Well I think the Liberty Tower is perfect for mixed use....perhaps instead of trying to lease office space to the last remaining 25% they should convert a portion of the Liberty Building to apartments which would make it quite convenient for those people that want their small business on the lower floors and their apartment with the wonderful views on the upper.

As far as Main Place Mall..its day is over! Demolish the Main Place Mall, build a sister tower at the opposite end, restore the street grid but do it in such a way as to keep the underground parking (shouldnt be that hard). That is the best thing that could be done with that building!

Adding a 2nd tower and restoring the street grid would make that entire complex much more integrated into the community, pedestrian friendly and result in better retail for the remaining structure.

Heck....if done right....they could restore the street grid, build a 2nd tower...and keep both the underground parking and the 2nd floor mall.....with perhaps architecturally pleasing pass thru's used to reconnect the street grid.

Also do something creative on the roof of the mall like a rooftop track....and/or a rooftop bar/restaurant...the rooftop views would be quite attractive...especially if they copied the trend of a green roof. It would be very progressive..and very attactive....what a waste of space and real estate. The owner really has no concept of what this building needs to fit into its surroundings.

MAIN PLACE IS CRYING FOR A SECOND TOWER AT THE OPPOSITE END....THIS BUILDING IS A DUD WITHOUT IT.

BUT AS IT IS...THIS IS A MONOLITH....THAT IS POORLY DESIGNED, OBSTRUCTS TRAFFIC AND IS UNFRIENDLY TO THE PEDESTRIAN.

WE NOW KNOW ENOUGH TO CORRECT THE DESIGN FLAWS .... AND THE TEMPORARY FIXES PROPOSED DONT SOLVE ANYTHING....THEY WILL FAIL BECAUSE YOUR JUST PUTTING MAKE UP ON A PIG.

Aw, quit shouting, Chris69. Everyone else has opinions, too, but we manage not to pound on the Caps Lock key.

Back to the matter at hand: any sign of a tenant for the ground floor cafe space?

Everytime I walk by that building it just makes me laugh, it just comical how baddly this property was designed. Even if it weren't abandoned/owned by a complete jackass who is just realizing what potential the property has, it's still one of the uglyest and poorest designed structures anywhere. Driving down Pearl feels like your driving along the end of the world with the great black nothingness on one side and civilization on the other.

If they were to knock down the part where eagle street should, in addition to redoing the outside like he said he wants to as well as knock down the mall section that surounds main place tower and make some type of plaza with trees and benches and the like similar to cathedral park it would really change the face of the neighborhood.

I cannot stand the Main Liberty Group for two reasons... the Main Place Mall and because they are trying to sue the 50 Court St. project. I just walked past the site for 50 Court St. yesterday and imagined the 11-story building there, it will have great density for the area. But regardless the Main Place Mall is a joke... either remodel it into 2007 or demolish it, I like the idea of a sister tower. It doesn’t have to be as tall or look the same actually I'd rather see something newer looking. The liberty building is one of my favorites in Buffalo. I too would love to see it have some apartments added. Imagine bringing your friends from out of town into that great tower.

Please tell me they're putting a Panera Bread in that space in the Liberty!!

rumors are that tim hortons is going to relocate from key center

I know a couple of local guys who bid on the place months ago and the liberty group wanted to hold out for a national chain (Dunkin' Donuts or Starbusks)

You cant just demolish the Main Place Mall...like you would weed your garden...imagine the capital it would take to demolish the mall...and rebuild the grid and build a sister tower. I can't imagine the MPLG having that much capital laying around when struggling with 50% occupancy rates. "Cant be too hard" yeah...ok.

the existing interior of the former main place bistro makes me think starbucks more than tim hortons.

putting the remaining retail of the mall on the main street side and giving it a humanized 21st centruy facade sounds great...it would be pretty sweet to see hotung do something GOOD to the main place facility for once.

any other city and main place mall would be long gone by now. one of buffalo's premier eyesores

Wow... if mplg actually did something with the damn mall I really think that would get some serious energy going. I like the shift of retail to main and office to pearl it makes sense if we see traffic on main street again in our lifetime. Premier eyesore and premier embarassment.... it won't be demolished get used to it b/c its here for good.. the fact that its been soo underutilized for this long is disgusting.. I'd like to see something happen here more than anywhere else in the city.

I worked in the Main Place tower part time at an asshole law office (Duke Holzman Yeager) and found the Mall there a depressing place. In the few years I was in Buffalo at least three tenants vacated the place: a liquor store, a chocolate shop and something else. I bought some over priced, rancid candy at the chocolate shop before it went under. The only stores that did brisk business was a Hindu owned dollar store and the pizza joint. Rent a cops walk around looking menacing. One place had discount baby clothing. Ghetto fantastic! Suburban pukes would read magazines for free at the bookstore (no doubt preferring to buy them online or back home in Amherst). At Christmas time there was no Santa Claus in the mall. Just plain sad. I almost got hit more than once by BPD or snow plows racing up and down the Metro Rail track. On the weekends the place is a ghost town and during the week the whole thing comes to a halt at 6pm.

Panera bread would be fantastic.