Building on our success

Following the positive strides made through the Buffalo Building Reuse Program and other complementary studies and efforts, the focus of Buffalo’s Race for Place is to make our downtown and other key urban areas more appealing, exciting and connected.

Through the improvement and maintenance of public infrastructure and the innovation and integration of “smart city” technology, we can continue to position Buffalo as an attractive home for businesses, entrepreneurs, new talent and residents alike.

Progress through collaboration


This effort is a big deal for talent attraction and infrastructure development in the City of Buffalo. Buffalo’s Race for Place is an outside-the-box strategy that demonstrates the type of aggressive response that regions must undertake to stay relevant in the global race for talent, while at the same time ensuring economic equity and inclusivity.

Brandye Merriweather, Vice President – Downtown Development
Buffalo Urban Development Corporation

Our preliminary focus includes

  • Advancement of the downtown infrastructure plan, streetscape improvements, and placemaking in key investment corridors and nodes
  • The strengthening of anchors located along the Main Street "Knowledge Corridor"
  • Progressive land-use policies that prioritize traffic calming, demand and load management, and pedestrian and bicycle friendly activity, as well as promotion of public transit usage, and continuation of Cars Sharing Main Street
  • Implementation of additional Smart City technology solutions and capabilities within such corridors and beyond
  • Additive public safety solutions to further community and new resident confidence
  • Increased urban vibrancy and activation through implementation and feedback inputs from citizens and employees/employers (via City of Buffalo, Buffalo Urban Development Corporation, and community outreach)
  • Integration with existing talent attraction activities, organizations, and region-wide campaigns, such as Be in Buffalo

The Future of Mobility Report: Remaking Buffalo for the 21st Century

The Congress for the New Urbanism has partnered with the City of Buffalo, Stantec’s Urban Places, and CNU members to explore how current and future land uses, including street design, can accommodate the mobility solutions of future decades, while at the same time providing a vibrant public realm for all Buffalonians.

CNU and its partners hosted a four-and-a-half day public design workshop and charrette in Buffalo from February 25th through February 29th.

Click here to view the report