BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Statler Hotel in downtown Buffalo has a new owner.
The City of Buffalo held a press conference Thursday morning announcing that developer Douglas Jemal has purchased the Statler Hotel in downtown Buffalo from the Croce family.
Mark Croce owned the Statler and was killed earlier this year in a helicopter crash.
Thursday, Croce’s widow, Jessica, spoke at the press conference saying the banquet business will still be there and that her late husband knew he would not be able to take on the entire Statler project himself.
"We positioned the Statler to knowing that we always were a caretaker, and it's funny that Doug used that word, because I know it's on the record somewhere of Mark actually saying that as well. So Mark was the caretaker of the Statler and he knew that he couldn't take that on by himself," says Croce.
"Jessica handed me just now the original Hotel Statler key that Mark gave to her and Jessica gave to me," said Jemal.
Jemal, the same developer who bought the Seneca One tower, is the new owner of the Statler Hotel. And like Seneca One, Jemal plans to transform the Statler into a mixed-use space.
"The preservation on the outside is going to begin very, very quickly. We're one day old. We're a few hours old at the present time, but I can assure you we're not going to leave it in that state. Nor was Mark Croce going to leave in that state. He did begin preserving the exterior of the building," said Jemal.
Jessica Croce also reassured people that the sale won't impact the many weddings and events booked in the Statler's banquet space.
"We have a ton of weddings. We have a lot of bar mitzvahs. We have a lot of holiday, corporations', parties. They're coming up, and our team has been doing a fantastic job rearranging them and answering so many bride's questions, and whatnot, but as Doug and I have stated already, this is a partnership. Statler City Foods, it's still going to be in the building as he's doing some exterior work, as it would have done when Mark would have done it. So, that will still be a thriving business," says Croce.
"It's a big building, and it's going to have mixed-use. It's not going to be one thing. It's not going to be strictly hotel, nor is it going to be strictly, it's multiple purpose," explained Jemal.
Thursday, we found out that could mean being integrated with the convention center and adding gaming.
"I think that the Statler could serve as a masterpiece for this convention center, and they should be connected. I think that it's something that we could do, fast and furious, rather than a billion-dollar project or $500 million project, in these economic times, we're never going to have the money to do it. So, in reality, I think it's an intricate part of the convention center. I think the Statler also absolutely, absolutely would be a convention center type of a hotel. I also see, have a vision, possibly of having gaming in the Statler, as well. So, that becomes a beacon for downtown in this circle," said Jemal.
To honor Mark Croce, part of Genesee was renamed Croce Way on Thursday as previously announced.
A sale price was not disclosed, but Croce said it would be made public soon.