4. Decades of Progress
The Queen City Hub builds on decades of investment Downtown. We are not starting from scratch. We are standing on the foundations provided by people who also had a clear vision and good ideas about how to create a great Downtown. The work to be undertaken now would not have been possible without all the work that came before.
1970s
In the 1970s... the Erie Basin Marina was carved out of abandoned docklands on the Buffalo waterfront. The roof was raised on major league hockey at The Memorial Auditorium. A County Legislator led the charge to save the old U.S. Post Office and Sen. Daniel P. Moynihan helped preserve Louis Sullivan’s renowned Guaranty Building. Shea’s Buffalo was saved from the wrecking ball. The idea of a Theatre District Downtown was born. Construction began on the Metro Rail and transit mall. Out of town investment in the Hilton Hotel at the Waterfront (now the Adam’s Mark Hotel) invigorated the Downtown investment climate.
1980s
In the 1980s... a new Downtown neighborhood was created in Waterfront Village. A beautiful baseball stadium was erected at Washington and Swan. Lafayette Square was restored to its 19th century grandeur. The Genesee Building was transformed into the Hyatt Regency Buffalo. Fountain Plaza was created as the centerpiece of a new financial district with headquarters for two major Buffalo based banks. The Theatre District began to grow with Theatre Place and new cinemas. The Ansonia Center and City Centre brought apartment living to Downtown. The first new single-family homes were built in Willert Park and Georgia Prospect.
1990s
In the 1990s... Key Center completed the work on Fountain Plaza. A new entertainment district on Chippewa Street sprung to life. The Flickinger Athletic Center brought new activity to its corner of Downtown. A new hockey arena was constructed at the foot of Main Street. Two new hotels opened in Downtown and another in what is now called the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. New public buildings – for the FBI and the U.S. Attorney – were constructed Downtown. Lafayette Square was made beautiful again as a large public outdoor room.
2000s
In the 2000s... A new office building in the Theatre District was constructed. A beautiful new Erie County Family Court building was completed. Developers in the 700 and 800 blocks of Main Street searched for opportunities to meet the growing demand for new housing Downtown. Planning proceeded for the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus even as Roswell Park completed its ambitious new building – soon to be followed by construction of the Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and other life sciences facilities. Planning and construction for a Downtown Education and Public Safety Campus moved ahead. Construction commenced on the Erie Canal Harbor project. Plans to return cars to Main Street were completed.
