Buffalo Rising Online

Wow. Great video. Very informative!

my favorite city and a perfect example of what happens without corrupt poilitcs

Its a real shame....I don't see this type of hype for the removal of the skyway... i think its videos like this that prove Buffalo is stuck in the 1950's.

RonR.. thats funny.. i definitely noticed the about face with higgins too... very sad.. but unexpected?? He is a NyS politician

great video. so why do we want to keep our waterfront highway again?

maybe NOW people will listen... ohh probably not we HAVE to have cars cars cars!!!!

I live in San Francisco, and they did do the Octavia and Embarcadero projects right; this should be emulated. But before we all put on our rose-colored glasses and start swooning over San Fran you should be aware that this place is in many ways worse than Buffalo. The bridge in the background of one of the opening shots of the video shows the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. The original was built in 3 years during the Depression (1933-1936). This was damaged in the earthquake of 1989 and they decided to replace it. It has taken 18 years and it will still be another 6 more before it is done. It has already cost $6.2 billion and it will cost billions more. All for a replacement span that is NOT a signature bridge; it is not that much better looking than the Scajaquada. The docks in the background, along the Embarcadero, are all falling apart to the point that this has threatened the Cruise ship business. There is a homeless problem that is at the level of a third-world city like New Delhi (no exaggeration-I have been there). Surprisingly, the Mayor ran on a platform of fighting crime and fixing the homeless problem but neither has improved. He has found time to get divorced and have an affair with the wife of his campaign manager during his time in rehab for alcoholism though. The fact that none of this will affect his reelection chances should tell you something about the ridiculous politics here (one of his political rivals is called Chicken John and the other campaigns in the nude).

If you want to get ideas from other cities, that is great, but you should also pat yourselves on the back when you see how bad other places are compared to Buffalo.

The skyway is fine. Work around it.

I couldnt agree more that the skyway isnt needed and the route5 expressway isnt needed especially once they build the Tifft Street Connector to I190 to Route5.

as for Higgins....his problem is ego. Higgins championed the right projects like fighting albany to unearth and rewater the Commercial Slip and the surrounding cobblestone streets and he fought for the thruway toll removal and waged a good fight against NYPA during the relicensing. NOW higgins is resting on his laurels and reputation and is on the wrong side of the expanded Peace Bridge Plaza and Skyway arguments both of which he has taken positions against the constituents he represents.....HIGGINS IS DUE FOR A REALITY CHECK VERY SOON OR ITS GOING TO SHOW IN HIS RE-ELECTION.

"Traffic Sewers" = Highways. Nicely put.

well there IS a master plan that calls for removing these roads... in their vision but the problem is CRAPPY politicians that don't read what they are paid to read or follow what they are lawfully obliged to follow. We loose these fights because there isn't a united front to push back against the DOT. The Queen City Hub Plan, Buffalo's Comprehensive Plan and the new Queen City Waterfront plan all call for the mitigation or long term removal of these roads for the betterment of our city. It doesn't take a genius to look around the country or globe to realize we F-ed ourselves here. If only the politicians would DO THEIR JOB! and listen to their planners and citizens.

BuffedOut, My comments were directed at people like Gaustad who wrote, "my favorite city and a perfect example of what happens without corrupt poilitcs". Oh please, San Francisco is a deeply corrupt and dysfunctional city. For every Octavia or Embarcadero project there are a lot of Oakland Bay Bridges. What about the 3rd street rail line? From planning to completion, the project took more than 20 years and was $150 million over budget, yet when it was finally working last year, it took 20 minutes longer to traverse the same distance than the bus that it replaced.

I could list at least 20 more projects, large and small, like these. My point is, Buffalo, you think your politicians are corrupt and incompetent? San Francisco has worse. You think your projects are slow and wrong? San Francisco wastes even more. Stop idolizing places like San Francisco, the grass is not greener here. If San Francisco can do it, you should be able to do it better.

I laughed out loud when I read Gaustad's comment on SF's lack of corruption. Please!! And mind you, as a former Bay Area resident, I think SF is a great city. Good points Keith.

Imagine what would happen to the elmwood village if we put an expressway down lincoln and chapin parkways... and you wonder why parks of the east side were deserted... the ONLY answer here it to destroy that which have been destroying us for 30 years now.

bye bye skyway, bye bye 33, bye bye 198 . . .

There are some great comments here, but also a lot of complaining.

There is leadership on this issue. The Common Council unanimously rejected the NYSDOT plan, and supports the Boulevard Aletrnative that NYSDOT rejected. The Village of Hamburg Board voted unanimously for a boulevard. The Buffalo News Editorial Board recommended a re-examination of the issue to avoid making another grave waterfront mistake. The Buffalo Waterfront Coalition, a group of 14 of the most influential community organizations, is against the highway and for the boulevard.

In fact, there's a press conference tomorrow:

Waterfront Coalition Press Conference Thursday, October 18, 2007, 10:30 a.m. Buffalo City Hall, front steps (65 Niagara Square)

If you want to get involved and not just complain, you should try to make it there.

The answer is, "No."

Thanks for making this available; it demonstrates what a deeply committed populus and a visionary leadership can do [along with some help from nature] to reclaim a great public space. I was in SF on business during August and walked the Embarcadero - it's truly one of the grandest urban vistas I've visited.