Featured News - Current News - Archived News - News Categories
High-tech hub benefits from work Brown administration began in 2008
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo recently announced a $225 million investment to build the Buffalo High-Tech Manufacturing Innovation Hub at Riverbend on the old Republic Steel site on South Park Avenue, formerly known as "Steelfields."
But if it hadn't been for the city's
$4.6 million purchase of the former brownfield property in South Buffalo, this
endeavor might not have been possible.
The city bought the land five years
ago under Mayor Byron W. Brown, putting 185 shovel-ready acres of prime
industrial/commercial land in the city's inventory. The deal was financed by
the city and purchased through the Buffalo Urban Development Corp.
Brown and his team withstood
criticism at the time for getting into the development business. But preparing
for future opportunities was the right thing to do. Although it took years to
land a tenant, the end result made it worth the wait.
The city under the previous
administration added shovel-ready acres in the nearby Buffalo Lakeside Commerce
Park. Brown, concerned that there were no shovel-ready parcels large enough to
attract a company that needed a lot of land, wanted more.
He tasked his staff members with
identifying land the city could purchase, and they targeted the Steelfields
industrial site that had already been remediated at a cost of $19 million.
Brown personally got involved in negotiations, which stretched over close to a
year. In 2008, the city finally purchased the property, formerly the site of
Republic Steel and Donner Hanna Coke.
After transferring the property to
BUDC, a city-created economic development agency, five years of stewardship
began. The acquisition required management, maintenance and investment in roads
to improve the property. The work hasn't been sexy or compelling, just
necessary to fulfill a vision.
Now two companies - Soraa and Silevo
- will ultimately invest $1.5 billion in Riverbend, initially creating 850
jobs. The state will purchase the equipment for the two companies, and the
facilities and equipment will be owned by the state.
This project is designed to create
an entirely new, green, high-technology industry in Buffalo and make it one of
the industry leaders in the world for this kind of development, research and
investment.
It was the vision of Brown that laid
the groundwork for the high-tech industrial park at Riverbend. Going forward,
his administration is interested in acquiring more former industrial land to be
remediated and made ready for development.
The city, which has been successful
during the mayor's tenure in competing for brownfield opportunity area
designations from the state, is hoping to do the same for the Delevan-Grider
Brownfield Opportunity area. That site is in the inner city in the East
Delevan-Grider-Northland area, in close proximity to Erie County Medical
Center. Brownfield opportunity designation could lead to the type of
development we're seeing now along the Buffalo River.
The Brown administration's goal back
in 2008 was to attract green, high-tech companies to Riverbend. At the time the
effort seemed wildly overoptimistic. But by sowing that seed five years ago,
Brown opened the door to an incredible development. Great job.