I have a lot of respect for Donn Esmonde, I really do. But when it comes to Canal Side, he makes me want to pull my hair out

Look at what already has been done to see why we should do more. The rewatered Commercial Slip, uncovered building ruins, replicated bowstring bridge and Servicemen’s Museum patterned on the Coit-McCutcheon building carry a sense of pride and the pull of history.

Yes. I love the new drawstring bridge, the new boat slips, the new Naval Museum, and the cobblestone ruins. And when locals and tourists alike visit it they’ll say “Oh. This is nice…okay so now what do we do?”

Finishing the in-progress project with public waterfront space, with offices, apartments, restaurants and bars in buildings similar to the Coit-McCutcheon, would give us a slice of the old Canal Village. It would be our version of Toronto’s Distillery District, Baltimore’s Fell’s Point, San Diego’s Old Town or Manhattan’s South Street Seaport — but with historic underpinnings that those people- magnet projects cannot match.

I have spent more than half my life in DC, a little more than half an hour from Baltimore. I go up there a few times a year and know kids who go to college there.

I have never even heard of Baltimore’s Fell’s Point until I read this article.

If Quinn and Co. get their plan to come to fruition it will still be respectful of the Erie Canal harbor. The only difference is that there will be a parking garage and a Bass Pro where grass and trees were supposed to be. Without the large anchor, other retailers of any significance aren’t going to take the high risk that is downtown Buffalo retail. By putting BassPro on the Central Wharf, a surface lot like the Webster Block remains open and ready to feed off the imminent success of a waterfront entertainment district. Its that simple. Without it, our Waterfront will be a historically significant park and nothing more.

And thats the damn point. We need a waterfront that attracts people, that when people hear “Buffalo” they think “Bills, snow, wings…oh, and Canal Side!”.

I’m sick of thinking about it, sick of debating it. Get this damn thing done.

I don’t think you can have a more thorough, rational, and realistic look at the Canal Side plan than BuffaloPundit does right here.

Took the words out of my mouth and then some.

As expected, this happened…

Craig at Northcoast sums it up perfectly…

This “suburbanization” thing is a complete myth. Every building is going to be built right up to the sidewalk. EVERY SINGLE ONE. The parking garages (at least one of them) is going to have 1st floor retail. From what I’ve heard, the Aud Parking Ramp could have a residential component.

When you look at the Canal Side plan, and the entire waterfront, Bass Pro doesn’t dominate the waterfront at all. It’s what we call “an anchor”. A big retailer that attracts smaller retailers around it. Without an anchor, smaller stores simply won’t come to the Inner Harbor and take the risk, it has to be a shopping destination to work. Not a park with some little mom and pop shops.

The cobblestone streets will still be there, the sidewalks will still be there, urban design and a respect for the architecture of the time it is recreating will be respected in accordance with the Canal Side plan.

I won’t yell at preservationists as a whole because its people like them who are the only reason today why we still have the Guaranty Building, Shea’s, and the emerging commercial slip and 1800’s ruins at the Inner Harbor.

But this is Elmwood Hotel type stuff right here. A fear of big change. A fear of the mainstream coming into town and adding a certain element of life that we’re just not used to in this city. Perhaps its a self-fulfilling prophecy…of never evolving and maintaining our national reputation of being a boring dump of a city (and yes, most people who actually visit Buffalo feel that way).

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Bass Pro get annoyed with the lawsuit and just bailout. Leaving Benderson with a devil of a time to recruit attractive retailers.

The current Canal Side plan is impressive and thorough and could put Baltimore’s watefront to shame…yeah its that good.

We’ll see how this works out, but based on history I don’t see this looking so good for progress on Buffalo’s waterfront but hey…at least we’ll have another really nice greenspace on the waterfront that could maybe have like…people…and like…some local art events and like…maybe a summer concert…

Ah yes, life in the ol’ time capsule we call Buffalo, New York.

This Canal Side presentation makes me innapropriately excited. Ohmygod. I am dying to see this completed in 3-4 years. I think I’d literally freeze and then faint upon seeing this project complete.

I just thought this was a fitting photo (That’s the aud behind there just in case you didn’t know)

Bass Pro deal will be OFFICIAL tomorrow. Mayor Brown said “this new plan is more exciting than the one announced three years ago”. Brian Higgins said that it will include an aquarium and a Great Lakes Museum.
The store will have an 1800’s design to reflect the original buildings of the central wharf and will be 4-5 acres. Space around the project for other retail that Benderson is going after as we speak apparently.

More info tomorrow and I haven’t looked forward to photographing a development project downtown this much…ever…except for maybe the Issa tower.

Mr. Esmonde’s column today column today discussed possible re-use of the old Aud. I think I came up with my best idea ever…

“Outdoor skating rink/Waterfront amphitheater.
Tear down the 1970’s addition to the Aud. Making most of the building (except for the Exchange Street entrance) open-air. In the summers, big name acts can play in front of thousands on the Waterfront instead of Darien Lake (which is facing major financial troubles).

In the winter, people can pay a couple bucks to skate on the exact same ice that their childhood heroes did, and feel the atmosphere that is so burned into our memories. It wouldn’t take profits away from Fountain Plaza because it would cost money to skate at the aud, and it would be a completely different vibe to the place.

It would be the most unique public space in Buffalo and would be used all year round. Talk about cultural tourism…a place like that would draw the intrigue of anyone from anywhere.

-Mark Byrnes”

So that’s what I think. Curious to see if anyone else has a non-retail idea.

I really don’t think it’s over yet though.

Bass Pro and the City of Buffalo have been dating for years, they’ve been fighting a lot and now Bass Pro is acting all emotional and trying to see how Buffalo reacts. Is he going to hunt her down and try to bring her back or is he just going to realize that she’s nuts and has been using him all these years…a goldigger of sorts.

Looks like Buffalo is standing strong. He’s going to move on to better ones that treat him the way he deserves to be treated.

Buuuuut he might still take her back. You just never know in this crazy world. Let alone the crazy world of Buffalo Waterfront Development.

Good ‘ol Bass Pro has come up with some new ideas in the never ending saga that is the Bass Pro saga.
Bass Pro doesn’t want to do this alone, so that means they need to have other retailers around them
THAT’S GOOD NEWS!
So they’re going to work with…Benderson Development aaand Erie Canal Harbor Development can’t have any say in what’s going on with Bass Pro or the Aud or the retailers that come along the property managed by Benderson.
THAT’S PROBABLY BAD NEWS

Now that Benderson is in it, I’m 100% sure Bass Pro is going to happen. I know Benderson will recruit some interesting retailers too, they have a very good reputation with national retailers.
I also predict that it will be a suburban, sterotypical Sheridan Drive-NF Boulevard-Transit Road-ish looking strip mall on the waterfront.

And that my friends…sucks.

Add the Aud to the growing list of historic buildings to be turned into a downtown Buffalo surface lot.
People say the Aud isn’t that great a building. I disagree. The 1970’s additions to the building are hideous, but the details on the original walls are only seen by other WPA projects like the eagles coming out of the stone. The large entrances (especially the exchange street entrance) are unique as well.
I’m no preservation freak, in fact I perfer modern architecture (favorite buildings in Buffalo are Hauptman-Woodward and the Public Safety Campus). But I’ve seen Bass Pro’s all over this country.

They’re lame-o.

And the same-o. Every. Single. One.

So now we’ll have a large, cheap looking wood building taking up this space when they at least could have taken up the surface lot inbetween HSBC Arena and One HSBC Center.

This whole project becomes more of a cliche Buffalo publicly-funded, silver bullet, project.
Tearing down an historic building despite being surrounded by surface lofts, and then cancelling their call for an intermodal transportation center. Pretty much just bending over for the companies that come into the city (Bass Pro, Casino)

You just can’t teach an old dog new tricks.