A plan to convert the vacant Freezer Queen complex at the north end of the Small Boat Harbor is back with a new design. Property owner Gerry Buchheit is partnering with R&P Oak Hill on the $40 million Queen City Landing project that will start with the conversion of the six-story building into 120 apartments priced at $2,000/month and up. Future phases would include new residential buildings and possibly a hotel on the 20-acre site.
The development team is working with Trautman Associates to design the project. Plans call for retrofitting the existing building to create one and two-bedroom units ranging in size from 1,200 to 1,500 sq.ft. of living space.
The main floor will house a mix of restaurant, bar, and fitness center tenants. The remaining floors will contain the residential units featuring floor-to-ceiling glass, high ceilings, and balconies. Plans also call for penthouse residences added atop the existing structure, and a resident club house with roof top terrace. Covered parking is planned
Buchheit is a former owner of the Statler. He sold the property to Bashar Issa and has been busy constructing the Quaker Crossing power center on Milestrip Road in Orchard Park. He purchased the Freezer Queen property for $3 million at a November 2007 auction. In March 2008, Buchheit announced plans to create as many as 130 condos in the building and additional residential buildings and a hotel on surrounding land. Those plans (below) stalled out with a sputtering economy.
Pending City approvals, demolition is scheduled to begin this fall with construction starting in the spring and occupancy in the spring of 2017.
Get Connected: Queen City Landing, 716.823.7704