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Development Advisory Council

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.

Council Overview

The Development Advisory Council is a broad cross-section of leading development, construction, and real estate professionals in Western New York who aim to support policy, collaboration, and educational opportunities around the sustainable redevelopment of Buffalo Niagara.

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Development Advisory Council Mission
Advocacy Initatives
Programming Initatives
Development Advisory Council Mission
Our mission includes:
  • Foster the development of diverse, vibrant, walkable 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
 
 
Advocacy Initatives
Top Initiatives for 2020:
  • PREVAILING WAGE:
    • Oppose expansion of prevailing wage mandate to
      private projects
  • SCAFFOLD LAW REFORM:
    • 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
  • ADAPTIVE REUSE:
    • Maintain and strengthen Erie County Industrial
      Development Agency’s existing Adaptive Reuse policy
  • MANDATED INCLUSIONARY ZONING:
    • Oppose mandated inclusionary zoning which inflates
      the cost of developing new affordable units in a
      market with high construction costs and low rental
      rates. Instead, the public and private sectors must
      come together to urgently address the findings of the
      Buffalo Housing Opportunity Strategy report including
      the need for focused investment around community
      assets to build market confidence and create mixed
      income neighborhoods.
  • INFILL DEVELOPMENT:
    • Establish an incentive program to stimulate infill
      development in downtown Buffalo to help build
      walkable, complete neighborhoods
  • HISTORIC TAX CREDIT:
    • Support expansion of NYS Historic Tax Credit program
      by increasing credit from 20% to 30% for projects
      under $5 million
Programming Initatives
Top Initiatives for 2020:
  • PREVAILING WAGE:
    • Oppose expansion of prevailing wage mandate to
      private projects
  • SCAFFOLD LAW REFORM:
    • 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
  • ADAPTIVE REUSE:
    • Maintain and strengthen Erie County Industrial
      Development Agency’s existing Adaptive Reuse policy
  • MANDATED INCLUSIONARY ZONING:
    • Oppose mandated inclusionary zoning which inflates
      the cost of developing new affordable units in a
      market with high construction costs and low rental
      rates. Instead, the public and private sectors must
      come together to urgently address the findings of the
      Buffalo Housing Opportunity Strategy report including
      the need for focused investment around community
      assets to build market confidence and create mixed
      income neighborhoods.
  • INFILL DEVELOPMENT:
    • Establish an incentive program to stimulate infill
      development in downtown Buffalo to help build
      walkable, complete neighborhoods
  • HISTORIC TAX CREDIT:
    • Support expansion of NYS Historic Tax Credit program
      by increasing credit from 20% to 30% for projects
      under $5 million
"Working with the Partnership provides my company a seat at the table as part of the private sector’s voice in economic development, advocating for stronger communities throughout the region."
Ben ObletzPresident & CEO First Amherst Development Group
"The Partnership’s Development Advisory Council provides the opportunity for diverse and often competing practitioners in the real estate and development industries to join with a unified voice to advocate for sustainable policy and projects that can help revitalize Buffalo Niagara."
Dennis PenmanPenman Development Partners, LLC
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Council Leaders

Benjamin N. Obletz
Council Vice Chair
President
First Amherst Development

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.
  • Glendale Development
  • Great Lakes Environmental & Safety Consulting, Inc.
  • Greater Buffalo Niagara Regional Transportation Council
  • Greenlight Networks
  • 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.
  • Millington Lockwood
  • 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.
  • S&T Bank
  • 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.

Previous & Ongoing Programs & Initiatives

The BNP focuses on economic growth and expansion of existing businesses with programs and initiatives aimed at increasing private sector jobs and investments in the Buffalo Niagara region.  Many of these initiatives are successful because of the direct input and support from members of our Development Advisory Council.  Here are some examples of past and ongoing initiatives that are a critical component in creating a revitalized and economically sustainable future.

  • Buffalo Building Reuse Project – a public/private effort seeking to make downtown Buffalo more competitive for private investment in the 21st century.
  • Adaptive ReUse – one of the most impactful and efficient economic development tools available to employers in Western New York.
  • Downtown Buffalo Housing Report – This report synthesizes the findings of several studies examining the downtown residential market and the impact of specific incentive programs.
 

Thank You To Our Sponsors

INDUSTRY SPONSORS:

Harris Beach

SUPPORTING SPONSORS:

  • AMP INTERIOR CONSTRUCTION, A MILLINGTON LOCKWOOD COMPANY
  • ARC BUILDING PARTNERS, LLC
  • BONADIO GROUP
  • CBRE BUFFALO LLC
  • LABELLA ASSOCIATES, D.P.C.
  • LECHASE CONSTRUCTION SERVICES, LLC

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.

From the Blog

Attracting and Retaining Tech Talent in Buffalo Niagara

The Partnership December 16, 2019

Last year, Buffalo did not make it into the CBRE’s top 50 cities for technology talent. While not in the top 50, Buffalo did make it in to CBRE’s The Next 25 Markets in the tech talent report. Tech talent has long been concentrated in major cities, but high operating

Read More »

New York now has the nation’s second worst business tax climate

Maddilyn Genovese October 29, 2019

While the New York State 2019-2020 legislative session took steps to improve our state’s tax climate by passing a permanent 2% property tax cap holding local governments and school districts to reasonable spending, there is still much work to be done to ease the state’s heavy tax burden. The Tax

Read More »
Metro 50 State Tax Evaluation

Metro 50: Air Service

Eamon Riley June 4, 2019

The Buffalo Niagara Partnership’s latest installment of our Metro 50 Buffalo Niagara series highlights one of our strengths: air service in the Buffalo Niagara region. Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BNIA) plays an essential role in the development of business and tourism in the Buffalo Niagara region. BNIA provides more direct

Read More »
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Buffalo Niagara Partnership

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