"The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way it treats its animals." - Mahatma Gandhi

Get ready to have your pets blessed on Sunday October 3rd (5pm-5:30pm) at the Lafayette Presbyterian Church. Big or small, Reverend Drew will bless them all. In recent years, the turnout for the pet blessing has been nothing short of fantastic - there have even been a few caged cats along for the ceremonies. This year's blessing will take place a bit later in the day so as to allow Bills fans to partake... it will also give Drew the ability to bless the team properly (something that

Ellicott Development is seeking to demo the Our Lady of Lourdes convent at 1091 Main Street.  Ellicott's 9274 Group Inc. bought the convent, school and adjoining parking lot in July 2009 for $370,000.  In April, the company bought the vacant circa-1898 church at 1115 Main Street for

On Saturday, October 2, the Western New York Sustainable Energy Association will host its 15th annual Tour of Solar Homes and Green Businesses.  This tour will include 24 area buildings that have implemented a solar array or have some sort of green design element that demonstrates energy efficiency.  It is a self-guided tour that is open to the public.  The list of the sites that are being exhibited is available here.

The day will kickoff at 10 a.m. with a press event held at 95 Perry Street, a renovated former warehouse from 1926

No, I'm not talking about the ones that require to sport a dress or coat and tie. I'm talking about the ones that are run out of churches, schools and other places where the rent is cheap, the utilities are on, and the doors are open long enough to congregate. What are these clubs, where are they, and how do people find them? From fencing to chess, knitting to cards, scuba to collectors... if you know of a club that anyone can join, whether it be board games, playing cards, bird watching, magic, cigar, beer, scotch, bike, running, boating, or any other activity, please share with us.

Along

The last bit of news that I ever expected to see promoting a visit to the Broadway market was a promotion for an event called Broadway Battle. Broadway Battle is a round robin-style table tennis tournament that encourages a wide range of players to compete under the watchful eye of an official USATT umpire. On October 16th, kids and adults will have the chance to battle it out amongst themselves for prizes, while raising money for needy families during the holidays.

It's nice to see the Broadway Market hosting an event of this sort - the tournament will bring people to the market for

While observing Didier Pasquette walking the high-wire (photos Joe Cascio) last evening I found myself alongside hundreds of other Buffalonians who stood gazing up at the skies. Although the event was over in just a matter of minutes, the stunt had retained thousands of people in downtown who would hopefully stick around after the walk was finished. There were people viewing from street corners, offices, parking ramps, hotels... it reminded me of the ice maze at the Powder Keg Festival.

As we continue to go down different roads in search of ways to bring people downtown, we must keep

Reader Submission from Peter Hassett

Are you fond of Buffalo's incredible history? Do you marvel at the fabulous architecture gracing our city? Or do you hate all that stuff but still love a challenging test of your sleuthing powers.

On Saturday, October 2nd, BuffaloTours will host a super-fun scavenger hunt (we call it The Search Party) to begin at 2pm at City Grill in the heart of downtown Buffalo. It will end there as well, at 5pm, after which winners will be announced, prizes will be awarded, and

Submission to BRO:

I read this article about a guy who plots census race/ethnicity demographics in cities to visualize how segregated a city is, using colored dots which represent 25 people each.  Here is the article.

I went to his Flickr page, and found his map for Buffalo.

Nothing too surprising

Michael Dell, president and CEO of Dell, today announced the company is making a $15 million investment in computer equipment and services to support the launch of the University at Buffalo's new Institute for Healthcare Informatics.  UB and Dell made the announcement at a news conference held at the Roosevelt Building at the corner of Main and Carlton streets, where the UB Institute for Healthcare Informatics will be located.

Dell's investment is critical to the creation of UB's Institute for Healthcare Informatics and establishing it on the Roosevelt Building's first floor. 

By: Mackenzie Lambert

In the many years since special features have become another part of the DVD experience, deleted/extra scenes have been taken for granted. Usually the stuff left on the cutting room floor was so lackluster that it is a waste of disc space. Extra footage as a "bonus" feature is now seeping its way into movieplexes. Were the additional eight minutes for a big-budget techno-wonder from the guy who did a movie about a sinking cruise-liner really that important to warrant use of theatrical screens? Wouldn't it have been more cost effective to wait

Ever wondered what a Hamiltonian thinks of Buffalo? For that matter, have you ever wondered what a Hamiltonian thinks of Hamilton, Ontario? Recently one Hamiltonian made the trip down to Buffalo to investigate, before returning home and reporting to an online audience at Raise the Hammer. It was nice to hear all of the wonderful sights that Dave Serafini discovered and passed along, while at the same time it was intriguing to learn that he identified with Buffalo fully (see here). His viewpoints explored

I was thinking about Jimmy Griffin and Carl Paladino on a recent stroll down McKinley Parkway on the city's south side.  South Buffalo has traditionally generated many of Buffalo's most famous people including its most colorful politicians.  Former mayor Jimmy Griffin comes to mind.  He came to City Hall to shake things up refusing to follow the rules. He was gruff and controversial and did not care if he offended people.  He was the long time face of South Buffalo - even after leaving office.  That is, until the south side's latest high profile politician, Carl Paladino,

As we told you about, Rick Snowden recently sold the Miller Mansion for a cool $1.7 million.  Now, he's selling everything inside, or so it appears. 

The Miller Mansion will be home to one of the city's largest ever estate sales this weekend (September 24-26) as George Armbruster sells much of the Snowden family's furniture, artwork and collectibles.  Some of the items up for sale include paintings by Charles

By Gwen Ito:

Listening to Brigid Doherty talk about her work is enough to inspire anyone to feel more hopeful. Doherty, whose enthusiasm and optimism seem boundless, is the executive director of the Western New York Women's Fund. Created in 1999 by the United Way of Buffalo & Erie County and the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo, the Fund seeks to eradicate the barriers that keep girls and women from reaching their fullest potential. Today the Fund is a member of the Women's Funding Network and one of more than 135 Women's Funds throughout the world. In a little

The Hotel Lafayette was recently added to the National Register of Historic Places.  Developer Rocco Termini is planning to restore the landmark property and fill it with a mix of banquet and restaurant space, a boutique hotel and apartments.  When the hotel opened for business in 1904, the one-million-dollar structure designed by Bethune, Bethune & Fuchs was touted in the national press as "one of the most perfectly appointed and magnificent hotels in the country."

The hotel's

For those of you who can't make it to the weekly Common Council meeting, following is the edited briefing. We included the topics that relate to larger segments of the community. From this week's meeting as provided by the council, here is the summary:

The Council adopted a resolution sponsored by Ellicott District Council Member Curtis Haynes, Jr. and South District Council Member Michael P. Kearns requesting of the Shared Asset Forfeiture Fund Advisory Board ("SAFFAB") that they immediately determine the policies and procedures for disbursing Shared Asset Forfeiture Fund

When we hear people discuss the cities that are adjusting well to the demands of the new economy, it is frequently the largest cities that are touted: New York, Chicago, London, etc.  At a minimum, these places tend to be "of a certain size."

Zachary Neal, a professor of sociology and global urban studies at Michigan State, has a new study out that disputes this.  Entitled "From Central Places to Network Spaces," it makes the argument that networks rather than size are the critical determinant of urban success in

On Tuesday, September 21, the city of Buffalo will welcome representatives from eighteen different countries and hundreds of delegates from across the United States to the Adam's Mark Hotel for the World Canals Conference "Shuffle Off to Buffalo" Luncheon.

This one-day event is part of the weeklong 2010 World Canals Conference being hosted in Rochester.  The conference brings experts from around the world together to discuss the historic and cultural significance of these waterways and to collaborate on new developments and new initiatives for strengthening them

Submission by John Kordrupel:

As differences between places go, they couldn't be much different. New York and Massachusetts may share a border, but one might never suspect such a thing if never shown a map of the United States. To start, look at what these two entities call themselves: the State of New York and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Looking more closely, this time at these entities' largest and most well-known respective cities, reveals an even more stark contrast. New York City has the Yankees and the Jets/Giants. Boston roots

This Fashion Maniac edition makes it a dozen in a series that shows that Buffalo has what it takes when it comes to fashion trends and models who like to show the latest and greatest. Check out the other shoots to see the national trends and where to find them locally: United We Stand @ Tifft Nature Preserve, bathing suits on the Spirit of Buffalo, James