Forum: Company Watch, Master planning, Developement and Policy Discussion

Emptying HSBC Center presents a towering problem Read the full story in the Buffalo News by Jonathan Epstein Would you rather keep the money in your own pocket for your own needs or would you rather bail out the people who own the HSBC tower?

Spending 800-million dollars to shave mere minutes off a rail trip. We're Keeping Them Honest. More...

Bank of America announced Monday it's closing a local mortgage servicing site. M&T Bank will take over the location. There is no word on if there will be any layoffs. More...

I think it is time to start posting up how IDA's are living off the local property tax payers. Correct me if I am wrong. The small politically connected group of people of each IDA receives their revenue based on the amount of IDA deals/incentives given. Yes or no?

State will rip out Robert Moses Parkway in Niagara Falls Read the Full Story by Charlie Specht in the Buffalo News

http://www.buffalonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130130/BUSINESS/130139928/1109 Looks like they are going to go with the Hotel/Office/Residential combo. Makes sense. I do hope they build out over the open plaza space. I know Seneca One talked about this when they were trying to keep...

Hydrofracking was the topic of discussion at the Prendergast Library in Jamestown. It's one part of a public Critical Discussion Series hosted by the library. More...

Neighbors object to plans for a Panera Bread franchise Read the full story in the Buffalo News Why would people object to this?

Amherst a candidate for $37.5 million data center$37.5 million data center would employ 25 people Read the full story in the Buffalo News How much in property/school taxes are on a $7 million dollar building in Amherst?

So how did IDA's come to be? I wasn't paying attention years ago but it seems they were setup to help areas that lost business. Like the heart of Buffalo.

What actual formulas do IDA's use to generate their "economic impact" studies? The reason I ask is.... If we had the economic impact that we are told I think by now our streets should be paved in gold. If the community subsidizes the project wouldn't you expect the entire community to benefit?...

that is the f-----g billion dollar question of the day .)

that is the f-----g billion dollar question of the day .)

Politicians Smother Cities http://www.creators.com/opinion/john-stossel/politicians-smother-cities.html The residents of Erie County can learn from this.

Hotel planned for Donovan Building Go Read the Full Story in the Buffalo News

Here's a link to a Buffalo Snooze article on the requests from a local company for tax breaks to build student housing in Amherst and Orchard Park: Student Housing. I'm NOT necessarily opposed to IDA tax breaks but it depends on the project. The purpose of these tax incentives is to create...

Cars to a tax-free main Street Read the full article www.buffalopundit.com

So over all, was building the subway worth it? What did it end up costing? $100,000,000? $200,000,000? How much does the labor, maintenance and administration cost versus how much tax payer money goes in each year? Do people think the businesses that went out of business during it's...

It had appeared that a restaurant on the waterfront was on the verge of opening this summer. Now, it appears that might happen next year -- or not at all. More...

HSBC reportedly selling upstate branches HSBC Holdings PLC has put 175 of its upstate New York branches for sale, including those in the Buffalo area, according to a report today by American Banker. The report, citing unnamed sources, said the bank tried to sell the branches in a package deal...

Verizon and its $4 billion data center arenâ??t coming to Niagara County. The fallout wonâ??t be good for the Buffalo Niagara regionâ??s already shaky reputation. More...

Private Developer 30 units for $5.2M Works out to $174k per unit. Quasi-public Public Developer 30 units for $6.6M Works out to $220K per unit or 21% more than a private job.