Industry Overview
Buffalo Niagara’s physical growth and development is a critical component towards a revitalized and economically sustainable future. Since 1970, our region’s urbanized land area has grown by 78% while we lost 16% of our population; this equation must change if we are to be an affordable place to live, work and do business.
Our mission includes:
- Make Buffalo Niagara attractive for businesses to grow and expand
- Foster the development of diverse, vibrant communities that can retain and attract people to the region
- Make efficient use of existing resources by directing development to areas already served by infrastructure, transit and public services
- Support assistance for development projects to encourage private investment and create new programs to help address community needs
- Establish a collaborative planning environment where design and development honors and preserves our region’s history while also providing the opportunities to establish a new legacy
Top Initiatives for 2019:
- Oppose expansion of prevailing wage mandate on private projects
- Reform the Scaffold Law by replacing absolute liability with a comparative negligence standard, allowing liability to be apportioned based on fault—the standard that exists in every state except New York
- Maintain and strengthen Erie County Industrial Development Agency’s existing Adaptive Reuse policy
- Oppose mandated inclusionary zoning on development projects in Buffalo
- Establish an incentive program to stimulate infill development in downtown Buffalo to help build walkable, complete neighborhoods
Best Practices & Learning
- Using infill development to achieve smart growth
- Leveraging Opportunity Zone program
- Creating density through place-based infrastructure
Initiative Engagement
- IDA policy review and action
- Downtown Buffalo housing market
- Buffalo Building Reuse Project
- City of Buffalo Housing Opportunities Strategy
Tour Series
- Insider tours of unique sites important to the region’s development
Council Leaders
Partnership Staff
Benjamin N. Obletz
Council Vice Chair
President
First Amherst Development
Eamon Riley, Esq.
Senior Manager, Economic Development
716-541-1716
Email
Council Members
- AMD Environmental Consultants, Inc.
- Arc Building Partners, LLC.
- Arcadis
- Architectural Resources, P.C.
- Bank On Buffalo
- Barclay Damon, LLP
- Benchmark Environmental Engineering & Science PLLC
- Benchmark Management Corporation
- Benderson Development Company, LLC
- Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC
- C&S Companies
- Cannon Design
- Cannon Heyman & Weiss, LLP
- Carmina Wood Morris, DPC
- CBRE Buffalo
- Chason Affinity
- Ciminelli Real Estate Corporation
- Clark Patterson Lee
- Construction Exchange of Buffalo & WNY, Inc.
- DiDonato Associates
- Ecology & Environment, Inc.
- Ellicott Development Co.
- Encorus Group
- First Amherst Development Group LLC
- Five Star Bank
- Foit-Albert Assoc., Architecture, Engineering & Surveying, PC
- Frey Electric Construction Co., Inc.
- Frontier Group of Companies
- Gerald Kelly Capital Corp.
- Great Lakes Environmental & Safety Consulting, Inc.
- Greater Buffalo Niagara Regional Transportation Council
- Greenman-Pedersen, Inc.
- Hamister Group, LLC
- Hanna Commercial Real Estate
- Harris Beach PLLC
- Hodgson Russ LLP
- Hopkins Sorgi & Romanowski PLLC
- Hurwitz & Fine, P.C.
- Iskalo Development Corp.
- Joy Kuebler Landscape Architect, P.C.
- KeyBank
- LaBella Associates, D.P.C.
- LeChase Construction Services, LLC
- Lippes Mathias Wexler Friedman LLP
- M&T Bank
- Modern Disposal Services, Inc.
- Montante Companies LLC
- National Grid
- Nussbaumer & Clarke, Inc.
- OSEA (Occupational Safety and Environmental Associates)
- P. Max Engineering
- Parkitects, Inc.
- Penman Development Partners, LLC
- Priam Enterprises, LLC
- Renewal Housing Corp.
- Rodriguez Construction Group, Inc.
- RP Oak Hill Building Company Inc.
- Savarino Companies, LLC
- Schneider Development, LLC
- Seneca Gaming Corporation
- Signature Development
- Sinatra & Company Real Estate
- Sonwil Distribution Center, Inc.
- T.Y. Lin International Group
- The Community Preservation Corp.
- The Krog Corp.
- The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company
- Tompkins Bank of Castile
- Turner Construction Co.
- Uniland Development Company
- Watts Architecture & Engineering, P.C.
- Wells Fargo
- Wendel
- West Side & Black Rock-Riverside Neighborhood Housing Services
- WSP USA Inc.
Thank You To Our Sponsors
INDUSTRY SPONSORS:
SUPPORTING SPONSORS:
- ARC BUILDING PARTNERS, LLC
- CBRE BUFFALO LLC
- CONSTRUCTION EXCHANGE OF BUFFALO & WNY
- LABELLA ASSOCIATES, D.P.C.
- LECHASE CONSTRUCTION SERVICES, LLC
- MODERN DISPOSAL SERVICES, INC.
- NATIONAL GRID
- T.Y. LIN INTERNATIONAL
Interested In Joining or Sponsoring?
Want to connect with some of the most engaged developers in the region? Fill out the form below or contact Liz Benkovich at (716) 541-1759 for more information.
