Buffalo Rising Online

Man, the blue was really growing on me...

This is a great infill project. We all probably remember walking past the prison-yard-esque WGRZ property. This building fills in that ugly gap and connects Chippewa development with stuff going on further northward, The Church, the Mansion and its parking lot park for example. Its also helping to create the kind of density that is needed for people to perceive and respond to the urban. I can't wait to get a close up look at this building once it is finished and the sidewalk is open.

I just drove by yesterday and it looks great!

Just wait until the new federal courthouse comes to fruition. I say by 2010, we will see many more private developments that are hopefully well under construction, or complete. Driving downtown at night you can really start to see piece by piece things coming back to life.

I'm much rather have this building than more like Acquest's Niagara Center or the monstrosities in the Elm-Oak corridor. This is a perfectly respectable urban building given the context both adjacent to it on Delaware and a street away east and west. Bigger building closer to the core, more modest ones as you get further out seems perfect.

RPreskop - I don't see how this building can be characterized as suburban. Yeah it isn't the tallest building in town, but unlike the taller HealthNow building, this is built to the sidewalk, isn't predicated on a sea of parking (either in freestanding garage or lot form), and is mixed use: that first floor is slated to be retail. Overall I think this building is quite uncontroversial: it is site appropriate, fills a former hole in the streetscape, adheres to solid design principles that benefit the community, and it is all leased. The worst thing about it are the ground floor "wings" that stick out on either side designed apparently to hide dumpsters or loading zones.

NEW BUILDING = SUBURBAN

Unless it incorporates high-rent residential and low-rent boutiques with local proprietorship.

Such architectural snobbery, it is characteristic of first year college students who think they know absolutely everything about a topic because they haven't experienced enough to even know what is out there.

Put your own money into development, or earn a commission that will allow you to see your professional dreams and fantasies through to fruition. Until then, you need to come back down to earth.

Too suburban.. what a bunch of pretentious bullshit!

Buffalo is not a big city, yet. Little by little we are increasing the density of downtown. Bring the jobs, services, and retail, and by George, we'll have ourselves a true, urban-chic environment! In any other major city in america, this project might never be highlighted at all. Buffalo is not on that level yet. We have to celbrate what we have. Not settle, mind you, but develop with a rational eye toward the realistic future.

I love the attitude of most of these posts.....

Little by little we are coming back to life. At this pace Buffalo should be alive again in only 5 short years. I think Delaware ave is just about there.

I can't wait.

What is the deal with people crying about the design? It’s made of glass and steel… so is every other building across the western world right now. Go to skyscrapercity.com and look at the proposed high rises… most of them are glass. That’s the thing for the early 2000’s I guess. Also why are people thinking that this is a suburban looking building? Because its 5 floors? We are never going to be a city of skyscrapers but we can be a filled in city w/ minimal holes. This building fills in a whole. In addition it has first floor retail which everyone on this site loves to see so much. Who wouldn’t love to see a 20 story tower here but developers have to build to the demand. This thing sold out quickly so I think they could have added a floor or two but overall I give this project a B+ because it’s two floors to short and not enough underground parking. But I like the design and idea in general. Good job Uniland.

yeah, of everything happening around here this project should be the least of anyone's worries. Underground parking - check retail - check leased space of expanding local businesses - check interesting design - check not involving the demolition of something existing to building something new - check

i mean really suburban? where in the suburbs will you find a building like this? nowhere! and those Edge Cities of Baltimore and Washington are still not as urban as Delaware and this building is a perfect fit.

I would rather like to see the whole of downtown filled MANY 3-7 story buildings, than fewer 20 story buildings. We need a solid level of density and activity before we should even be worried about going higher. Once we fill in the gaps, THEN lets talk about building up. Paris if almost entirely made up of 4 or 5 story buildings, Rome, the same thing. They are dynamic and lovely places full of stores, restaurants and things to do. Skyscrapers in a park / parking lot are just as dead and boring as the suburbs.

Suburban????????? SUBURBAN??? Wow, now I've heard everything. This is about the most URBAN design I can imagine. Sleek, modern, eye-catching, and I agree with Charger that the location warrants the bulk/height/size. Send the big skycrapers to the centre of DT (i.e. Delaware/Niagara Sq) and taper down from there. Wow, isn't it great that we are even HAVING these conversations? I am getting more excited by the day about the future of downtown. Soon we might be complaining about it being TOO popular and dense....but I'd rather have those concerns than concerns about empty lots and blight.