Author: BRO Reader Submission

We love to hear what the Buffalo community has to say. We offer a space to those who feel that they want to share their stories, without committing to writing ongoing articles. Typically reader submissions are one-offs that contribute to the broader Buffalo conversation.

Author: LM There has been much talk about a new Bills Stadium and not much talk about our KeyBank Center arena. It’s all-good conversation that inspires passion in Buffalonians. It seems that almost everyone has an opinion, even the non-sports enthusiasts. However, I don’t recall anyone discussing design. KeyBank Center is uninspiring. It’s meh. Buffalo prides itself as being a city of esteemed architecture, arts, and culture, as well as an all-around sports city. It’s not a secret that we have a highly recognized school of architecture and planning at UB, yet so many of our local architectural firms haven’t…

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Author: LM I have been a fan of Christine Baranski for decades. She is an amazing talent and a consummate professional but if that were not enough she also proudly proclaims herself to have been born and raised in Buffalo, NY. In every interview I have ever seen of Christine Baranski, she has never once had an unkind word to say about her hometown. Many years ago when she appeared on the TV show Cybil (reruns can be seen on Roku) she even mentions her Catholicism and her hometown of Buffalo. Christine Baranski’s character Mary Ann was so memorable that…

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By S. Schultz I was watching old interviews. [In one] Ted Turner discussed his efforts to repopulate his land with bison. Robert Redford in another interview discussed his efforts to connect wilderness areas to prevent species extinction. There are other articles and interviews about “rewilding” (replanting forests and native plants and introducing species that no longer inhabit the area). Great efforts have been made in mitigating disease in the American Elm and the American Chestnut. Creating an urban growth boundary in a rust belt city desperate for gentrification and jobs will not be accepted by the general public. However, there…

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Author: Gabrie’l J. Atchison Millions of people around the world are displaced each year due to natural disaster, war, persecution and increasing – to climate disaster. People who meet the status of “refugee” are ones who have experienced persecution in the past or have a well-founded fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality or other group membership. Refugees can never return home. Refugees move across borders to seek safety in a neighboring country and spend an indeterminate time in refugee camps. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), certain countries like the United States and other organizations care…

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A couple of days ago, we uploaded a post titled Random thoughts from Toronto, thinking that it was going to be a one and done. But seeing that there were so many comments generated by the post, Kevin H. (a Torontonian who originally got the conversation started) decided to answer some of the thoughts/questions/concerns that ensued in the comment section. Here’s what he had to say: While I’m certainly no expert on Buffalo (from Toronto), I find it hard to believe that Buffalo is suffering from ‘liberals’. That isn’t a political position on my part, I have no skin in…

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Author: Daniel Theal Now that the 24 hour rule of mourning over the Bills missed chances against Baltimore has expired, we turn our attention to the game that the entire nation will be watching next Sunday Night. Here are five reasons why the Bills clash against the fellow playoff hopeful Steelers is so critical:  1) Locking up a playoff berth early The Bills only need to win one of their remaining three games to qualify for the playoffs, but a win on Sunday Night will lock it up with two games to spare.  If the Bills were to lose to…

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Author: Melanie McMahan, Parkside resident and organizer Now that Buffalo’s weather has turned the corner, we’re all looking for fun weekend activities to add to our calendars. On Saturday, June 1st from 9AM to 3PM come up to North Buffalo and Parkside for a massive Yard Sale extravaganza. Collectively, 50+ locations will be featured, and the list is growing. There’s something for everyone. Don’t spend your hard-earned money on something brand new when you can get a quality second hand item from your neighbor. Some of the items we’re seeing people list for sale are: Art supplies, baby/toddler clothes, bikes,…

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Author: Rick Lenard First of all, I need to tell you my perspective on this issue as I’ve worked right underneath the Skyway in a marina for the last 15 years. I take the Skyway every day to and from work and have seen my share of accidents, backups, weather related closing, construction detours, bike tours, and lost travelers. As reported by the NYS DOT, over 40,000 cars, trucks and buses use the Skyway each day! That’s a lot of traffic to suddenly go somewhere else. The RT5 connection to the 190 both north and south is a highly travel…

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Author: Phil Wilcox, Pendleton, NY The recent News article regarding the Canadian developer making a major investment into Buffalo real estate was yet more evidence of the momentum of the greater Buffalo-Niagara region’s resurgence and included some valuable observations. Among the most notable was the simple example of living in Oakville, Ont. and refreshingly described the easy 40-minute commute to Buffalo as opposed to the “two day” drive in the same distance to Toronto. The most important take-away from that real-life observation is that the public transit growth in and around Toronto did not begin to keep pace with the greater…

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Author: Lauren Wesp Our snow is one of the main things for which Buffalo is known, and we certainly do get a lot if it! While plenty of Buffalonians gripe about hating snow, I see it as one of the few positives of winter. Within this frigid season lacking in foliage and sunshine, at least there’s beauty in the fluffy white flakes falling from the sky and coating our city. As a pedestrian, however, snowy sidewalks constitute a real hazard. From my own personal experience, often walking multiple miles per day, I can attest firsthand that our sidewalks are not…

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