Plan: Raze Aud for Bass Pro store

[Allan in MD]

Big deal! Replacing history with a fish story. But what else is new these days.

 

Throw in some fish here, a walkway there, another ad hoc edifice wherever; that's not going to fix downtown Buffalo. Somebody with a vision and some intelligently begotten resources needs to take a look at what so many other cities (Baltimore, Cleveland, Portland etc.) have successfully done and do it right. Tony Masiello can say all he wants about how important Bass is to downtown Buffalo, but it's a fish story.

[Bmwolf21]

Cool--thanks for the link. Lots said already there; if I have something useful to add, I will!

 

Wow, some really in-depth replies there - I don't know if there's anything I can add (without sounding like an idiot, that is...)

 

Big deal! Replacing history with a fish story. But what else is new these days.

 

Throw in some fish here, a walkway there, another ad hoc edifice wherever; that's not going to fix downtown Buffalo. Somebody with a vision and some intelligently begotten resources needs to take a look at what so many other cities (Baltimore, Cleveland, Portland etc.) have successfully done and do it right. Tony Masiello can say all he wants about how important Bass is to downtown Buffalo, but it's a fish story.

 

True, other cities have done some impressive things to grow and/or revitalize their regions, but they haven't been foolproof, 100% successes either. Cleveland is rolling out $225M to revitalize The Flats, at the same time the city has been slapped with the "Poorest Big City in America" title for the second time in three years. Baltimore, like Cleveland, has seen their job growth stay in the red over the last five years, while carrying an increased crime risk. Portland is the best of the three you mentioned - highest median income, highest median home prices, comparable weather to WNY, better education, etc. Check out this link to Money Magazine's top 10 Big Cities to live in, where I added Portland, Cleveland, Buffalo and Baltimore for comparison.

 

As others have mentioned, if Bass Pro is part of something bigger - the hotel & museum complex, for instance - then it is a good start. If its a stand alone store, with nothing added around it, then it won't last in downtown and the effects on dowtown and the economy will be negligible.

 

Now, about the Signature Span/Twin Span debate...

[LabattBlue]

Wow, some really in-depth replies there - I don't know if there's anything I can add (without sounding like an idiot, that is...)

True, other cities have done some impressive things to grow and/or revitalize their regions, but they haven't been foolproof, 100% successes either. Cleveland is rolling out $225M to revitalize The Flats, at the same time the city has been slapped with the "Poorest Big City in America" title for the second time in three years. Baltimore, like Cleveland, has seen their job growth stay in the red over the last five years, while carrying an increased crime risk. Portland is the best of the three you mentioned - highest median income, highest median home prices, comparable weather to WNY, better education, etc. Check out this link to Money Magazine's top 10 Big Cities to live in, where I added Portland, Cleveland, Buffalo and Baltimore for comparison.

 

As others have mentioned, if Bass Pro is part of something bigger - the hotel & museum complex, for instance - then it is a good start. If its a stand alone store, with nothing added around it, then it won't last in downtown and the effects on dowtown and the economy will be negligible.

 

Now, about the Signature Span/Twin Span debate...

 

bmwolf...stop over to buffalorising often and click on the city tab. It is a great place to keep up to date on what's happening in Buffalo from a residential, commerical & tourism perspective.

[Bmwolf21]

Thanks for the heads-up, Labatt...

 

FWIW, I lived in Florida for 5 years, and while I had a good time there (hurricanes excepted), I was shocked at the ignorance ppl have about our city & region. It saddens me, b/c we all know what a great place it can be to live and raise families, and I wish we could get Buffalo-Niagara to pick themselves up off the mat & start turning things around, so the rest of the country will see what most of us already know. Unfortunately I think some of the region's problems won't be fixed without Albany's help, and I don't think that's happening anytime soon.

 

In the last six months we had two opportunities to move back closer to home - one in Rochester, where the wife is from and has a lot of family (job didn't pan out); and finally the one that landed us in the Cleveland area, so I am now able to get back into WNY more often, and see for myself what changes are (and aren't) being made.