Author: matt biddle

It might sound strange to some, but the Buffalo Public School District has reason to celebrate. The school system has been plagued with drastic problems for years; however, a major achievement was announced last week when the New York State Education Department took ten Buffalo public schools off the Department’s watch list. Four of those schools had been listed as SURR (Schools Under Registration Review). Here is a list of the ten schools, all of which are now “Schools in Good Standing” with the state: · Bennett Park Montessori School #32 · Harriet Ross Tubman School #31 · Poplar Street…

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On Aug. 12th, 2009 JetBlue Airways announced their “All You Can Jet” promotion. Pay $599 and book unlimited to flights to any destination. The promotion will last from September 8th to October 8th. Buffalo residents Clark Dever and Joe DiNardo have decided to use this promotion as an opportunity to fly from city to city across the United States. Each day will be a new city, and the pair plans to keep their time in each stop along their trip limited to 12 hours. Joe and Clark will be documenting their cross country journey on their blog and on social…

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Big fans of the Allentown district will have an opportunity to learn about some of the historic buildings in the neighborhood when The Allentown Association, Inc. conducts its Secrets of Allentown tour on September 12th from 10AM – 4PM. This tour will allow people access to some buildings that are rarely made open to the public. This year the tour will also feature some contemporary buildings, in addition to some of the historic ones for which the area is famous. The starting point for this expedition will be the Theodore Roosevelt National Inaugural Site Carriage House, at 641 Delaware Ave. The…

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Mayor Byron Brown has announced his support for the High Speed Rail New York Coalition, an organization pushing for the construction of a New York State high speed rail line. According to City Hall, the Coalition “recently submitted a report on the regional impacts of High Speed Inter City Passenger Rail along the Empire Corridor in New York State to Administrator Joseph C. Szabo.” The coalition feels that the time is right to act on this initiative because of the opportunity to take advantage of federal stimulus money to help build such a system. Brown supports the idea…

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In July of 2008, the father and son team of Tom and Jason Yots started Preservation Studios, a company that redesigns and rehabilitates historic buildings. Together, the two are planning the company’s next big project: the acquisition and rehabilitation of Hook and Ladder No. 12, a decommissioned firehouse located at the corner of Amherst and Grant Street, circa 1913. The Yots’ plan calls for the empty firehouse to undergo an interior redesign and refurbishment that will transform the building into an office and conference facility, and house both Preservation Studios and Jason’s Yots Law Firm. Eco-Logic Studios, an architecture firm that…

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On Sunday, August 16th, Trattoria Aroma will celebrate its commitment to buying locally grown food — as well as the farmers who provide these delicious foods — by hosting a dinner event at the Oles Family Farm in Alden. Breen Shea, the restaurant’s general manager, said Trattoria Aroma is dedicated to buying local because it’s better for customers’ health and the region’s economy.Shea also said Trattoria Aroma works with the Oles Family farm frequently, so it was only fitting that this farm serve as the location of this event. In fact, 60 percent of their food comes from the Oles Family Farm!…

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We’ve all heard the doomsday theories that the world is coming to an end. Heck, it’s about to be released in multiplexes everywhere in the form of 2012, a big-budget action movie centering on the theory that the Mayan calendar predicts the end of it all in December 2012. Another theory that’s gained ground in recent years — that global warming will eventually make our planet inhospitable — is the focal point of a piece published earlier this week in Slate magazine, which quotes Robert Shibley, a UB professor and co-author of Buffalo’s Comprehensive Plan.Plus, the article also postulates that…

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Massachusetts Avenue is now home to a new pet store in Buffalo. Tango’s Pet Store opened last Friday at 246 Massachusetts Avenue on the corner of Normal Avenue. Michelle Giomundo, the store’s owner, plans to expand the store in the future and sell live animals, but for now it remains exclusively a pet supply store. Giomundo lives next door to the shop and saw a need for a neighborhood store like this. As for walkability, the next pet store is a pretty good hike away from Giomundo’s neighborhood, and she felt this type of store would succeed in the area. According…

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Karpeles Manuscript Museum will play host to an exhibit by nationally recognized fashion and fine art photographer Cheryl Gorski which will debut on August 6th, and will run through September 18th. The exhibit is titled “Life After Burning”, and includes 37 black and white photos involving performers and models juxtaposed with burned out buildings on Buffalo’s East Side. “I first discovered these buildings in 2007, and was struck by their stark contrast to the rest of the city, and the finality of their abandonment. The images remained in my mind, and I began taking models there in 2008 and 2009,” says…

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Resting at the bottom of Lake Erie just west of Dunkirk is more than 150 years of local history. A research team has found a wooden ship from the 1800s sitting at the bottom and, even more remarkably, the 85-foot sunken schooner is in near-pristine condition. Now the team has grand plans for the War of 1812 relic, which brought goods to and from Buffalo when it was just emerging as a city. They hope to raise it and display the vessel in a large water tank, making it the centerpiece of Buffalo’s waterfront. The ship was originally discovered in 1994…

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