East Side residents are excited about new plaza

A small new brick shopping plaza with mod green walls is about month away from being ready for an M&T bank and three new stores along the revivalistic Jefferson Avenue.


A church group is behind the effort to draw entrepreneurs back to the once-thriving economic core of the city's African-American community.
"We put a fresh celery green on everything to make this fun. . . . bring in a little bit of Elmwood, so to speak, to Jefferson," said project architect David Galbo, refering to the prosperous Elmwood Avenue retail district two miles to the west.

The $1 million building and parking lot, which began construction last summer on an empty weedy stretch of asphalt, is nearly complete, save for finishes, such as ceilings, lights and room partitions. It is part of a continuing effort coordinated by the Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church.

The plaza at 1300 Jefferson is across the street from the Tops supermarket and a big new library that opened in April. The store owners who came to look over their unfinished shops one morning this week said they were eager to move into the neighborhood.
"The buzz is definitely there," said Bart Williams, 23, an owner of PrintEfx, a new version of a printing and design company he started in his mother's house when he was 16. He has been running the company ever since - from his college dorm room, apartment and anywhere he can open up his laptop computer.

http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial...16/1065653.asp

I've always found it interesting how visibly some East Side churches are behind some of the larger developments. As noted in your post, Steven.

IIRC, St. John the Baptist Church runs the apartments at the end of the Kensington and another church the development by the old Rock Pile on Best Street.

I actually think it's a good idea. The churches can bring a moral aspect to their tenant screening that the BMHA wouldn't dream of. And they are probably the strongest force for stability left on the East Side.

But I wonder where the "separation of Church and State" screamers are. I believe public money is behind all of these (although I don't know about the one you just wrote about).

Why do they get a pass?