What Others are saying.

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• A trip around the Web using some keywords will give you an idea of how others feel about are little corner of the city. Some comments are from city residents and others are not some may upset you some are funny some are encouraging. These are just copied and pasted quotes so they don't make a complete paragraph. {No I don't wright run on sentences just new to the blogeshere and having some freshmen moments.}

"Black Rock is a pretty depressing area, as is Riverside. I've known folks who've lived there. I try and support businesses in both. We buy sausages at Spars. I bought my suits and my son's clothes at Riverside Men's Shop, but they've finally moved out. Both areas are manifestation of the self-separation that's occurring in WNY (City vs suburban) and in the country as a whole (surging southwest/declining northeast and midwest)". "Good for you, I'm glad to see you support local businesses My father grew up in Riverside and my mother in Black Rock (me Grand Island) and I remember when it was a decent place to live." " Given the added commute in terms of miles and time as well as the additional cost of parking, a 25% raise to take a downtown job shrinks significantly. If a suburbanite lives within 3 miles or 10 minutes of where he/she works now, it's going to cost significantly more in money and time to take that job in downtown. Not everyone feels that how much money you make is the most important thing in the world. You hit on almost every reason why I declined the job. Three others: 1 - Walking from your vehicle to the building in January when the freezing rain is coming off the lake at 30 miles per hour. No thanks. 2 - Being able to run errands during lunch. I can easily go to the post office, bank, convenience store, and get lunch quickly where I work in Black Rock. It takes upwards of 15 minutes just to get to your car when you work in that damn tower, depending on the wait for an elevator. It would be a different story if all of those conveniences were within a reasonable walking distance dowtown, but they aren't. 3 - I can get home in 10 minutes from where I currently work. It would be twenty, plus the added time of walking to the parking lot, if I worked at the tower". "I'll admit that the downtown location is part of the problem with the Bass Pro project. If Bass Pro was somewhere else besides downtown, it would require a lot less in public money: no rehabbing the old Aud, no parking garage, no ramp reconfiguration, no transit hub. Buffalo is more than just downtown. How about the largely empty commercial/industrial area around South Ogden Street tolls? Better yet, how about a site in Black Rock near the river and just off the I-190 at Amherst or Austin Street exits?". "Actually, Bass Pro doesn't fit on the Buffalo Inner Harbor. The Buffalo waterfront by the Aud has always been a commercial/industrial area not a recreational boating area except for the last 20-30 years with the building of the Erie Basin Marina and the marina across the Buffalo River near the Coast Guard Station. The Small Boat Harbor has long been the recreational boating center south of downtown. A site close to the SBH would be a better fit for Bass Pro if access wasn't a problem. The marinas along the Black Rock Canal north of Squaw Island over to the Ontario Street boat launch have long been the recreational boating center north of downtown. If the city could put together a big enough parcel, the Niagara Street-Amherst Street-Austin Street area would be an excellent site for Bass Pro. I believe that Lake Ontario is considered the "world class" bass fishery. I think that Lake Erie is better known for its walleyes". "North of Buffalo" is not the same as North Buffalo. Kenmore is north of Buffalo. Somwhere west of Delaware, North Buffalo becomes Riverside. You'll notice a lot of Polish, Ukranian and other Eastern European names in Riverside. It was the last section of the City opened up by the Beltline RR. I highly recommend Spars on Amherst for their fresh German sausages. Black Rock always confuses me. I think that's on the West Side beyond Richmond where all the streets go to a 45 degree angle. Like Connecticut and Masshachusetts. The streets were laid out on a different grid, because the village of Black Rock was separate from the village of Buffalo. But where Black Rock becomes Riverside is a mystery to me". "Local, non-chain retailing and restaurants, much less neighborhood grocery stores, butcher shops, shoe stores, etc, are memories.We've become people who have isolated ourselves within our homes, within our backyards, within our own small circle of family and friends, so where is all this pedestrian traffic going to come from that's supposed to support the "new urbanism"? You don't spend much time on the West side, Hertal, Jefferson avenue or Elmwood areas do you? These areas are full of pedestrian traffic everyday. I buy all my meats from a family owned Butcher shop on Grant (one of 4 in the Grant st.area) every week as well as getting my vegetables from Guercio's (family owned and thriving so well they just had to purchase the adjacent property for storage space). Plenty of people along Elmwood avenue, Hertal, Black rock riverside, and Jefferson avenue live a similar existence. I know all my neighbors (on my block) and no one has a barbeque or backyard get together without asking fellow neighbors to join in. Everyone doesn't want to live the Edward scissor hands strip mall suburban existence". "Not all of us. You want the City to be healthier, live and shop in it. You like the Broadway Market, shop there. You like the local restaurants, eat there. You like the fact Budwey's is non-union, shop there. (OK. Some of us may like that last one better than others. ) Excellent point. citymouse. If you live near the grant street corrider (from grant and forest to grant ferry)you never have to leave your nieghborhood. We have a dibbles hardware store just off grant street to get home stuff at least 4 butcher shops a vegtable market that has fresh veggies shipped in weekly, a couple of dollar stores to get knick knacks, a family dollar, Life styles cloths shop, 2 drug stores, a shoe store and a zillion diners and pizzaries all within 20 minutes walking distance. As I stated earlier Black Rock Riverside, Elmwood, Hertal, and the Fillmore area all have the same stuff. (although the east side is lacking in the butcher shop dept) Everyone doesnt shop at major supermarkets like tops and wegmanns. I can also walk to the park and go to the zoo or just hang out (25 minutes) or the art gallery (20 minutes) or the elmwood strip (15 minutes). Perhaps your shopping habits are just so different from mine that we arent on the same page...... or maybe you need to get outta your car and see whats around you " "It would be nice if they downgraded the Niagara Expressway to a parkway like they are doing with the Scajaquada. Connect the Westside, Black Rock & Riverside neighborhoods to the new Niagara Parkway. Buffalo always had a canal and a railroad but that there was a lot of green space between the canals, rail roads and the neighborhoods...there had to be thats were all the industry was located. While we dont have the barges or the railroads, the canal is now a great recreational vehicle and provides an anchor for the local community (if it was connected and integrated into the community)". "They are ignoring it because it is of no benefit to them. Here is the smell test: 1. How much will I receive in campaign contributions if I support this proposal? 2. Will a beaurocracy be created to manage the project? If not, can an existing beaurocracy be expanded? 3. Can any of my buddies make a quick buck off the project? If yes, see smell test #1. 4. Is a economically viable Black Rock really in my best interests as a politician? In other words, who will vote for my transfer of wealth policies when the citizens of black rock no longer need welfare?". "I work in D district {Police Officer}. If your talking about Riverside/Black Rock area, yes that has always been a working mans neighborhood. Its something to be proud of. The poster who attacks that area and its people then and now, is just an empty asshole. They are uneducated about that area. Granted, it has seen better days, but it has always been a working class area and God bless them for working. If you have a big problem in that area try posting the problem and area on here and I will swing by there when I'm working. Cant promise anything, its very busy lately but I will try. Dont give up hope, dont give up your neighborhood".