the neighborhood doesn't help when it comes to a business thriving in that location...too bad, great bar but it really is too close to the edge.......use to love going to Slomba's in highschool but eventually that neighborhood smoked just about every business away until there was nothing......now I go to Chile's on the blvd where I feel safe....that's not true.

I think the biggest problem with Black Rock is that while Amherst Street has tons of potential as an up and coming commercial district, it is surrounded by generally terrible housing stock. The side streets running off of Amherst such as Reservation, Bush, Peter, etc. were traditionally home to working class people, and even in their prime, few of these homes were ever really desirable. Most are small houses on small lots divided into 2 or 3 small apartments complete with space heaters. There are quite a few lots with rear cottages, though, which I've always thought were pretty neat. The homes closer to Niagara Street, on streets such as Dearborn, seem to have much more character and potential, but don't have the advantage of a strong unifying commercial street to draw people into the area.

Riverside looks like it will continue to get worse before it gets better. It has a very bad reputation as a rough area, and the amount of visible decline in even just the past few years is staggering. If anything, Riverside's future depends more on Black Rock than the other way around, and the areas most likely to stabilize will be those closest to Niagara Street and the river.

Drove down Deerborn tonight in BR, and noticed that the house that BR showcased awhile back, owned by a poet and his wife, is now for sale. The article had interviewed the couple and they had talked up BR, what happened?

Porter, I find it odd that I hear lots of people saying "Buffalo needs jobs" but when I talk to several friends whose companies have job openings they can't find people qualified for those jobs.

Steve,

I'd love to know the companies/positions referenced by your friends. If there were a $50,000 reason to stay in Buffalo year-round---I'd take it. Granted, I've only been looking for three weeks, but the jobs I find on the boards either pay $8-10/hr only or are at the other extreme and meant for experienced/advanced IT and medical titles. Without personal connections, I don't see a big pool of opportunities for mid-level/experienced non-entrepreneurs.

when you think that its only about 6 blocks from HealthNow

and there are still people from downtown that drive all the way to Niagara & Lafayette for a wonderful meal at Santoserros.

I can only say that Niagara Street is an up an comer.....meant to follow the path of Delaware, Elmwood, Linwood and Richmond.....especially the area between the peace bridge and downtown. The full impact of HealthNow, the Niagara Center and the new Federal Courthouse have yet to be shown on Niagara but its coming.

::Groan:: Why are we talking about the neighborhood. Everyone knows where it is. Many great places arent in the best of neighborhoods. Thats not the issue here. Its about the restaurant. I'm with you 100% Christa.

With some great cajun/creols/soul/pub food done like it was before, this place could be great again. It's been here for so long and obviously there are memories of this place.

If I had time and money and experience, I would put the great food back, carry local and national microbrews, create a well lit parking space, market the HELL out of this place (downtown lunches, bands, food, beers) and bring in bands or do open mic nights.

Good luck to whoever takes this over and I hope they keep the atmosphere - just manage it right!!

If I had a business or I were a developer...Id be on Niagara Street

and Id be shouting like heck for them to reconnect busti and trenton across the Niagara Expressway access ramps at virginia....which would open up a huge swath of land for development.

That being said....Niagara Street is the place to have money invested in buildings and property.

porter, if your not familiar with black rock then let me educate you....because your real estate agent was wrong that black rock was up and coming. It may stabilize ... especially if your looking for inexpensive housing and inexpensive housing that is lets say as new as north buffalo or kenmore (although black rock is as old as buffalo and their are old buildings Im sure)

porter....If your not familiar with Niagara Street its part of the seaway trail and goes all the way to Niagara Falls.

porter in Buffalo the part of Niagara Street from downtown to the Peace Bridge is the area most likely to change, some call it the West Village

then there is the westside from lets say porter to forest (the southern boundary of black rock) the fate of that area depends on the previous section I mentioned as well as Richs, Contract Pharmaceuticals, Grant Street and Buffalo State. If Buffalo State got a new president that didnt have their head up their (you know) then grant street and niagara street would be dramatically different.

Unfortunately....the fate of black rock depends on riverside to the north, the westside to the south and the vibrancy of east-west streets like Hertel, Kenmore and Amherst. None of which seem interested on expanding their offices, businesses and residential infill west of Delaware (though I dont know why?)

I dont know your real estate agent but....they were over-selling....black rock and riverside are too far away from Buffalos growth centers.

Bluegrass Jamboree Sun. 9/23 after the Bills game. Two world class bands. Trampled by Turtles & Greensky Bluegrass, FREE @ the Sportsmen's Tavern

area still too rough....

Sigh. Yes in ours or any metro of about 900K and shrinking, there’s always more than zero job openings for well paid jobs. That doesn’t mean this area’s supply of such job openings comes close to meeting demand of people seeking such jobs – especially when compared to many other places. It’s not bizarre that both things can be true at once – slower than average long term job growth and employers having difficulty filling certain positions. In fact it’s logical to expect this, since it’s sometimes harder to recruit to a metro that has below average long term growth in jobs and population. Your friends might need to improve advertising strategies and/or increase offered salaries. If that doesn't work they can close their tech/med businesses and buy Rendezvous.

Steve,

Thanks. That's what I thought...that's what I was afraid of :) (Me: software audit & Ops)

Hi Porter - The jobs I am referring to are well paying jobs (in the $40k - $70k) range.

UrbanBody, the jobs that I was referring to are for technical and/or medical personnel. At the low end of the range would be people with the appropriate BS degree, possibly with some relevant experience where people with advanced degrees and/or more experience are at the upper part of the range.

Johnny's Rendezvous was the greatest bar I've ever been in, and I've been in a lot of them.

You had to knock on the locked front door to get in and Johnny never opened it to first-timers unless you were with somebody he knew.

Johnny was an amazing character. He made the best drinks I've ever had, and two of them were enough for anybody, lady or not. They were huge, extremely potent, and absolutely delicious. He loved to rattle out the entire history and contents of every drink in his formidable repertoire in a voice that resembled a very loud cement mixer. Though only about 5'7", he had iron-grey hair and perfect posture, with heavy dark-framed glasses. He didn't look like anybody else I've ever met.

Do you happen to know when Johnny and his son sold the place? Johnny must be long gone; he seemed to be about 70 years old when I was 20. Being young and already somewhat stupid, I told Johnny that I was looking for something wonderful to devote my life to, and asked him if he would teach me everything about making the world's best drinks.

"NO!" he yelled. "THE SECRET WILL DIE WITH ME!"

He was like a guy from another century. I'm happy to have known him.

The sad truth about the whole decline of Riverside and Black Rock is directly linked to the three MAJOR Housing projects located here. I grew up in the neighborhood and the closer you get to those horrid things the worse the neighborhood gets. unfortunately the problems of Shaffer Village have spilled through the neighborhood down Chadduck and Crowly (streets used and thoroughfares for people walking from the projects to Riverside Park) and are taking their tole on Tonawanda Street.

This isn't to say that Riverside or Black Rock are bad place 90% of the streets are very safe, very quiet and very pleasant places to live and hang out. Views of the river and park abound. There are some of the best pizzeria's in buffalo there. There are still bars and corner gin mills on many side streets. Unfortunately they are really be dragged down by the thousands who live in those concentration camps for poor. I am not against public housing or poor people or anything like that but concentrating them into these projects has to be the worst thing for the city and the poor people who have to live in them.

The truth is that many of the people that wanted to leave the neighborhood because of those issues already have. The problem is the current stable population is an aging one and without an influx of younger people i could see problems 20 years down the road when those homes become empty without demand. I do think that the current growth and desirability of the city will have a positive impact on these neighborhoods because they do have a lot to offer. 15 minutes from downtown, decent access to public transit between the 30 / 5 / 40 & 3 routes. Parks, bars, restaurants, THE WATER! biking, boating, fishing options you just don't have anywhere else in Buffalo.

In the end time will tell, get rid of one or two of those projects and I think you will see huge areas increase in property values, leave them and it will stagnate like it has for the past 20 years.