Last Friday, Newell and I had another meeting of the Buffalo Rising Roundtable (WBFO Podcast) at WBFO studios with News Director Mark Scott.
We talked about the membership of Buffalo ReUse voting to reinstate founder Michael Gainer in some capacity, and what it would mean to the organization, along with their move to add 4 new board members who will balance out those already in place. Balance seems to be the key word in Buffalo ReUse these days, and that’s a good thing.
Beyond that, we talked about what went wrong with Silent Exchange. After talking to a police spokesman, the district councilman, a block club president and the organizer of the concert, I have my own theory about what killed the event. The answer, it seems to me, lies with the city department of licenses and permits. Permits, it appears, are general “tickets to do business,” but don’t always cover the specifics they are intended for. Look for a blog later (it seems to be the best way to present the individual conversations) so you can understand the separate points of view this debacle presented to each group or individual involved.
Mayoral race 2009. Since speaking with Mark last Friday when we taped the show, things have already changed – with potential challenger Matthew Ricchiazzi dropping out. That leaves Mayor Brown vs. the Councilman Kearns in next week’s primary. Both Democrats, the race for mayor could be decided as early as next week.