $500,000 from developer Paul Ciminelli to overcome its losses. And other eateries, shops and small businesses are just scraping by, as their customer base disappeared or hasn’t fully come back.

“It’s been a tough last three years,” Ciminelli said. “Unless downtown continues to transform itself into more of a center of entertainment with more housing and just to bring a different element downtown, retailers are going to continue to struggle.”

More than work

Buffalo believes it has an answer, and was already heading down that path even before Covid: Make downtown into much more than just a place to work.

That’s been the goal behind initiatives like the Buffalo Building Re-Use Program, which encouraged developers to buy and renovate older, underused or vacant buildings, and even provided low-interest loans in support. Such conversions led to thousands of new apartments.

“We’ve done that,” Gallagher said. “The question is what would be next.”

The city wants to reinvigorate that program, as officials expect more properties to need redevelopment, and the demand for more residential space remains strong.

That pursuit has also been the driving force behind Buffalo’s efforts to make downtown more accessible, more appealing and more connected by investing in new streetscape, infrastructure and technology, and new ways to get around.

“This is not a Buffalo issue. It’s a downtown issue,” said Ralph DeNisco, a senior principal in transportation and mobility for global engineering services firm Stantec, which is working with Buffalo on its “smart streets” downtown transformation, including a pilot program focused on remaking Washington Street. “The nature of work is changing. The nature of downtowns is changing.”

The changes are already evident. According to studies cited by Stantec, only 52% of the daily vehicle trips into downtown Buffalo are for work. That means the other 48% are for other purposes.

“Those work trips are being replaced by other trips, by people who live here and are activating the street and the retail and all the other amenities all day long,” DeNisco said. “It’s also replaced by the things that only a downtown has. It’s the place where people come together.”

In fact, a separate survey of nearly 700 respondents found that 68% of people come downtown for special events, 66% for Canalside or waterfront activities, and 65% to dine at a restaurant. Only 45% cite their job as the reason for coming downtown.

“Those visitations and special events are really driving a lot of what goes on in downtown, and that’s a testament to all the activity that’s already going on,” said Catrina Meyer, a transportation planner with Stantec.

Speed it up

Mehaffy says the city wants to accelerate that.

The city hopes to encourage more people to come downtown by enabling them to easily get around between the waterfront, central business district and Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus without needing a car after they have parked it once. The pilot program on Washington would include dedicated lanes for pedestrians, bicycles and e-scooters, and would encourage more use of shuttles, ride shares or other means to get around.

“We want people to leave their cars behind and to see what the waterfront has to offer,” Merriweather said. “We want people to stay and visit the businesses.”

New paths and parks would connect downtown from Canalside to the Medical Campus, as well as the nearby West Side and East Side neighborhoods.

New technology would make it easier to track parking, move traffic, and protect bicyclists and pedestrians, while so-called “adjustable curbs” would allow flexibility for sections of sidewalk to be used alternatively for parking or for pop-up patios, markets or “streeteries.”

And redevelopment of old buildings and vacant lots, with encouragement for new retail and restaurants, would also make the streets more lively and appealing to walk along.

“The primary driver of activity downtown traditionally was the office user, and that’s not the future,” Ciminelli said.

“The future is more residential, more entertainment, and to continue to transform itself into something that’s not the central business district, but the central entertainment district,” he said. “The city has to continue to invest in downtown, in its public spaces, make it more of a user-friendly environment, more pedestrian-friendly. It’s just got to do it quicker.”"

[ckhthankgod]

Manufacturing consulting firm in Buffalo reports $5 billion impact to region: https://buffalonews.com/news/local/b...0fb841e86.html

"Napoleon Engineering Services has grown into a business with 55 employees in Olean, working with some big-name clients.

As the business has evolved, NES has received help from Insyte Consulting, a Buffalo-based nonprofit that helps Western New York manufacturers boost their operations.

Insyte has worked with NES on its marketing, its plant layout and, currently, achieving cybersecurity standards required by its customer base. NES is working on reaching the third and final level of those certifications, and has made an array of technology investments so far.

“We’re only at level two,” said Chris Napoleon, the founder, president and chief engineer. “For a small company, that’s a daunting task. But with Insyte’s help, it’s not a barrier for us any longer.”

NES is one example of how Insyte Consulting has generated an estimated $5.1 billion in economic impact with manufacturers in a five-county region since 2000, according to a new report.

The $5 billion is a combination of its manufacturing clients’ new and retained sales, capital investments, cost savings and the average salaries attached to jobs created or saved.

Ben Rand, president of Insyte Consulting, said the statistics not only reflect manufacturing’s significance to the region, “but the fact that those manufacturers continue to invest in themselves and making themselves better, more competitive.

“That benefits all of us,” Rand said. “That’s tens of thousands of jobs, it’s all kinds of economic impact.”

The $5 billion figure is based on data reported by Insyte’s manufacturing clients to independent survey companies working for the U.S. Department of Commerce. Insyte, as part of the Federal Manufacturing Extension Partnership program, receives federal and state funding through a division of Empire State Development.

About $3.25 billion of the $5 billion – or 64% – stems from manufacturers’ new and retained sales. The report also estimates 21,431 jobs were saved or created, adding up to an economic impact of just over $1 billion.

Insyte works with companies with a variety of backgrounds. Its client list includes well-established names like Eastman Machine and Perry’s Ice Cream, as well as newcomers trying to gain a foothold. Insyte has worked with a contract manufacturer like American Douglas Metals on selling its “Bridge-in-a-Box” product, and Boston Valley Terra Cotta on running its operations as efficiently as possible.

Some companies, like NES, come back to Insyte for multiple projects as their needs change.

Napoleon started his company in 1997 in a spare bedroom and the garage of his home. The business has blossomed over time, recently completing a 24,000-square-foot addition to its operations.

“It’s difficult to start a bearing manufacturing company from scratch,” Napoleon said. “We’ve weathered those challenges.”

There are two elements to NES. One side of the business focuses on inspecting and testing bearings, as NES qualifies sources for customers including John Deere, Caterpillar and Bobcat. “We’re considered the largest independent bearing inspection and testing facility in North America,” he said.

The other side of the business, representing about 80% of the revenues, produces bearings for the aerospace industry.

NES first connected with Insyte about a decade ago for assistance with its marketing strategy. “We could see the opportunities ahead of us, and they helped me to strategically orient our marketing plans and go after that aerospace market, leading us to where we are today,” Napoleon said.

NES and Insyte teamed up again on the plant layout project and most recently for the cybersecurity-related certification. That’s a critical area, since some products NES makes support U.S. defense programs.

Napoleon estimates 60% of its revenue comes from companies that require the cybersecurity certification that NES is obtaining.

“We’ve been able to maintain that business, and our growth with that customer base is going to be very, very significant in the next two to three years,” Napoleon said. “We will probably double that revenue in that period of time, which would not be possible if we were not progressing through these three levels of certification.”

Insyte has provided NES with technical advice as well as help identifying funding sources to defray the cost of the work, Napoleon said.

While the recent report analyzes Insyte’s impact since 2000, the organization itself dates to 1982, when it was known as the Western New York Technology Development Center. Insyte supports the manufacturing sector alongside other, newer resources, like the Northland Workforce Training Center and Buffalo Manufacturing Works.

The average price of a project that Insyte quotes to a client is $15,000, but that amount can be reduced by other sources of funding, such as grants. For companies, the payback from successful projects comes in the form of cost savings and higher sales as companies tap into new customers or increase volume with existing customers.

Insyte takes the “long view” helping area manufacturers, Rand said.

“There may be 1,500, 1,600 manufacturers in the five-county area,” he said. “We need to be very patient. We want to work with all of them, we want to help all of them, when they’re ready for that help.”

And it’s not just established manufacturers. Insyte also works with startups.

“We can’t lose sight of the fact that down the road, we need new companies, new ideas, new blood for the future, too,” Rand said."

[ckhthankgod]

Bishop Timon students featured in new documentary: https://www.wgrz.com/article/news/lo...1c40pQrCees17K

[ckhthankgod]

Preparing workforce for new Bills stadium to benefit future construction projects in WNY: https://buffalonews.com/news/local/b...d4ca8ebcb.html

"Building a workforce for the $1.7 billion Buffalo Bills stadium construction project could make it easier to find skilled workers for other big projects down the road.

That’s because the efforts underway to build a diverse and expanded workforce within the construction trades are expected to leave the region with a larger pool of skilled workers available to work on other projects once their time on the stadium project is over.

That’s a positive side effect from the ongoing focus on preparing contractors and training workers in the trades for the new stadium. The belief is that the expanded contractor base and skilled trades workforce will become a valuable resource for other big projects, like construction on the Kensington Expressway and other major infrastructure initiatives in the City of Buffalo.

While making sure goals for the use of minority, women and military service-disabled businesses are met for stadium construction, the economic impact team working on the project is aiming to build an inclusive group of contractors and small businesses that can take on projects beyond this one.

Additionally, leaders in the construction industry continue to eye building the capacity of a capable workforce through training high schoolers, professionals looking for a career change and new Americans.

“We’re currently into the Bills stadium, but I feel we need to continue to look at what’s going on and coming down the road,” said Janie McKinnie, who runs Developments by Jem, the consultant hired in February to engage with local minority business owners, helping ensure diversity hiring goals are met on the stadium project.

“We need to make sure we have a workforce ready for those projects, as well as being ready for this project,” she added.

Three years ago, the federal government made an unprecedented investment in transportation and infrastructure with the trillion-dollar Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which included $550 billion going toward new investments and programs. It sets up places like Western New York to receive major investment in infrastructure projects.

But at the same time, the construction industry is facing a critical labor shortage, with an estimated 2 million new workers needed by 2025, studies show. Local developers already are saying that the Bills stadium project is delaying other Buffalo Niagara construction projects because so many workers are involved with the new football stadium in Orchard Park.

“It’s not just about the projects of today, like the stadium, which is multiyear, but will have an end, it’s about making sure there is job security,” said Carley Hill, who owns a site construction services company, as well as running Clarence startup Cahill Tech, which offers online training and compliance tools for construction companies.

“That’s so that people can not only get into the industry but stay employed and really build a pension and benefit package for their families,” she added.

After a few decades of focusing more on the preservation of infrastructure, there are more reconstruction projects on the horizon. However, a lot of the trades workers with experience in these types of projects have since retired, said Gary Hill, Carley’s father and owner of Union Construction.

“There’s momentum right now, but we’re a little behind,” said Hill, who is among the prime contractors on the Bills stadium project. “There’s a lot of work out there in the next 10 years.”

Gilbane Turner, the general contractor on the new stadium project, recently added Cherelle Syph as economic inclusive manager, and she has already been active in project outreach, making sure the community is aware of the type of work available for this project and future projects in the region.

She said Gilbane Building Co. and Turner Construction are committed to opportunities beyond the scope of the Bills project. They held a workshop in March in hopes of expanding access and explaining opportunities for small local businesses. She said the companies are also planning to create a series of workshops and partner with organizations like the Construction Exchange.

Not understanding the process is one of the biggest barriers for MWBE and small businesses to getting on some of the larger construction jobs. There’s a need to educate these firms on how to get insurance, certifications and build a company’s capacity.

“We want to do all this for other projects in the area, too,” Syph said. “Gilbane and Turner both have many projects around the region, so we want to make sure people not only have the opportunity to work on this project but also have an opportunity to work on projects coming in the future.”

Penny Semaia, vice president of stadium relations for the Bills, said the team, which signed a 30-year lease for the new stadium, is also approaching this project with future construction in mind.

“Our mindset is looking beyond just the stadium build,” said Semaia, a member of the New Stadium Community Benefits Oversight Committee. “We’re going to be here and our commitment to Western New York is for the long haul.”

Some of the upcoming projects include improvements to the Bird Island wastewater treatment plant, reimagining and rebuilding city neighborhoods around Tifft, Louisiana and Main streets, along with additional work near Buffalo’s waterfront.

Gilbane Turner has been hosting meet the prime contractor sessions – where hundreds of vendors have been able to network – contractor information sessions and opportunity and awareness huddles for the stadium project.

Those sessions could also be useful for contractors in future projects. Even if a company doesn’t get work on this project or is not prepared yet, it can be put on the path toward future participation, Syph said.

Meanwhile, Developments by Jem has participated in community career events, fielded calls about project opportunities and attended career workshops and engagement events. It’s also connecting contractors to county representatives as well as Empire State Development to make sure that their certifications line up for future opportunities.

“This is a unique opportunity to make a mark and impact that I don’t think a lot of these organizations have had before in such a way,” McKinnie said.

The company has also connected with young people interested in opportunities in the trades. At one event, 1,500 high school students from Western New York came with their resumes looking for opportunities in the trades.

“Our workforce development has to be built from a generation of those younger than us in order to make sure the trades are fulfilled and we’re able to have those able-bodied workers for future projects like this to come,” McKinnie said.

Gary Hill said it is important that the educational system encourages students to attend trade schools, while construction companies open their doors to the next generation of workers.

“The entire industry has to buy into the training – the companies, the engineering firms and the agencies – and encourage it,” he said. “The stadium is a perfect example. There’s a lot of apprentices out there and the buy in is super high because they’re building something new and something they’ll always be proud of.”

CAHill Resources is graduating its latest 62-person class from the aQuiRe Construction Academy, a two-month hybrid training that combines in-person and online learning and offers mentorship, exposure to emerging technologies, certifications and stipends for child care and transportation costs.

The training program caters to those interested in working in the construction industry – regardless of prior experience and education – and then promising to quickly place them on jobs as an apprentice.

Carley Hill intends to get more than 300 people trained through the initiative by the end of the year. That includes training about 50 people later this year in Central New York, which has the Micron and I-81 projects in the works."

[xmosquitox]

That's great! It'd be awesome to get an addition to our skyline in the next 5 years with this new talent to the region. I feel like we're at a demand point where some downtown residential towers are feasible projects, especially with lake views.

[ckhthankgod]

Tech staffing firm expands industries and services: https://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/...-services.html

"A Buffalo-based technology staffing firm has diversified and expanded services to continue growth during a challenging time for the national tech industry.

JMS Technical Solutions, headquartered at 686 Main St., Buffalo, has actively grown into more industries and about a year ago launched a staffing solution to become more of a “one-stop shop” for employers.

“That diversification, I would say, is key,” said Joel Shapiro, CEO and founder. “Otherwise, we probably would have taken a step back this year.”

The company, which employs 10 Buffalo- and Rochester-based employees and three remote workers, doubled its year-over-year revenue in 2023 and expect to do the same this year.

Recent large deals include the company last year signing a contract, valued at at least $1 million dollars, to recruit at least 150 Salesforce technical professionals for a U.S.-based Salesforce implementation partner. The business completed that contract, which was its biggest deal in its 15-year history, late last year.

This year, the staffing firm landed a deal with one of the largest travel retailers in the United States. Shapiro said he couldn’t disclose the company but that the contract would likely be valued at about $5 million for the business by the end of the year. Rather than a set hiring number, the firm is recruiting positions for the client as needed.

"They’ve needed a lot of resources in a lot of key areas,” said Jacob Lamos, JMS president.

Along with the retail client, JMS has been growing in the manufacturing industry, partnering with over 20 locally within the last eight months, along with some in other parts of the country. Currently, the firm is in talks with a handful of renewable energy companies, since it’s an industry there’s a lot of traction in right now.

Another key part of the company’s growth: launching JMS RecruitNow in June 2023.

The staffing solution allows businesses to utilize JMS recruiters on a week-by-week basis, to provide a flexible and cost-effective resource as an alternative to long-term recruitment commitments.

For example, a standard staffing fee could be 20% to 25% of a person’s base salary, which gets expensive when hiring multiple people. With JMS RecruitNow, employers pay a flat fee per week and can shut off and restart the service per week, while still using the same recruiters they’ve worked with before, who know their business, culture and what they’re looking for in talent.

Over 90% of clients have come back to use the service multiple times since it launched, according to Shapiro.

“It’s great for the client because they get access to our top recruiters with what would be a fraction of the price, and it’s good for us because it’s a more recurring revenue model and it also ultimately ends up being good for candidates,” he said. “It’s a really high-touch service for our candidates, who sometimes don’t get that when they’re applying to some smaller companies.”

[ckhthankgod]

Governor Hochul Celebrates Groundbreaking for IMA Life North America, Inc’s $30 Million Expansion Project in Tonawanda: https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/gov...lion-expansion

Governor Hochul Announces Worksport Ltd. Will Expand Operations, Creating 280 New Jobs in Erie County: https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/gov...-new-jobs-erie

[ckhthankgod]

Trocaire puts 11-home portfolio from Medaille up for sale: https://buffalonews.com/news/local/b...06dc611e0.html

"One year after its planned deal to acquire the failing Medaille University fell through, Trocaire College is trying to sell 11 former homes it had acquired along the northern border of Medaille’s campus.

The houses, which were previously converted into offices, are located along Humboldt Parkway. That’s adjacent to the 14-acre campus at 24 Agassiz Circle that was acquired early this month by a nonprofit charter-school organization for use by Buffalo Academy of Sciences Charter School.

Nine of the homes are contiguous on 1.7 acres, while two others are next door to each other on another 0.3 acres, separated from the larger cluster by a privately owned house. Located near Delaware Park, the houses are all zoned residential, with a total of 34,031 square feet among them.

The portfolio is being offered as a block through CBRE-Upstate, for $3.9 million.

Medaille had been struggling financially because of declining enrollment, a shrinking endowment and cash reserves, and a heavy debt burden, leaving its future in doubt until Trocaire stepped up in April 2023 with its purchase agreement.

That had followed a memorandum of understanding in August 2022, which in turn led Trocaire to buy the 11 properties in pieces over the next few months in anticipation of the merger.

But Trocaire abruptly pulled out of the deal in May 2023, leading to Medaille’s closure that summer, as it faced $41 million in bond and lease obligations.

Earlier this month, the Charter School Development Corp. bought Medaille’s former campus for $9.9 million. It will lease it to BuffSci, which will relocate at least its high school to the campus."