Broadway-Fillmore Neighborhood Selected for EPA Assistance for Sustainable Growth Through the ‘Building Blocks’ Program

A new coalition has recently formed in the Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood, the Fillmore Corridor Neighborhood Coalition (FCNC). It is one of forty-three communities in twenty-seven states that have been designated to receive technical assistance from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for pursuing sustainable growth that encourages economic development while providing a safeguard for health and the environment.

EPA staff and national experts will converge to conduct one to two day workshops that focus on using the Sustaining Equitable Development tool. The FCNC requested the help in order to identify the most effective tools and strategies for housing affordability and consensus within the community to move the neighborhood forward.

The goal of this tool is to aid the local government, partner organizations, and community members. It will function in two ways; to better understand the challenges and opportunities associated with neighborhood change and identify strategies to manage change and support community goals around housing, culture, local businesses, and jobs. The path to success starts with a self-assessment, which will identify the goals of the communities and explore appropriate strategies considering the condition of the community. Then a set of “next steps” can begin to be formulated to address specific community needs.

John D. Murphy, executive director of Broadway-Fillmore Neighborhood Housing Services submitted the request for technical assistance on behalf of the FCNC. “I’m delighted the Fillmore Corridor was selected as a site for this Technical Assistance award. Buffalo’s near east side has so many challenges with population loss, vacancy, and under-investment, that the Building Blocks program will allow our agency to directly involve neighborhood residents in developing ‘next steps’ strategies in revitalizing the length of Fillmore taking the energy and investment in the Larkin District, and linking it along the length of Fillmore Avenue to the significant investment in the Martin Luther King, Jr. Park area.”

Paul Harris, president of the South Fillmore Block Club (SFBC) and Fillmore resident stated, “We hope we’ve created a new model of success with the collaboration of community groups and organizations, non-profits like Broadway-Fillmore NHS and Martin Luther King, Jr. CDC, Daemen College and the University of Buffalo as academic partners, the urban farming community, the Central Terminal, and the Broadway Market as examples of potentially dynamic community assets, and by working together along with the help from foundations and local government, we can bring new life, community empowerment, and investment to this targeted revitalization strategy area on Buffalo’s near east side.”

For additional information on the Building Blocks program, click here. For additional photos of the Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood from my collection, click here.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Views of Buffalo Flickr     -     fixBuffalo     -     The Atlantic Cities     -     The Urbanophile

NTHP Blog     -     Congress for New Urbanism     -     Buffalo Historic Districts

Uncovered Structural Engineering Report Declares Bethlehem Steel Administration Building Structurally Sound

The fight is far from over in Lackawanna to save the Bethlehem Steel Administration building. Although demolition at the rear of the building started two weeks ago, it has been halted for the last six days for unknown reasons. So far only the small chemistry lab, which was a later addition, has been demolished. The remainder of the structure remains standing.

Photo credit: David Torke, fixBuffalo

New evidence has come to light that the building is in fact structurally sound despite the consistent information to the contrary by the owners of the building, Gateway Trade Center and the mayor of Lackawanna, Mayor Geoffrey Szymanski. Both have insisted that structural and engineering reports for the building have deemed it structurally unsound.

Photo credit: David Torke, fixBuffalo

This independent report was withheld from the courts by the City of Lackawanna and the Gateway Trade Center owner, Steven Detwiler. The truth has been revealed thanks to the perseverance of members in the Lackawanna Industrial Heritage Group (LIHG), Meagan Baco, David Torke, Lesley Horowitz, and Dana Saylor. Additionally, they received help from two attorneys who are new to Buffalo, Michael Raleigh and Paul Fusco-Gessick. The structural report was obtained by filing a Freedom of Information Act (FOIL) request. 

The full structural report that was completed by Klepper, Hahn, & Hyatt on August 3, 2012 reveals a different story than the owners and the mayor have been peddling; the building is in fact, structurally sound. To read the full report, click here.

Photo credit: David Torke, fixBuffalo

The report details the existing condition of the building and notes the limitations of the study, but ultimately concluded, "We believe the overall building structure to be sound and not at imminent risk of collapse at this time. The collapsing ceilings and abundance of debris observed in the building gives a false illusion of the floors collapsing." It went on to say, "the steel beams have surface rust however we did not observe major scaling or failure of the major structural elements" and "we did not observe large areas of the floor or roof structure that appeared to be on the verge of collapse." Once again, the full report can be read by clicking here.

While there were two other engineering reports completed that claim the building is not structurally sound, this report is the only one where the consultants were allowed inside the building for their review, giving them the most comprehensive look at the structure that anyone has had thus far.

With this new information in hand, the LIHG (plaintiff) has brought a lawsuit against the owner at Gateway Trade Center, Steven Detweiler (defendant) to halt all demolition until an investigation can take place.

Photo credit: David Torke, fixBuffalo

I've taken the liberty of assembling the best quotes from Mayor Szymanski that illustrate his ignorance and lack of foresight with this grand cathedral of industry:

“It’s time to move on. I think that building is a prime representation of this entire region. It used to be beautiful, it used to be full of work, and now it’s abandoned, unsafe, unused, unwanted and it’s time we got more progressive. Bring down that building, bring down the silos and bring down the grain elevators, and let’s get this city moving,” Szymanski said.

Told that the City of Buffalo was beginning to find new uses for its grain elevators, Szymanski answered, “That’s why Buffalo looks like it does.”

He also said he didn’t believe a building abandoned for about 30 years and without heat could come back, noting that two structural engineering reports cast doubt on the building’s future.

“That building has nothing but sentimental value,” Szymanski said.

Judge lifts stay on demolition, -Buffalo News 11/27/12

"Pittsburgh adjusted, Cleveland adjusted. Buffalo has not and if we don't start making moves and start getting rid of stuff that is unusable, than we are going to continue to stay where we're at, which is nowhere."

   Historic Bethlehem Steel building to be torn down, -YNN 11/27/12

“I am tired of hearing about our glorious past. I think preservation societies are only trying to preserve what once was as opposed to moving our region in a positive direction.”

          Slated demolition of landmark delayed, -WIVB 5/22/12

The video below is worth a repost and offers a glimpse at what could have been and could still be if Lackawanna had a forward-thinking mayor. Video courtesy of WGRZ 11/15/12 "Two Communities, Two Fates for Former Bethlehem Steel Sites"

For additional information about the demolition and previous attempts to halt it, check out an article here and here from fixBuffalo. Also,  be sure to check out the I'm Steel Standing website for more updates and history.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Views of Buffalo Flickr     -     fixBuffalo     -     The Atlantic Cities     -     The Urbanophile

NTHP Blog     -     Congress for New Urbanism     -     Buffalo Historic Districts

New Tenants at Larkin Center of Commerce Leave the Suburbs in Favor of the City

The sixth floor of the Larkin Center of Commerce (701 Seneca Street) is filling up quickly with new tenants as ongoing redevelopment efforts continue. In the last year the building has welcomed three new companies that have relocated from the suburbs.

The certified public accounting firm (CPA) of Schunk, Wilson, & Company has returned to Buffalo this year after spending more than thirty years in Amherst. Originally located in the City, the firm left like many other companies for the suburbs in the 1970s. The firm was founded in 1966 and consistently ranks in the top 25 WNY CPA firms in Business First. They are settling in nicely to their new space as employees continue to make small aesthetic touches like recovering cubicle walls with new patterned fabric.

Another newer tenant of the sixth floor is the Strauss Group, which has moved from Williamsville about one year ago. The company is an executive search consultant that is, “a distinctive blend of pure entrepreneurial energy with the underpinnings of corporate structure” and “offers executive search as well as contract staffing solutions.”

Finally, Worldwide Express has been in their new space for eight months after moving in from Williamsville. The company has additional offices in Rochester, Syracuse, Tulsa and Pittsburgh to name a few. Worldwide Express has a partnership with UPS that enables them to offer light package services for domestic and international shipping. They also specialize in freight shipping and offer “domestic and international air freight services through over 30 regional, national, and global carriers.”

A common factor of these groups moving to the City of Buffalo is obviously the building, but also the emerging urban node that is the Larkin District. These three groups moving back/to Buffalo represent a growing trend to return to an urban setting. Slowly but surely, more employers are vacating large, suburban, one-story office parks in favor of spaces in emerging urban corridors. The continued renovation at 701 Seneca is another great example in Buffalo of repurposing our rich historic assets and illustrates the ongoing efforts of revitalizing the communities of our city. 

For additional photos of the progress at the Larkin Center of Commerce and the Larkin District, click here

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Views of Buffalo Flickr     -     fixBuffalo     -     The Atlantic Cities     -     The Urbanophile

NTHP Blog     -     Congress for New Urbanism     -     Buffalo Historic Districts