BUFFALO, N.Y. — It’s back to the drawing board for the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation (ECHDC) in its effort to rejuvenate a hulking old structure on Buffalo’s waterfront.
The agency put out requests for proposals to developers back in December, hoping to find one interested in taking on Terminal A, a long vacant building on the outer harbor.
However, when the deadline came two weeks ago to submit plans, none were submitted.
"We were a little surprised," ECHDC President Steven Ranalli said. "Obviously when we put this out on the street, the expectation is we’re going to see responses."
According to Ranalli, more than a dozen potential developers took a tour of the site after the request for proposals went out.
"We had about 15 people show up for the site walk representing developers from New York City, Toronto ... Miami … Pittsburgh so, yes, we saw great interest at that time."
Disappointed but undaunted, Ranalli said the next step will be to reach out to those who expressed initial interest.
"We want to start by asking them why were they not interested, what was it that held them back, and then the next step will be to see if there is something the state could do to incentivize future development," Ranalli said.
The building does present some challenges.
It is big, with a half million square feet of space. It needs a lot of structural work both inside and out, and environmental remediation.
It also has landmark status, so that if a developer thought it would be best to purchase the property, tear it down, and build something new, that wouldn’t be in the cards either.
At least for now.
"It's a project that still has so much upside for us," Rinalli insisted. "For all the negatives that get listed on the project, it’s still a significant parcel on Buffalo’s waterfront. We think we will ultimately see a fantastic development coming out here. We just need to find the right timing, the right developer, and the right mix to get us there."