saturday august 16th 2008
Buffalo Rocks The Itasca
queenseyes
Last evening, the Buffalo waterfront came alive in so many different ways. The Rock the Harbor event drew a tremendous amount of people to the water's edge, and a heck of a lot of boaters showed up as well. Many of the boaters pulled into the Canal Terminus before sparking up their grills and lounge chairs on the docks. And a bunch of landlubbers were spotted tailgating in the parking lots before the concert began.
The hi-light of the night was witnessing the $18,790,000 motortug-to-yacht conversion pull into the harbor. The crew tied up over by the Miss Buffalo - they certainly couldn't have picked a better night to visit Buffalo. As they turned on their thrusters, a brilliant moon popped out of the clouds to illuminate the seen - it was neat to see so many boaters from the Commercial Slip motor over to take a closer look. The little boats looked like specs next to the 175' one of a kind world-class explorer yacht named Itasca.
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Eli George
Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper (BNR) is an organization dedicated to trying to find ways to reduce and eliminate pollution in the area rivers. Now, they have joined forces with Urban Roots in an attempt to help bring rain barrels to the Buffalo population. This push to bring rain barrels into the area illuminates BNR’s attempt to bring attention to the issue. Their goal is to install 1,000 rain barrels annually to reduce storm water overflows.
The issue of sewer overflow remains a serious one, though it isn’t unique to Buffalo. Approximately 770 cities across the nation still have the problem and one way to help prevent and minimize the effect of rainwater is through the use of rain barrels. The City of Buffalo has underground pipes that carry storm water and sanitary wastewater from the streets and houses to the wastewater treatment plant.
When a storm rolls in and hits Buff…
West Coast Perspective
A Housing Opportunities Made Equal (HOME) membership appreciation boat ride is taking place on Saturday, August 23 from 1 to 2:45 pm on the Miss Buffalo II. Light refreshments will be served. Housing Opportunities Made Equal is a civil rights organization which, since 1963, has led the struggle for fair housing in the Buffalo-Niagara region.
There will be basket raffles as well as a pre-raffle of an overnight accommodation for two at the historic Beau Flueve Bed & Breakfast on Linwood Avenue. The Bed & Breakfast accommodation was generously donated by the owners of the Beau Flueve. Pre-sale raffle tickets, $5.00 each or five tickets for $20, are available by calling HOME.
Tickets for the boat ride are on sale now- $15.00 for children ages 6 to 12 and $2…
friday august 15th 2008
Japanese Garden Lecture This Sunday
BRO Reader Submission
Submission by Marty McGee
This is the third and final installment of our Summer 2008 Japanese Garden lecture series which takes place at the buffalo and Erie County Historical Society auditorium this Sunday, August 17 at 1 PM. 25 Nottingham Terrace.
Jeffrey Albert of the architectural firm; Foit-Albert Associates, will present a slide lecture covering his recent trip to Japan. Jeff made a survey of some of the most beautiful gardens there, both famous and obscure. His trip to Asia also took him to China and its gardens, but that part of his adventure will be left for a future lecture.
Please click this link to go to the calendar page and scroll down to August 17.
The event is sponsored by the Friends of the Japanese Garden and BECHS.
Date: Sunday, August 17th
Time: 1pm to 2:30pm
Location: Buffalo & Er…
George Thomas Apfel
Back in December of last year I wrote a history of Our Lady of Lourdes Church; my brother Paul also provided additional photos which are on my website. Now that I'm in town preparing to relocate back to Buffalo one of my first stops was my old family church at Main and Best--and now I see the church is going to be sold at auction September 13.
Some of the boards over the massive windows are gone and I see one of the roof dormers has been damaged (no doubt from last winters windstorms), but the exterior masonry still appears sound. I went to the auctioneer's website which lists the details of the property:
- Architecturally Significant Building
- Sq. Ft. : Approx. 10,950
- Lot Size: 82x243 (.45 Acres)
- Assessed Value: $135,000
- Formerly used as a Our Lady o…
buffalorising
The welcoming committee at Buffalo State College will be rolling out the red carpet and waving flags this Sunday. 17 students from China will be arriving at the college to study for the upcoming year. The students are coming from the Sichuan Province, which many of you may recall was severely damaged by the recent earthquake.
For all of the students, this will be their first time in the United States. Homes and schools were destroyed in the quake and the SUNY Board of Trustees has been working with the Chinese Government to create a unique program to bring the undergraduate students displaced by the tragedy into SUNY campuses.
Buffalo State College has deep academic and cultural ties to China and therefore it was decided that they would host more students than most of the other SUNY campuses. The welcoming committee will be dressed in orange Buffalo State t-shirts and wave flag…
Jennifer Lawandus
The RiverRock Tennis and Education Association and the United States Tennis Association Eastern Section are pleased to announce their sponsorship of the First Annual RiverRock OPEN.
The tennis tournament will take place from September 2 through 5 at the Riverside Park Tennis Courts, which are located at 2607 Niagara Street. "The tournament director will be Marsha Huard who is also the director of the RiverRock Tennis and Education Association," Maria Lirio, Western Region Tennis Service Representative explained.
"People should join this tournament because the money that will be raised at the tournament will go back to the RiverRock Tennis and Education Assocation to fund their local programs, junior programs and additional activities they host for the community like free carnivals and block parties," Lirio stated.
Jennifer Lawandus
Recently the Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy held their annual meeting to elect officers and trustees to serve on the Olmsted Conservancy Board.
The meeting took place at the Marcy Casino in Delaware Park. Conservancy chair J. Jerry Castiglia was succeeded by the newly elected chairman David Colligan. Anne Harding Joyce was elected to serve as chair-elect. Gary L. Mucci was elected to serve as secretary. James E. Iglewski was re-elected as treasurer of the board. Additionally, a few new trustees were elected to serve three-year terms including: Jeffrey L. Barbeau, Susan J. Elkin and Heidi Welsby.
Conservancy Chairman David Colligan
The meeting also marked the unveiling of plans for Olmsted parks in the 21st century by Olmsted Presid…
RaChaCha
Congressman Brian Higgins—co-chair of the Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition’s Revitalizing Older Cities Task Force—will hold a field hearing today, August 15, from 10AM until Noon. The event, titled “Toward a 21st Century Community: A Revitalizing Older Cities Field Hearing,” will take place at the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society Museum and will focus on the role of federal policy in issues such as housing, economic development, and other matters key to the rejuvenation of historic industrial communities.
According to Higgins, “Regions like ours across the nation are facing unique challenges related to a changing economy, deteriorating housing stock and outdated infrastructure,” said Congressman Higgins. “This is a great opportunity for Western New York to directly influence national policies that can help create change that benefits older citi…
West Coast Perspective
The Family Video location at 1488 Hertel Avenue is open for business. A controversial driveway on Sterling Avenue, however, is not. The driveway was built twice as wide as approved and has been ordered blocked off by City officials. Residents along Sterling Avenue objected to the store’s 28-car parking lot connecting to their residential street and claim the store is doing just fine without access to Sterling.
In March, Family Video purchased two properties at 1488 and 1500 Hertel, previously occupied by Martino's TV & Appliance. The retailer paid $537,500 for the one-story, 7,000 sq.ft. commercial building and adjacent parking lot.
Family Video received City approval to demolish Martino’s existing building and construct a smaller, 4,850 sq.ft. store with a re-worked 28-car parking lot.
