Rather than compile yet another list of the top ten stories of 2006, I thought I’d take a shot at what will be the top ten local stories of 2007. Yes, I’m a pre-cog.

10.) Joel Giambra skulks away from the public eye to join NORML as a lobbyist after failing to get a job as a Soul Train dancer.

9.) Mayor Byron Brown announces a major study and task force to study landbanking on the East Side of Buffalo.

8.) Thousands more people move into our downtown core as Rocco Termini continues his crusade to rehabilitate and adaptively reuse our architectural gems.

7.) Cindy Locklear edges out Republican Rick Snowden to become the new Erie County Executive. Early in the campaign, voters realize that recycled hacks like Paul Clark, Jim Keane, Dan Ward, and Jimmy Griffin represent nothing but our past.

6.) Governor Eliot Spitzer heeds the advice of WNY consigliere Sam Hoyt and funding for a light rail extension to UB Amherst materializes.

5.) The Statler Hotel renovation is underway and Bashar Issa is hailed as a conquering hero.

4.) Buffalo’s hidden gem, the Central Terminal, finds an investor with vision and the slow restoration process picks up incredible speed.

3.) Buffalo Old Home Week 2007 is a massive success and thousands of former Buffalonians reconsider their decision to leave for greener pastures. The momentum of a Buffalo renaissance grows unabated.

2.) Buffalo Sabres win Stanley Cup and Ryan Miller wins the Conn Smythe trophy.

1.) WNYMedia.net launches a new media revolution with a multimedia platform that extends off the web and into more traditional media channels. Marc, Alan, Chris, Chris, Jay, and Bill make their first million by October. Alan hires Mary Kunz Goldman as his personal assistant.

Yup, it’s gonna be a helluva year.

We’ve been very busy behind the scenes here at WNYMedia.net as we build towards a refreshed look and a litany of new and exciting content for 2007. We’re thisclose to letting you in on our plans, however, the first order of business is to bring on some new people to help us expand.

As always, we are looking for citizen journalists, amateur pundits, and community activists to join our blog family (if interested, email me at buffalogeek at hotmail.com) but, we are also looking to bring on some additional skillsets as well.

Video/Web Sales Associates (full or P/T) - WNY Media Network is seeking experienced sales associates. Media sales background preferred but not necessary. Contact admin@wnymedia.net for more details.

Show Host(s) (P/T) - WNY Media Network is seeking candidates for various local televison and radio shows slated to begin production in early 2007. Must be personable with demonstrated skill in front of a camera or behind a microphone. In depth knowledge of Buffalo and Western New York political, economic, and cultural scene preferred. At least 2 years experience as an on-air personality in news/talk show format prefered but, all applicants will be considered. Send reel and/or resume to admin@wnymedia.net

Interns (3) - WNY Media Network is now taking applications for internships (3) during the 2007 Spring Semester. Must be available at least three days a week for at least 4 hours a day. Our interns won’t be sitting behind a desk, they will learn to write, shoot, edit, and produce radio, television, film, and web content. Must have own transportation. Some web knowledge preferred. For More information please contact admin@wnymedia.net

Join the new media revolution!

If you ask that question of a park employee during a visit to the Grand Canyon National Park, this is the answer that you will receive:

“No comment”

Washington, DC — Grand Canyon National Park is not permitted to give an official estimate of the geologic age of its principal feature, due to pressure from Bush administration appointees. Despite promising a prompt review of its approval for a book claiming the Grand Canyon was created by Noah’s flood rather than by geologic forces, more than three years later no review has ever been done and the book remains on sale at the park, according to documents released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).

“In order to avoid offending religious fundamentalists, our National Park Service is under orders to suspend its belief in geology,” stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch. “It is disconcerting that the official position of a national park as to the geologic age of the Grand Canyon is ‘no comment.’”

In other news, park officials at Niagara Falls are now encouraged to inform visitors that the Falls can and will be turned off as soon as God is done doing the dishes.

It’s been an incredible joy to celebrate our first Christmas with our beautiful son. We are so thankful to have a healthy and happy child and for the wonderful life we lead here on the sunny shores of Lake Erie in Buffalo, NY.

When we moved home in 2004, I don’t think we imagined that we would have such a wonderful group of friends and family to share the holidays with.

So a big Merry Christmas to Amy, Marc, Ethan, Alan, Byrdman, Marti, Zimbuddha, Jay, Michele, Derek, Amanda, Mike, Ashok, Kevin Hardwick, Dan, Newell, George, Zack, Dave, Ron, Pauldub, Jessica, Jennifer D, Scotty, Jerome, KevinP, Mark, Kelly, KevinH, Val, Russ, Mary, Mark Poloncarz, Tom, Jennifer S, Mark, Rob, Daryl, Salesman, Elly, the entire WNYM and BOHW families and the hundred of others I see almost every day!

This coming year will be a big one for WNYMedia.net as we will be announcing some significant changes in the coming weeks (shhh, it’s a secret!) We’ll be leaking details soon!

Also, a big Merry Christmas from my son, Cole.

This is the uncensored version of the one sketch aired on SNL this year that actually made me laugh. It features Andy Samberg and Justin Timerlake in a boy band video parody.

Questionable language for those of you in the office…

For those of you who do not regularly read The Economist or visit their website, there was a fantastic little piece about our fair city in its pages this week.

While it starts out with the typical history of our economic woes, the focus is on the future and the progress we are making.

But better times may lie ahead. Buffalo officials brim with ideas, and some are being implemented. A 110m-gallon (416m-litre) ethanol plant scheduled to open next year will put four of the gigantic grain elevators back into use for corn storage. The original terminus of the Erie Canal is being rebuilt to attract tourists and shops; and private developers, tempted by cheap property prices, are pouring money into old buildings. There is talk of making Buffalo a biomedical technology hub, complementing the city’s enormous cancer-research centre, and of building a casino near the centre of town.

In my opinion, The Economist is the preeminent news magazine in the world. Read by a demographic of investors and businessmen that this city desperately needs to attract, an article in The Economist promoting progress in our fair city is an incredible boost to our emerging renaissance.

If you are like me, you are saddled with endless hours spent on conference calls and continually looking for any distraction from the humdrum corporate speak that dominates these conversations…

Schneider Digital provides a little workday reflief with a fun little Holiday flash game.

I’ve now played 14 times during the last hour of this two hour conference call. It’s addictive.

Enjoy.

Are you in Beautiful Buffalo for the holidays?

Join the Buffalo Old Home Week family at Sidebar, one of North Buffalo’s coolest bars on Wednesday, December 27th at 7:00 p.m. for Happy To Be (Back) Here for the Holidays Happy Hour, the final Happy To Be (Back) Here Hour of the year!

Come share the holiday spirit (and perhaps some spirits!) and celebrate all the ways in which the Buffalo Renaissance has taken wings during 2006.

Grab every Expat, Repat, Transplant and enthusiastic Buffalo Booster that you know and head over to the Sidebar to participate in our on-going celebration of all that is great about Buffalo now and in the New Year!

And if you have a favorite iconic Buffalo item that you’d like to donate, bring it along and we’ll have some fun for a good cause. We’ll raffle off Buffalo books, art, jewelry, clothing, mugs — you name it. Proceeds will go to the Olmsted ReLeaf project to help Buffalo recover its arboreal bounty.

We’ll also be providing a sampling of some of the best food found in the emerging and culturally historic restaurant district of North Buffalo.

These gatherings are a great way to meet others who share your passion for our fair city. There will be plenty of (not Old Buffalo, not New Buffalo, but) Our Buffalo energy. Enjoy the high spirits and rich stories of people who have come from or wandered all over the nation and the world and found that Buffalo is where they want to live.

There will be no shortage of warm and enthusiastic people to meet, so even if you come alone and don’t know a soul, you’ll leave with new friends and new connections. There will be plenty to talk about: what new companies are opening in Buffalo? What’s the latest on the Waterfront? Where are the hot new jobs in the city and region? Who’s seen which shows and what they think about them as the new theater season gets underway. Of course, we’ll also be making some important announcements about upcoming Buffalo Old Home Week events!

This is what Buffalo, does so very well: welcome, entertain, and connect. So whether you’re a Repat, a Transplant from other parts, or an enthusiastic Buffalonian who has never needed to leave to know how great this town is, you are cordially invited to come and be a part of this positive, energetic community.

So, two feet of snow falls in Central Colorado; essentially shuts down business and government across the state; NBA/NHL games are suspended; power outages sweep the area, people die, national coverage ensues.

Sound familiar?

Why is it that Denver’s reputation doesn’t suffer after a weather event like this but, Buffalo stumbles away with black eyes and a sullied rep?

Perception.

We allow ourselves to be defined by “bad weather” rather than celebrate it as they do in other snow-rich regions. It’s ground that has been well covered in the past by columnists and bloggers alike but, every once in a while, it’s worth discussing again.

Why is there no “Snow Festival” in Buffalo? I know we had the Olmsted Winter Fest but, I mean something more significant, like this winter carnival in Minneapolis/St. Paul.

How about a local entrepreneur coming up with a line of “Official Buffalo Tested and Approved” line of snow shovels and ice scrapers to be sold locally and around the country?

I guess I could do it but, I have no idea how to start a line of actual products with a production center, assembly lines, and whatnot. Someone wanna get on this for me? Thanks.

Let’s celebrate our weather rather than hang our heads as people mock us for our snowy fortunes. It’s an asset and we should sell it as such.

I just received an email from Eva Hassett at Savarino Construction Corporation that detailed some pretty bad news for Buffalo Believers:

First, on behalf of myself and everyone at Savarino, I want to say thank you for the support and encouragement we have received – from the beginning – for the Elmwood Village Hotel Project.

We considered the Hotel to be something bigger than just a real estate project. We saw it as a chance to do something positive for the Elmwood Village neighborhood, for the cultural institutions, for Buffalo State College’s hospitality program, and for the tourists and visitors that would have experienced Buffalo far differently than they do now.

We developed the Hotel idea after we were invited to create the right development for the corner of Elmwood and Forest. We tried hard to listen to, and to be open to, the concerns of the neighbors and the community at large. We tried to accommodate those concerns in the hotel design and site plan. We worked to balance the need for a professional hotel operator with the desire to have something organic and local, incorporating local art and food service. To get all this input, we asked for and received a significant amount of time from area block clubs, individuals and organizations like Forever Elmwood – for which we are very grateful.

We also benefited from the strong support, talent and community spirit of our architect, Karl Frizlen.

Unfortunately, after a year of work, and due to circumstances beyond our control, we have decided not to pursue the Hotel project any further.

As most know, there was a legal challenge mounted last summer to the City’s rezoning of the property. In addition, this fall, while performing our diligence in conjunction with the purchase of the properties, we became aware of deed restrictions on the parcels dating back more than 100 years, that among other things prohibited commercial activity on the properties. These restrictions, which are meant to benefit more than 60 individual property owners nearby or adjacent to the proposed hotel site, provide more than ample standing for additional lawsuit(s) from opponents of the project - and by their nature would be impossible to extinguish in any legally supportable manner.

We have investigated the possibility of other developments for the Elmwood Forest site – such as apartments for students, for instance – but we believe that apartments are not the highest and best use for that location.

We said from the start that we wanted to do the right thing for that corner, and wanted to build what the neighborhood wanted. We want to be true to our word.

We have informed the property seller, Mr. Hans Mobius, of our decision. He has been a gentleman through this long and arduous process and was supportive of our efforts. We believe that he had no knowledge of the deed restrictions cited above.

All of us at Savarino are disappointed that the hotel project will not come to pass. We have spent a significant sum of money and resources to try to make it work. I must also add that I am personally disappointed because I am an Elmwood Village resident, and I have devoted a great deal of my life working for the benefit of our city. I intend to continue.

Thank you again, and the best for 2007.
Eva Hassett (Savarino Construction)

When Marc Odien and I organized a rally to support the Savarino hotel project, we were hopeful that the project would move forward. Thirty regular contributors to WNYMedia.net were joined by a couple of folks from Buffalo Rising to demonstrate that there were members of this community who supported transparent and community oriented development.

While Marc and I were able to bring Channels 2, 4, 7 as well as WBEN, WHLD, WNED, WBFO, The Beast and The Buffalo News to cover the protest and generate a supportive buzz for the project, we ultimately failed in our battle against NIMBYs and those who would rather preserve Buffalo as an architectural museum in a bottle than see it move forward.

While many invested themselves in critiques of the proposed materials, door style, window shape, and paint color; we focused on what we felt was the bigger issue; BANANAs and NIMBYs. Early on, we felt the biggest fight would be with the anti-progress crowd and we tried to get in front of the fight. Ultimately, our efforts were not enough to overcome arcane deed restrictions brought to the fore by the opposition’s attorneys.

Our message in over thirty articles on this issue was summed up nicely by Marc:

Your Opinion Counts - It doesn’t matter who you are, where you live, what you do, or what side of an issue you are on. Everyone wants to see Buffalo succeed. Even though we as a community may not always agree on the way to get there, it’s important to speak your mind and have your voice heard. The acronyms aside, you should always listen to everyone’s opinions, despite how crazy you think they are. Never be afraid to stand up for what you believe in, even if sometimes, you find yourself standing alone.

BUILD THE HOTEL

If only more people had heard that message…now, we are saddled with several empty properties on the “Gateway To The Elmwood Strip”.

WHLD 1270’s president and general manager, Brian Brown-Cashdollar, announced that Buffalo’s Air America affiliate is now off the air.

It is with great sadness that I have to inform you that we are no longer able to offer our listeners the Voice of Reason NewsTalk 1270. Even after overcoming many hurdles, rebuilding the station, growing our sales revenue (10 fold in less than 6 months) and steady growth in ratings, we weren’t able to sustain it. We came close to pulling off this nearly impossible task, but in the end we had to make a move to protect our investors. As to why we had to make this move, the short answer is cashflow. The long story is much more interesting, and one day soon we’ll tell it. Start-ups face a huge up hill battle to get established, and it’s almost unheard of for a start up to launch a station with a format as expensive as the news/talk format. And it’s extremely rare for local investors to buck the trend of the corporate consolidation and launch an independent locally controlled broadcast outlet. But 20 individuals thought it was so needed that we did it anyway, and came close to pulling it off.

As with most Air America affiliates, WHLD suffered from a lack of national advertising contracts and their ratings were not high enough to attract a significant share of the local advertising revenue market. It was always fun to listen to the extended bumpers of hold musice when advertising would normally be playing between radio segments.

They also suffered when Entercom rushed to launch a competing “progressive talk” station featuring national hosts in order to limit WHLD’s market opportunities.

Over the last year Entercom, Buffalo has shown their general lack of respect for progressive talk and progressive talk listeners by devoting almost no resources to the station (reportedly they even powered down the station to 10,000 watts to save money).

While this may be true, it was a shrewd business move by Entercom and one that WHLD had no counter for. I would assume that WWKB’s short tenure as a “progressive talk” station will soon come to an end as it has now served it’s purpose of shutting down the lone independent challenger in the marketplace.

On a larger scale, “progressive talk” radio, while educational and informative, lacks in the key criteria that drives wide listenership…entertainment and irony. Generally speaking, people listen to talk radio that appeals to their base level instincts…lowest common denominator radio as it were. That’s why Sandy Beach has been on the radio for the better part of three deades and Joe Schmidbauer has not. While Joe might be more intelligent and informed, he doesn’t have the confrontational, platitudinal style that seems to appeal to people while they drive about town.

As the obituaries are written for WHLD, I know that I’ll miss them. They provided an alternative outlet for news and political commentary and they were a valuable addition to the Western New York region.

As a friend said during the campaign season…”It seems that it’s almost pointless for a Republican to run for office around these parts because of the preponderence of liberals but, there sure are a lot of people tuning into right wing WBEN.”

A dichotomy to be certain…

Screw Time Magazine and their selection of “You” as their Annual Person of the Year, The Onion trumps them with their selection of The Story of the Year.

Thousands More Dead In Continuing Iraq Victory

President Bush said it was too early to call the continuing triumph in Iraq a "quagmire," even as the U.S. victory death-toll neared 3,000.

Since we appear to be the epicenter of the movement to construct many of Frank Lloyd Wright’s unbuilt masterpieces, why don’t we apply this spirit to solve an existing problem?

Everyone hates parking lots and parking garages but, I think most will agree with the necessity of a utilitarian area in which business patrons can park.

I present the unbuilt Frank Lloyd Wright parking garage as designed for Kaufmann’s Department Store in Pittsburgh but, sadly, never built.

Sounds a lot more useful than a boathouse…just need to find a space big enough for it. I think we can all work together to bring this architectural masterpiece to life, can’t we?

A company contracted by the US Government to construct the fence along the US/Mexican border to keep out illegal aliens, was recently fined for hiring illegal workers.

After an immigration check in 1999 found undocumented workers on its payroll, Golden State Fence promised to clean house. But when followup checks were made in 2004 and 2005, some of those same illegal workers were still on the job. In fact, U-S Attorney Carol Lam says as many as a third of the company’s 750 workers may have been in the country illegally.

A little bit further down in the article is the reason why we have an unstemmed flow of illegal immigrants into the US…and it has nothing to do with a fence.

It is exceptionally rare for those who employ illegal immigrants to face any kind of criminal prosecution, let alone jail time.

Why? Because crackdowns on illegal immigration would slow the economic powerhouse that is the “new south” and southwest.

Settle in, this is gonna be a long, bumpy, and rambling ride…I hope you packed a lunch.

This past week has shaken loose some of the various prejudices in all corners of Buffalo Blogistan.

The first volley came from Buffalo Rising with their anti-Cheektowaga screed.

Derek Punaro joined the fray with his response to the BRO post.

Then all hell broke loose when Pundit took a huge cannonball into the pool of discussion. To follow it up, he decided to jump back in to make sure everyone got wet.

Finally, Marc threw his two cents into a peripheral discussion about Pano’s planned expansion and efforts to demolish the Atwater House.

Amongst all of these threads; personal attacks, vitriol, and base level prejudices reared their ugly heads. Suburban denizens were compared to terrorists and called sophomoric dweebs whilst city dwellers were called parochial armchair architects who obtusely live amongst crime, bad schools, and wailing sirens.

At the end of the week, what has all of this contributed to the overall dialogue and helped Buffalo and Western New York become a better place to live?

Absolutely nothing.

A little backstory…

Read the rest of this entry »