It was not that long ago...
...that this city-owned lot was aptly named, 'Needle Park.' That's right, where just a few years ago one would find relentless pan-handlers, there is now a refreshing air of city flare. Last evening, this small park which hosts small businesses the likes of Globe Market and East Meets West Yoga was alive with people venturing out for an evening snack. This stretch of Elmwood has recently attracted a series of ice cream shops that people can't get enough of. And you know what ice cream attracts? Kids. Tons of kids. There were strollers and training wheels and kids in stomach-pouches and kids running around in circles and sitting at the kiddie pads... ok, you get the scene. Kids and yoga and markets though? Places to let your kids run rampant at night? Evening hikes to Globe Market? Remember 'Needle Park'? When did things change?
Well, back then there was no, Brodo, Spot, Kuni's, etc. Places to eat were limited at best. Now, within a block we have sushi, gourmet soups, fresh sandwiches, desserts, baked goods, teas, markets, you name it. And best of all? We have people supporting all of it. Buffalo will always have its pizza places and its hamburger joints (and those will always be the best in the country), but now the city celebrates a diversity in food that not many people are willing to give us credit for. At least for now. Remember all the kids I mentioned earlier? Well, these kids are going to grow up remembering how much activity was on Elmwood when they were little. The momentum has changed. And Buffalo continues to change with it, due in part to the private investment of these small businesses that were willing to take a chance in a city that, for the most part, seemed to be run like business as usual.
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Cynthia Van Ness
I think it was better known as the Tot Lot, but yes, one often found broken bottles, used needles & condoms, and human waste there. The transfer of this public property into private hands was not entirely above-board, but the end result proves an urban truism: legit use drives out illegitimate use.
It also proves one of
Jane Jacobs' dictums, that parks are not automatically an amenity. As the Tot Lot demonstrated, they can also be a detriment.
We should resist the knee-jerk tendency to always parkify vacant parcels and instead demand urban solutions like Globe Market: mixed-use new-builds that respect their context. Landscaping, even good landscaping, is a lousy substitute for good urbanism.
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msa
Skateboard Park aka needle park aka Globe market patio was and still is parkland. A fact that isn't well know. In fact, as the transfer of city to county parkland took place, the owner of the building at 762 Elmwood stepped up and paid for the needle park to be transformed. Nevertheless, it still remains a park ansd was above-board.
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