In a most unassuming little shul (synagogue) on Elmwood Avenue, tucked between Pano’s and Mr. Pizza, there’s a feast of another sort to be had – this one for the ears, and yes, the soul.Dr. Irwin Gelman, Interim Chair of Genetics at Roswell Park Cancer Institute is a guest cantor for Congregation Beth Abraham one Friday out of the month. His upcoming service will be held on January 15th, at 6:30PM. Read more about Dr. Shulman in the Roswell Park Institute Alumni Magazine.Karen Leeds, a member of Beth Ambaham credits Gelman with a renaissance the synagogue has been experiencing. “Young…
Author: Elena Cala Buscarino
Local developer Rocco Termini knows exactly what he’d like to see done to save the Statler Building, but he says he wouldn’t sign on without the University of Buffalo.Specifically, Rocco would like to see the UB Law School become a tenant of the Statler. “It makes perfect sense,” Termini says. “Most major cities have their law schools downtown. Just like the medical school is being built around the hospitals, law students need to be where the courts are.”At present, the UB 2020 Comprehensive Physical Plan calls for a law school on the South Campus, but Termini believes the missed opportunity…
In today’s State of the State address, Governor David Paterson not only recognized Buffalo’s struggle with abandoned housing, but he has put the City of Buffalo first in line, saying, “With more than 23,000 vacant housing units, Buffalo will serve as the starting point for the project which will expand to cities across New York State.”Governor Paterson proposes the Sustainable Neighborhoods Project as a national model for affordable housing and urban revitalization, starting here.Resulting from decades of post-industrial economic decline that have exacerbated the vacant housing crisis, together with the foreclosure and sub-prime crises, Paterson understands the negative impact this…
The ice boom, goes in, the ice boom comes out, and in between, there’s a lot of planning to be done. Along with letting us know that Boom Days would be held this April 15th through 17th, Riverkeeper Executive Director Julie O’Neill is making plans for 2010. Know there’s a Polar Bear Swim coming up in February sponsored by Riverkeeper (date TBA), and they’ll have a presence at the Powder Keg Festival as well.She writes, “This year, we will reap the fruits of seeds sown many years ago. This year, we will begin construction – cleaning up decades of pollution on the…
Urban planner Chris Hawley is getting ready to roll out his book, Industrious: The Story of the Hydraulics. Real Estate investor and partner in the Larkin Development Group, Howard Zemsky has championed Hawley’s efforts, and as a by-product of the book, the blog The Hydraulics was born.Hawley, who works part-time for Zemsky and full-time for the Department of Economic Development at Buffalo City Hall (with a focus on zoning codes), gives much of the credit for the upcoming, high-quality, soft-cover book to the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society. “Even if no one reads a word I wrote,” he says,…
It’s no secret that we love Hero Design. They’re slick, they’re funky, they’re internationally known, and they’re ours.A fixture in the Buffalo music and design scene in short order, Hero’s limited edition silk screened poster and design work for bands and special events has appeared in Spin, Print and How magazines. They were also featured in the book, Gig Posters: Rock Show Art of the 21st Century, alongside the most renowned practitioners of this art form, which has enjoyed a national renaissance in the last few years. Pulled to the Limit at the Western New York Book Arts Center’s gallery will…
Sure, there are some similarities. But yesterday, we found this documentary made by Charlie LeDuff for the Detroit News. The compulsion to link to it for BR readers was strong, and I asked myself: Am I doing this just to show how well off we are in comparison?The answer is, “Not entirely.” More than anything, I was amazed by the characters, their frankness, and I made my own imaginary comparison/contrast graph between Buffalo and Detroit that was all over the place.The video is 25 minutes long, and well worth watching if you possess a dark sense of humor (disclaimer: some…
Having just celebrated its four-year anniversary, Fiamma Steak is turning a corner in customer satisfaction. Always a wonderful restaurant when one was looking for a great steak dinner, Fiamma is less known for all of the other incredible menu items. For instance, did you know that Fiamma is the best place to get fried chicken in the city? Hands down, Fiamma’s fried chicken may be the best north of the Mason-Dixon line, and that’s just one surprise this restaurant on the corner of Starin and Hertel holds.Resolution wise, co-owner Joe Mantione says, “We learned a lot from Restaurant week last…
There were several Buffalo Rising stories that piqued reader interest in 2009, garnering new readers and sending stalwart commenters back time and time again to have their say over the issues that arose.Though we consider BRO to be less political and more about development, food and local business, nothing gathered as much attention as Newell’s (queenseyes) story “Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely” about the Silent Exchange concert gone bust due to huge misunderstandings in City permitting. Know that the story isn’t over yet, as the founder of the concert, Meghan Mann, plans to pursue legal matters in order to recoup some…
We ask every time we buy new stamps: Do you have any with artwork on them? The clerk opens the stamp drawer and sifts through it, holding up various sheets for approval. We’ve come away with Eames chairs, Georgia O’Keeffe paintings, Ansel Adams photographs, and several sheets of a collection of American photography that we really, truly had trouble using because they were so beautiful. And we miss the Marvel Comics series; Elektra was outrageous! (Guess which bill she went on.)Now, as a point of pride for the Albright-Knox Art Gallery and therefore, Buffalo, the United States Post Office will…