Originally posted by @Michael Sherwood:
Part of the problem is we have nothing to attract people to visit. At the same time I really hope I am wrong because the city is beat down.
I'm thinking that a lot of those funds would wind up never making their way to Buffalo. They would be reallocated or otherwise vanish. If I was to guess, I'd say the funds that do make it would wind up primarily in the medical corridor and the water front that we've been struggling to develop since our industry left the area.
I think Mike is right when he says there is nothing to attract people. The side walks downtown roll up at 5pm because the only jobs revolve around banking, legal, and government. I'd like to see some sort of stadium or concert venue on the water front, surrounded by locally owned restaurants and shops so that there's a reason to visit. I also think One Seneca needs to be converted to a mixed use including residential in order to keep some sort of population down there. But, they need all the support structures (groceries, shopping, etc) to make it a desireable area to live. Remember the glory days of the Main Place Mall, AM&As, etc?
In the next 10 years I see the city emerging in two fields - technology and medicine - due to our inexpensive labor pool and land costs. How do we get there? PROPERLY applied funds targeted at the right projects. Whether or not that will happen is anyone's guess.
