BUFFALO, NY (WKBW) — Downtown Buffalo has taken some hits over the past few weeks.
The only grocery store in the central business district, Braymiller Market shut down.
WEDI’s Downtown Bazaar moved out of the Market Arcade Building on Main Street in the Theatre District, but there are new plans for the space.
Then earlier this week Dinosaur Bar-B-Que announced it would close its location on Franklin Street and move to Hamburg.
Certainly, many are concerned about the health of Buffalo's downtown economy because a downtown serves as a major economic driver for so many things, from jobs to generating revenue.
I asked Acting Mayor Chris Scanlon about Dinosaur Bar-B-Que leaving downtown.
Scanlon said it's “unfortunate” it is closing, but he seems to be taking a head-on approach in dealing with these latest business losses.
“We've got to come together — the public sector, the private sector — to get people back downtown," said Scanlon. "You know there's 20 or 30,000 fewer people down here on a daily basis...We're taking the lead at the City of Buffalo. We're telling people to get into City Hall, come to work. We're not working remotely. We're going to be downtown working and supporting the surrounding business. Obviously, there's a lot of spin-offs from that and I’m going to be engaged in my private sector partners, talking to them saying listen we really like you to encourage your people to come back to work.”
Scanlon said for the overall good of the city, we must get people back into downtown office buildings, but he also believes even with these recent business losses, there are still plenty of places for food, theater, and cultural attractions in Downtown Buffalo.
