It was while listening to a Q&A with Saul Elkin, prior to a Shakespeare in the Park Much Ado About Nothing performance, that I learned how successful the season was turning out to be. What is it that continues to draw such large numbers of people to the performances and how would this ever-growing phenomenon react to the increased crowds? I had heard that the push was on to build a new stage - I had even seen renderings of facilities improvements (concept designs by architect Charlie Gordon). This is an exciting time for Shakespeare in

When I last covered the completion of the Nichols School Math and Science Building, the adjoining rain garden had not been completed. At the time, I was not aware of the significance of the feature, but upon a recent visit back to the school I discovered quite the eco-operation. The storm water diversion is brilliant. From the roof, the water flows to a downspout that empties into a gravel catchall. Due to the size of the roof and considerable amount of water that might normally be emptied into city drains, the rain garden

Many of you will recall last week when Tod Kniazuk, the Executive Director of of Music is Art appealed to BR readers for their votes in an online contest held by JP Morgan Chase Bank called Chase Community Giving. In the end, the contest organizers would allot $5 million in prizes, giving $20,000 to each of the non-profits to finish in the top 200. The top 200 was based strictly on public vote.

When voting closed at 11:50 p.m. July 12th, Music is Art had finished in the138th position, with a total of 1,619 votes. They were the only Western

It's a celebration of the business and arts communities that have been working towards making Black Rock a special place. It's a project that will shed light on the history of a tight-knit community. Leave it to Marcus L. Wise of 464 Gallery and Marissa Lahner, two members of Emerging Leaders in the Arts (ELAB - Buffalo Chapter), to dream up a mural project that will capture the imaginations of the community, while providing creative people with high profile public canvases upon which to paint.

 Sponsored by the Grant-Amherst Business Association,

As we mentioned in our introductory post yesterday, this latest version of BuffaloRising.com has forums where users can communicate with one another around specific topics. Our first forum question is a good one so we'd like to have users help out with some answers.  
What is the best quick, greasy Chinese takeout place in the City?  There is, of course, 'good' Chinese food in the City at places like Ming

If there was ever a test for the Complete Streets initiative, it's this section of Elmwood Avenue between Hodge and Utica. After the work is completed, will we see bike lanes or sharrows? Some Elmwood residents may remember a time when this section of the street was scheduled to be narrowed, and the sidewalks were to be widened. Unfortunately that was during the Masiello administration - it turned out that a few of the businesses on the street had The Mayor's ear and put the kibosh on a project that would have really helped this stretch of commercial district to become more walkable. If I remember

By: Ann Marie Awad

 - Last Wednesday, with the sun high, hot and unkind in the sky, I turned onto Gibson St, and with an oomph, pushed my car to climb the Broadway Market ramp up to the roof. I drove over to the corner and parked right next to my garden - my two plots, four feet by four feet, pushed together, with a few pots on the side.
 
Despite the surreal heat, the roof was pleasant and peaceful. It was during the workday, so I was the only one around. I hunted for the hose and started to water my plants. Red, yellow and orange tomatoes, okra,

When I first met Mike Weekes, I realized that I had just met someone who was out to accomplish something in Buffalo, whether that was pure networking, helping to brand Buffalo or possibly pulling off a surprising undertaking of enormous magnitude. "You want to do what?" I asked him. "I want to build a museum dedicated to Buffalo sports," he answered. That was about six months ago, and ever since that time, Mike has been on a mission to promote his dream. When Mike moved back to Buffalo in November, after being away for many years, he decided that he was going to dedicate his time to make the city

It was during the middle of an interview at Five Points Bakery when the business was suddenly overrun by garden bloggers this past weekend. Five Points just happens to be connected to Urban Roots Garden Cooperative - one of the stops along the comprehensive urban garden tour given by Jim Charlier, Elizabeth Licata and a host of other local gardening promoters. The tour coincided with the National Garden Festival, and despite a full day of rain on Friday (great for taking garden photos actually), participants ran amuck raving about Buffalo's tremendous floral bounty.

Visits on the tour

By Brian Hayden:

 The landscapers have left North Parade Avenue, the gardens are complete, and the newly planted sod is just settling into the ground.

 But the fun isn't over yet!

 The voting phase of the National Buffalo Garden Festival's Front Yard Garden Competition, believed to be the first of its kind in the country, began Sunday and will continue through Sunday, July 18. The public has a chance to help decide which of the 19 front lawns

The Buffalo Common Council will hold a public hearing tomorrow to discuss public investment and involvement in the revitalization of the inner harbor at the Canal Side site.  Following appeals from the Canal Side Community Alliance for the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation (ECHDC) to meet with community groups to discuss a Community Benefit Agreement (CBA) for the Canal Side project and a report released last month by the Public Accountability Initiative questioning the actual effects Bass Pro has on luring other businesses and job creation, the Common Council has decided to bring

We've just launched the latest version of BuffaloRising.com.  As you can see, we've modified the design of the site but we've also introduced a number of new important features we want to point out.

First, the most popular stories are now highlighted along the top of the front page just below the header navigation.  We think this new position for Buffalo Rising's most popular stories helps readers quickly and easily determine which stories are generating the most pageviews and comments. 

Second, we have reintroduced comment ratings. This new system allows

Once a summer I am lucky enough to be invited to the Mid-Day Club of Buffalo. Sometimes it's to attend an event, while other times I have been invited to have coffee or lunch. Recently I was invited to have lunch with Jeremy Hudson, President of the club. When I arrived to the 21st floor of the Liberty Building I was expecting to shake hands with someone a bit older than the person who greeted me. Jeremy Hudson, VP at Hudson Advisor Services, is the youngest member in the history of the club to serve as president. The decision was made by design,

Has anyone else seen Justin Craddock working his magic in Buffalo? The guy is really good. And get this: He went to City Hall and paid $10 for a busking license. I thought that was pretty cool considering he's the first street performer that I ever came across that actually took the time to be legit. I asked Justin if he ever gets hassled by the 'men in blue' when out interacting with the public. "No," he answered. "The only time I get hassled is at an event like Thursday at the Square - even with a busking license. So I set up in places like Allentown and Elmwood where there might not be the crowds,

Each year the Zombie Walk (and pub crawl) gets a little bit bigger and a lot creepier. The walk started off as a just that - a walk. This year there was more of a concentrated effort to make sure that the event would make a lasting impression on participants (both voluntary and involuntary). I was particularly impressed with the arrival of John Peckham from Ride in Peace (Funeral & Formal Auto Society). He brought with him a small fleet of shiny black hearses, complete with couch-coffins. John's addition to the event brought the entire

Today is the last day to catch the Grease Pole Festival at the Pucho Olivencia Center. If you're one of those people who is always looking to attend an event that is not exactly mainstream, this is worth checking out. Of course the grand finale - the grease pole competition - is what festival-goers really look forward to, but there is plenty to see and do up until that point. In a city where residents pride themselves on the number of festivals and the gigantic efforts that go into

I was happy to act as a judge at this year's Taste of Buffalo, along with a herd of local news anchors, politicians and fellow foodies. They set us off to work as soon as the festival was open, each of us were given the responsibility of sampling the offerings of a handful of restaurants. Each restaurant has numerous judges taste their entire menu in order to gain a fair perspective. How the Taste then turns all of our ratings into a list of winners, I am unsure, but I was happy that the best thing I tasted all day made the list.

The winning

Soccer will be on the minds of a lot of Buffalonians tomorrow, especially those who have been supporting our own FC Buffalo team. In preparation for soccer-madness tomorrow, Sean Lafferty, the club's assistant director of partnerships, has set the cleats in motion with a kick-off party at Papa Jake's that will lead to FC Buffalo's final game of the season. From Sean:

"We have an all-day soccer affair starting at Papa Jake's at 1pm with

Soulive Review: Eric Crittenden
Photos: Joe Casio

Although the second concert trio in the Tower Jam Concert Series could have easily been a wash due to inclement weather, music fans rallied early on while Mother Nature changed her tune as the evening progressed. By the time Soulive hit the stage, the crowd had solidified and all eyes were on the masterful musicians as they played to the energized crowd. From

Priscilla Project is one of my favorite difference-makers in the city.  Mentoring pregnant refugee women is a very effective, low cost way to improve our neighborhoods not only in the short-term, but over generations.

The following is a testimonial from another mentor:

"In June 2009, I was at home with my one-month-old baby, experiencing the ups and downs of new motherhood. Around the same time,  Poe Meh, was leaving Ban Mai Nai Soi, a refugee camp on the Burma/ Thailand border, and heading to America. Neither of us knew