For years, I have been hoping for this day. Growing up in the city, I always looked at the corner of Main Street and Northampton as a waste of a building. Looking at the structure, it was easy to tell that someday, an opportunity would arise that would bring back the luster to the despondent building, which housed a US post office at one time. The bones of the building were great… but most of the windows were blocked in.
This past April, we posted a rendering that discussed the new and exciting future of this corner. However, renderings are one thing, and seeing the real deal is another. Earlier this morning I passed by this corner, and did a double-take. The corner was glassed, and a poster for the current tenant, Buffalo All Star Extreme (BASE) was hanging on the wall. BASE is a program that trains athletes in the art of cheer, tumble and dance.
This section of Main Street has struggled for a long time. In recent years Artspace and Buffalo Center for Arts and Technology (BCAT) have helped to boost their surroundings. It will be an incredible day when The City decides to invest in the street’s infrastructure, which is a real mess at the moment. Maybe they are waiting for the Medical Campus developments further down to wrap up? Whenever that happens, the need for bike lanes, trees, crosswalks, etc. is dire. The investment in street infrastructure would also encourage other building owners to invest – there are boatloads of opportunities to do so.
At this point, it’s one step at a time. This newly glassed, however, is a mighty big step in the right direction.