County Executive Joel Giambra and the Erie County Legislature have agreed to forgive the 2006 and 2007 County taxes on property located at 300 Manhattan Street. The property is being conveyed to the City of Buffalo as a result of a Federal Bankruptcy and will be used for the expansion of the area around Bennett High School, All-High Stadium, a City grammar school and McCarthy Park.

City officials plan on demolishing the former Nursing home with a grant from the New York State Dormitory Authority.

Click here to listen to Press Conference

Construction officially began on the final component of the block of industrial buildings which interrupts the flow of surface parking lots in the cobblestone district. Originally just lofts, now its mostly offices, with retail on the 1st floor and residential on the second.

And the 1-story building between the two warehouses should be adding a “European Bistro” this summer. I’m predicting a cafe/restaurant/bar coming into this final rehab too…the block should become a modest post-game attraction for Sabres fans when completed.

I’d probably have about 35 cents.

On December 15, 2004, then-owner of the Outer Harbor NFTA revealed three competing visions for that brownfield.

1. WestEnd (Ciminelli/Jerde)

I actually liked this one. It was nicely designed and not at all a pie-in-the-sky type project. They dubbed it a “lakefront creative community”.

2. Norstar Outer Harbor Redevelopment Plan

It was almost all parkland. We have a very nice waterfront park that very few people use. Parks don’t pay taxes. No more parks.

Two Buffalo Businessmen purchased the former Freezer Queen plant in November for $3 Million.

Their plans include:

• Conversion of the existing six-story, 272,000-square-foot food production and storage plant to condominiums, possibly adding two more floors to create luxury penthouse suites;

• A 250- to 400-room, five-star hotel tower, to be built on the tip of the mini-peninsula;

• A residential tower and townhouses on undeveloped areas of the property.

The Queen City team plans to move as “expeditiously” as possible with the hope of beginning the food plant-to-condo conversion by late spring. They are currently interviewing local and national architects for the project.

It sounds like a great plan, but with our local economy the way it is, and being the second poorest city in the country and all, is it really worth the investment or will it wind up another empty structure on the frozen tundra we call a waterfront?