One thing I find interesting is how Elmwood Changes. Some businesses close and some open. Buildings come down and new ones go up. Lately it seems that more have been closing then opening but maybe that is just me. The below article is verry good about how Elmwood is changing. I got it from the Buffalo News on line today.









Three-story building to house upscale apartments, retail space

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$1.2 million project set for Elmwood Ave.

By SHARON LINSTEDT
News Business Reporter
1/31/2006



Sharon Cantillon/Buffalo News
Workers put in the foundation Monday for a commercial/residential building at 504 Elmwood Ave.




This artist's rendering of the 500-block of Elmwood Avenue shows how the three-story residential/commercial building will fit among the adjacent structures on the block.

Work has begun on a new $1.2 million commercial/residential project in the 500-block of Buffalo's Elmwood Avenue.
Crews are digging the foundations for a new three-story building at 504 Elmwood Ave., near the intersection of Elmwood and Utica avenues.

When complete this summer, the structure will feature 2,300 square feet of retail space, plus a handicap-accessible studio apartment on the ground floor. The upper floors will house eight, upscale apartments.

The project is the brainchild of three long-time Elmwood Avenue advocates, attorney Michael Ferdman, architect Karl Frizlen, and contractor Paul Johnson, working together at FJF LLC.

Ferdman, who served many years as president of Forever Elmwood, said the idea came out of conversations between he and Frizlen about targeting a derelict building on Elmwood Avenue for transformation.

"The idea was that instead of urging someone else to upgrade their building, we'd take it on ourselves," Ferdman said.

The two then brought Johnson, who has done several Elmwood Strip projects, onto the team. After weighing a few options, they decided on 504 Elmwood Ave., formerly the long-time home of Avenue Pizza, and most recently the short-lived Bidwell Elmwood, an eBay-linked auction business.

"Our original plan was to renovate, but we came to the conclusion that no matter how much money we put into the existing building, we couldn't guarantee it would be a structure with integrity," Ferdman said.

The trio received approvals from planning, preservation and neighborhood agencies to raze the existing building - a wood frame residence with a small brick addition in the front - and start from scratch.

"If you have to tear something down, it's critical to replace it with something much better. In this case the street is getting what we think is a very attractive building that will provide significantly more tenant density that what was there," Ferdman said.

Forever Elmwood Executive Director Justin Azzerella supports that goal.

"A great mixed use project is exactly what we are encouraging on Elmwood Avenue and we think this one will be phenomenal," Azzerella said.

Even as bulldozers were excavating the site, the development team started to get inquiries from prospective retail and residential tenants.

"Our goal for the first floor is to bring in a tenant that would add something new to the community. We would prefer to have something other than a restaurant, hair salon or gift shop," Ferdman said.

The 400 to 500 blocks of Elmwood Avenue are currently experiencing a turnover in retail tenants, including the upcoming closure of Pier One Imports, at 495 Elmwood Ave., which has been one of the street's anchors for two decades.

Artcrafters Gallery, at 472 Elmwood Ave., another veteran retailer, is preparing to close its doors and is having a going-out-of-business sale. And a Subway Sandwich shop sits idle a few doors away.

The block has also welcomed BeYouTiful, a new women's apparel shop at 513 Elmwood Ave. which debuted in last December. The store, owned by Jetaun Jones, offers "contemporary chic" clothing.

The new building features two upper floors of balconied residential units. The second floor will have four one-bedroom, and two two-bedroom apartments, ranging in size from 600 to 850 square feet of space.

The third floor will have four loft-style units with as many as three bedrooms, ranging in size from 800 to 1,100 square feet. All of the dwellings will be accessed from a central stair tower at the rear of the building.

The Community Preservation Corp., a nonprofit, private mortgage firm, is providing some $900,000 in construction and long-term financing.


e-mail: slinstedt@buffnews.com

Well last night and this moring I watched the X games that I taped last night, the mens part one of the finals in snowboard super pipe where great. Then there where the finals in Moto X best trick that was awesome. Tonight it is wrestling and X games and Taping 24. I look forward to watching 24 on tape on tuesday that should be great. Really looking forward to finals of SB Super Pipe tonight and finding out what happenend at the rumble.

I bearly have any food in the house, enough to live. But I don't really want to go shopping and when I set off the alarm be accused of stealing It may be a big hassle.

On another note (e:Jessika) looks so much differant then in her user pic. I could have been standing right next to her and never known it was her(I say do the movie if you feal comfortable, I wish someone would approch me about doing one, don't know as I really would be it would but it would be a great compliement).

I am glad to be finaly over and done with the religion debate; I hope.

Looking forward to the Superbowl. Go Steelers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sometimes the pregame stuff is as good as the game. Hope there are some great commericals.

Maybe some day I will be one of the cool kids. Doubt it I'm always kinda the outsider a little.

Saw a preview for a movie that looks like it might be verry Funny callde "Date Movie". On the add it even says writen by 2 of the 6 writers from scary movie so the ad makes fun of itself.

I had some other stuff but I forgot it and this post is getting kinda boaring now.

[inlink]metalpeter,527[/inlink] Saturday is the start of Winter Xgames it should be fun. Another sports weekend for more info check out www.expn.com . I am also going to a benifit for the wife of someone I used to work with. It really isn't a bennifit anymore since she died. Not sure what you would call it now maybe it is still a benifit but not sure. There will be a bunch of people I know but a lot more that I don't. I will take pictures and have a good time, that dosn't sound right, sord of but, i think you all know what I mean.

Well Yesterday I watched sports on TV. I watched the winter X-games and got to see two four peats in snow board slopstyle mens and womens. Then I went to this Benefit for the famil of Linda Markle it was very nice and I saw a few people I knew. When I came home I watched the X Games that I taped. Moto X got delayed untill today so it will be on from 2-6 pm. So both Finals will be on today. But last nights Womens super pipe was a lot of fun to watch. Not sure what sports are on today other then more snow mobile racing what ever it is called just went blank.

Well below are a few pics from around Buffalo







one thing I didn't know is that all of the pictures didn't show up not sure why. But On an iteresting note. Yesterday I walked into tops and set of the buzzer thing by the door and did it again as I left. Then I was going to go to Target to buy some stuff walked in beeped so instead of being bothered after I buy stuff for setting it off I walked right out the out door and set it of again, verry stange maybe I have a demon following me or something else weird is going on who knows.

The link is for a website that I have seen before but don't know how often it is updated, it is about Disney Being Evil. I also belive the Keebler evels are evil also. I don't belive that any art is truely evil. I know there is a lot of art that is very controversal and starts protests. But that dosn't make it evil. Maybe if the art is in the form of a Movie and words that actully say something then you might be able to. This assumes that the process of making the art isn't evil like killing someone and then making a picture in their blood. I remember there used to be a picture on the side of an eastside building that showed whites and blacks hanging togather and it had a message that said something like: If we all don't stick togather then we all hang togather. I thought that was a great message of unity but I guess it pissed off a lot of people.