Buffalo Rising Online

I would like to think that the pedaling museum will focus its attentions on creating a unique museum at the inner harbor. We need "unique" places to draw and keep people in town. Go for it!!!

Give them the Bass Pro money.

Carl and Clarice have assembled the world's largest collection of cycling & pedaling artifacts and memorabilia. I'll repeat that: the world's largest collection. Right here in Buffalo. Let's do everything we can to get them downtown where they belong.

Oh, and I doubt you meant to use "extenuate," which means to lessen the seriousness or extent of; as in "The circumstances extenuate the crime." We need to maximize our transportation history, not minimize it!

It warms my heart to know that the D.O.T. is in the museum business. And we wonder why people are leaving New York!

I've been there before when i was in grade school..it was a sweet field trip, although i think if it's going ot be at a high profile location like that it'll have to have some cooler interactive stuff

The transportation museum funding through NYS DOT is actually Federal money. So you'd have to leave the US to get away from that particular use of tax dollars.

It would be great if there were bike and/or skate ramps near-by...also would it be accessible from the seaway trail?

Yeah, if a chunk of the money for Bass Pro was for the aud re-do, and now they want the Aud torn down, they no longer need the money to re-do it. SOOoooOOooo... let's pump some public money into a project that actually is being done FOR the public good (and not some out of state corporate good). LET'S GO BUFF-A-LO!!! (hey, whatta ya want... hockeys back)

ALLONS!!! p.s. Bass Pro... Bass Shmo... GET AWAY FROM MY AUD!!!! Hey I know... I have a Truly Awesome Idea for the Aud... I wish I knew how to post my own article. Until then, Just know that my idea for the aud would be a way bigger boost to WNY than you know who.

Nice post, Anna! Perhaps BIKE RENTALS for riding along the Lake shore could also be included.

chris, what makes a bicycle factory look different than say a box factory?

A quick idea might be to consider elements of the form of the bicycle as a starting point for designing a bicycle museum. Imagine a colorful, yet transparent building that communicates the speed, grace and ingenuity of the bicycle. --just a thought

This is a great move to the city though! Best of luck!

HELLO! Scroll up to the picture........the large half circle arch is half of a bicycle wheel!

I think the WHEEL is an "essential element" of a bicycle.

You also probably don't want a big transparent glass museum for this one since it is meant to be a historic looking district.

I was wondering how long it would take before the "this building is ugly!!!" posts started.

I personally am just glad to hear that somone wants to develop one of several parcels that will be available down at the inner harbor.

A prominant bicycling scene in Buffalo would help attract young urban dwellers. These folks not only bike to work during the warm months, but also enjoy a weekend ride along the river for excercise. Bring the Pedaling Museum to the waterfront would certainly encourage this trend.

I had the opprotunity the other night to hear Carl's presentation at Old Editions. First time. Hands down the most comprehensive and passionate case made for an integrated heritage destination. Sure the building might just be a first draft, subject to all sorts of design review - yet focus on the content here. No one goes to Disney World to see just Space Mountain...it's going to take many attractions to make this place work...Carl is really on to something here especially when viewed from the perspective of bicycle technology shaping the development of additional - auto and flight - technologies. Not small stuff when viewed from this perspective.

Yea, Edward Street is right. This IS supposed to be the "historic looking district". When I bring visitors down to the waterfront I will call it exactly that, Buffalo's Historic Looking District.

Scrap my suggestion for "a colorful, yet transparent building that communicates the speed, grace and ingenuity of the bicycle".

I wonder if bicycles today look the same as they did in 1850. I guess I'll have to visit this museum.

Chris,

The building proposed here is 100% modeled after an old bike factory: the George N. Pierce Company, out of which came bicycles, motorcycles, and eventually the Pierce-Arrow.

It occupies their former site, it replicates the exact mass, height, and material and upper fenestration All that is new are the wheel-shaped entrance and windows.

Didn't think it was online but here's the old Pierce factory:

http://freenet.buffalo.edu/bah/h/pierce/pierce/source/7a.html

do people really go to a peddaling museum? what the f--?

iPrefer-IROC-Z,

Yes, people will go to a bicycle museum. They go to automobile museums. They go to railroad museums. They go to sailing museums. They go to aviation museums.

Just because you don't take bicycles seriously doesn't mean that no one else does.

Bicycles are essential to the transportation systems of every continent except North America and Australia. Most European cities have strong bicycle cultures. Carl and Clarice have gotten visitors from almost every nation on earth.

i like the concept, and think it would be a great fit for our city. i do have two cents though, and here it is...

i drove down Genesse street today and from Jefferson to downtown there is an amazing collection of buildings that look very similar to what is proposed (without the big wheel). I know this is not the best neighborhood int he world, and it is defintly not the water front, but it seems to me that resuing an old derilict factory or commercial building that is vintage would complement the program of the museum quite well. These buildings could probably be picked up for pennies a square foot, and 4 million would go a long way to rehabing and making a great destiniation site! or better yet, what about a bike museum in a grain elevator??????!!!!!

Chris and M@,

Please feel free to purchase and reuse any of the existing structures in Buffalo to make your dreams and visions a reality. Part of the charm and draw of the bike museum is the historic location.

Please share the project that you have underway to improve the city. Put it out on the table for everyone with an opinion to scrutinize and second guess. Please let us hear all about the master renovations and new developments that you are funding, that way we could determine how to best execute on your dreams and criticize the decisions that you make as well.

Mark L., As a chronic armchair critic, you made me chuckle. I am mostly guilty as charged, though in my defense, I have invested in small, distressed property and am slowly bringing it up to code for a new venture.

Great idea! Instead of trying to build up and develop the inner harbor as a place people want to go, let's take one of the first good ideas and plop it down at Genesee and Jefferson instead.

I have a better idea...why don't you take YOUR money and go try and develop something in that neighborhood.

I'm sorry, but I just don't get it.

I think this is a good idea, like the building (window with spokes) and locating it where planned would be good for the waterfront area and the developing Erie Canal Musuem.

Nothing is ever good enough for this group is it. Let's look at what this museum has going for it:

-It is being built on top of an original, historic location relating to bicycles -There will be a new, relatively historic looking structure being built with some unique shapes that further promote the idea that this building houses bicycles -It will be built in an area that is becoming a tourist destination, and just maybe, we'll actually have a critical mass of heritage attractions in one spot -It's a musuem moving from the dreaded suburbs to Downtown -I 'believe' (not positive) this will develop a vacant lot and actually fill in some urban fabric

And while it will be quite an attraction, it may not attract tourists if it's out of the way in the middle of nowhere on Jefferson. If tourists are already at the inner harbor, they're more likely to walk around and maybe stop here. I can't see many tourists along Jefferson. And don't even get me started on the pie in the sky expansion of the Metro Rail. Let's worry about that area after we get the Inner Harbor to become a true attraction.

Everyone loves to be an armchair urban planner!

Well said OutsideTheBox

From a business standpoint, the Inner Harbor and the original location of a bicycle factory are far more marketable. Here is probably the least reluctant potential tenant of the Inner Harbor, or Downtown for that matter, and some of you are sending the message that youid rather forego a development with passion and vision in favor of reluctant tenants who need massive financial incentives to develop your long-awaited harbor.

For shame.

I just never heard of a Peddaling museum...sounds strange

These have all been great comments and many reflect the conversations we have had in bringing this museum to Buffalo. Some people have asked why a pedal museum - so here it is.

The knowledge that bicycles were the catalyst leading to all of manis personal transportation of today has often gone unnoticed.

During the 1890is there was a dramatic growth of the bicycle industry due to the invention of the pneumatic tire which spurred the intense development and popular usage of bicycles as a new personal mechanical transportation mode. Roads, road building, road signs, road maps and rules of the road were quickly required due to the bicycleis use. During this time the bicycle not only played a significant role in Americais transportation system but considerably impacted other aspects of society as well including the womenis movement. In 1896 Susan B. Anthony said that "the bicycle has done more for the emancipation of women than anything else in the world."

Importantly Buffalo, New York was, in the 1890is, a major producer, promoter and user of early bicycles. With over a hundred different makes of bicycles made in and around the City, Buffalo may well have been the third largest region of bicycle building in America during this golden age of cycling. Buffalo made bicycles were also being shipped around the world thanks in large part to the Erie Canal and the transshipment enterprises it created.

One of the largest, most prominent and successful manufacturers of bicycles in Buffalo was the George N. Pierce Company. Located on Hanover Street only steps away from the Erie Canal Terminus and the current restoration site of the Erie Canalis Commercial Slip; Pierce Arrow and their bicycle products were the standard for quality in the industry.

The bicycle can even be related to the invention of the windshield wiper. Buffalois Trico Corporation, maker of the original windshield wipers, would not have existed without a 1917 accident when a young theatre owner named John Oshei, while driving an early Pierce Arrow automobile at night during a heavy rainstorm, hit a bicyclists because he was unable to see him. He was so shaken by the incident that it inspired him to immediately improve and perfect the windshield wiper.

The history and stories of the bicycle and its place in the advancement of todayis surface transportation in Buffalo, New York and the world is an aspect of our heritage that should be celebrated. What better way to highlight this great achievement of our past but to honor it in its own museum located upon the original foundations of the George N. Pierce Company bicycle manufacturing building in Buffalois Historic Inner Harbor.

I did not go to Las Vegas for the giant M&M store, but I went to it while I was there. I don't go to Toronto for half the places I end up going (condensed for space - a huge list of wayward adventures). Think of any effective district / strip, a critical mass of like attractions and support / peripheral businesses. Chippewa is a perfect example in the city of Buffalo. Now granted, Chippewa was not planned and planted. What we are looking at with the inner (and outer) harbor are bold efforts to pull a district out of a box, have everyone show up and think itis cool. While this is very true of the outer harbor (as it would appear at this time that anything of value that was there is so long gone and well removed that it really does border on a clean slate), this appears to be not entirely true of the inner harbor. The unearthing of the commercial slip and the revelation that original cobble stone streets and building foundations are to be found, put the inner harbor in a totally different light. Here we have the base, the foundation if you will, of a legitimate district. The history at our feet begs that we be responsible with our choices of attractions. We can not line these streets with national chain restaurants. Like wise the district can not be filled with loft apartments or half hearted lack luster attractions. Our city, our pride is based upon quality and tradition. We must realize that quality still exists and can be borne anew, and that traditions need not be confined to yesteryear memories, but can be started today. BUILD THE DAMN BIKE MUSEUM!

ALLONS!!!

Christiana...If you feel so strongly about this, give the owner of the pedaling museum a call and see what he thinks about relocating his museum to Genesee & Jefferson. Let me know what he says.

In the meantime, I will stick to my opnion and say that the inner harbor is a GREAT location for this museum.

Thanks, Justin.

To better understand how central bicycles were to Buffalo's transportation AND economy (we're talking thousands of jobs), get Carl's book:

http://wnybooks.com/bicycles.html Buffalo's Bicycles

Available at local bookstores and libraries.

But Christiana,

The design IS exactly what you want. It is a "much like" (apart from the wheel windows) the George N. Pierce factory. It occupies Pierce's original site on a restored cobblestone street grid. Did you not read ANY of the preceding comments?

Once again I direct you to a period rendering of Pierce's factory for purposes of comparison, which I'll enter as a clickable link, so you have no excuse not to see for yourself: http://freenet.buffalo.edu/bah/h/pierce/pierce/source/7a.html

What part of "replica" don't you understand?

Think Disney: It's fun, and all well and good for something, but really, do you want to live in Disneyland?

Why have a fear of creating interesting, innovative or whimsical architecture. Old Buffalo embraced bold departures from the ordinary. Shouldn't we embrace this thinking today?

Placing new and old side-by-side highlights the visual impact of both. Besides if everything looked truly 19thC then, well...you'd be living in the 19thC --- and you aren't !! (Unless, of course, you're spending nights with Mickey.)

The proposed waterfront location for the bike museum is ideal and builds upon the efforts of already existing/planned museums and destinations: the Pierce-Arrow Museum, Wright Gas Station, Naval Park, and the proposed Great Lakes Museum w/Bass Pro (PLEASE...and put it in the Aud). Who knows, now that Higgins is the new Buffalo-god, we could save some grain elevators for higher use and connect them into a Heritage & Recreation Trail from the Outer Harbor to Tift Farm and all the way to Niagara Falls. Hey, it could happen and many of the segments are already completed.

And thanks to Justin Booth, we are reminded how important Buffalo was to the development of bikes and transportation.

everyone has their own opinion, each opinion should be respected. as far as mine goes, right now, we are in the Golden Age of museum design. We kinda missed the boat with the erie canal, and the BPAC designs, but got it very, very right with the Martin house interpretive center by Mori. My point is, that if you are not going to reuse existing buildings, than create a "container" for your objects that could become a draw unto itself. The children's museum in pittsburgh is a great example of this. It is in a not so good neighborhood, yet has become a draw because of its architecture. Reuse the existing footprint..fine! the location is probably suited for that. but don't blindly walk into a design without realizing all of the potential that this asset (yes this collection is an incredible asset to our community) could become.

I have a great idea...let's bulldoze the entire city, recreate the street grid from 1900 and then build EXACT replicas of each and every building as they were in 1900. Any modern updating will not be tolerated.

I'm not sure what this is supposed to do for the city, but what does that matter.

Higgins needs to stop worrying about the waterfront and focus on more important items like this. Come on Brian, get on the bandwagon. LET'S GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cristiana you use the word "great" a little too loosely So much for your opinions on art and architecture. The last thing Buffalo needs are tacky reproductions or look-alike wannabe's.

If this were my museum and I needed to bring attention to my collection I would start with a well publicized, high-profile design competition. This would get the word out, stir some controversy and provide a range of architectural options. The image of the original factory just looks like any old fabric building(urban, but kinda boring). If this were my museum, I would prefer to build a landmark building that could get the attention of far-flung architecture and bicycle buffs. Does that not make good business sense?

Check out the new building for the Denver Art Museum! @

http://www.denverartmuseum.org/home

Hey Christiana, thanks ffor the hyperlink. I'm gonna get me one of those there drawings. Damn little bugger will look great hangin next to the velvet Elvis in my DoubleWide

David, Thanks for the URL ...but no thanks on the bldg. The new Denver Art Museum looks like a flopping whale with an erection--a brutal and sterile design matched only by the museum's 1971 North Hall bldg. The French did it better with the Pompideou.

Urban Body, thats cool too. Pompideou Center is an amazing building. I just wanted to open up the conversation and explore the many many many other options besides old-timey brick factory reproduction. I would never suggest that we make a reproduction Pompideou or Denver Art Museum for Buffalo. But there are lessons in boldness and cultural awareness that we can learn from those projects. I think if we(Buffalo) were a tad less fearful of the new, we would be closer to achieving something unique again. Sullivan and Wright were influenced by the past but were always concerned with the unique specificity of time and place, here and now. I don't want the waterfront to be a confused, stale place that is always afraid of being "too modern", even though it should come natural to us in 2006. If an Apple store wants to move to the waterfront, would we require them to build an historical reproduction? Of course not.

We are encouraged by the significant public response to Anna Milleris article on our hopes for Buffalois Inner Harbor relocation. The many comments offered above will certainly be considered as our plans hopefully more fully develop and perhaps may materialize into bricks and mortar. In response to those many Buffalo Rising followers, and others, who may also have input for us to consider we have scheduled a Free open house at the museum from 5:30 to 8:30 Pm on Tuesday, 10 October. Our iInto the Past Lanei Power Point presentation will be presented at 7:PM that evening so all may more fully understand our vision for this important project.

I think this is really great... It could also kick off a movement:BUFFALO's future acclaim as a center of clean energy.... abundant natural hydro, wind...shore up efforts to promote reduce/recycyle/reuse... biking...our beautiful greenway bike path connecting Lake Erie to Lake Ontario ... boost public transportation... get the university to develop a center for sustainable energy... etc... the ideas flow so easily.