BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Officials and dignitaries cut the ribbon and officially kicked-off the Easter season for the Broadway Market in Buffalo.
Easter is the busiest time of the year for the market with an estimated 300,000 people expected to do some shopping for ethnic foods over the next three weeks.
Besides the excitement of the Easter season, there is also renewed hope for the market's future as Buffalo and New York State are making big investments.
Wi-Fi is now installed in the market and Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown turned on the lights for a new commercial kitchen, which will serve as an incubator space for food entrepreneurs.
The Broadway Market will also see a new police substation open in the next few weeks.
In addition, NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo and NYS Assembly Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes have secured $4.5 million to improve the market.
Conversations are still ongoing about the best way to use the money, but Mayor Brown said an exterior makeover and improvements to parking are some of the ideas being looked at.
The goal is to keep people coming all year long.
Will it work?
7 Eyewitness News Reporter Ed Reilly takes a closer look at what people think the market still needs to become a thriving year-round establishment.
Those ideas range from more in-market music, increased number of permanent vendors, more marketing/advertising, and opening the Broadway Market on Sundays.
