BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — On Thursday morning, Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown announced part of Genesee Street in front of the historic Statler City will be renamed Croce Way in honor of late Buffalo developer Mark Croce.
The announcement was made during a news conference in which city officials detailed the purchase of Statler City by Douglas Jemal, of Douglas Development.
Jemal, who also owns Buffalo's tallest building, Seneca One, purchased Statler City from the Croce family.
Mark Croce died in a helicopter crash in January of this year. He had acquired the landmark Statler building in 2011. At the time, it was crumbling. Croce began redeveloping the building into a hotel and event space with the help of $5 million in New York State grants. At the time of his passing, three floors had been renovated. 16 floors have not yet been renovated. In 2018, Croce told 7 Eyewitness News Anchor Ed Drantch that it would cost $125 million to renovate the entire building.
