The Buffalo News | The Editorial Board: Consultant’s plan for DL&W Terminal is worth pursuing even with its higher cost

Published October 18th, 2021 | Long before the coronavirus pandemic upended much of upstate New York’s economy, the plan to transform the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Terminal into a Metro Rail station and commercial center was slowed by a lack of funding.

Work on the $52 million Metro Rail station on the first floor is underway, but it remains to be seen if developer Samuel J. Savarino can realize his plan to make the second floor into a viable public and commercial space. In Sunday’s Buffalo News, he presented a vision that begins that task in a hopeful way.

A consulting firm’s report, commissioned by Savarino Cos., argues for “an inclusive place where the arts, food and music bring people together in a unique multi-use gathering place for the region.”

The report, prepared by the Project for Public Spaces, projects a price tag of $20 million to $30 million, doubling or tripling Savarino’s original estimate for the project. It’s a big investment, but one that Washington may be able to help fund. Savarino and the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority, which owns the building, need to show that the return on such a large public investment would justify the cost.

Rep. Brian Higgins told The News that he believes federal infrastructure money and historic tax credits would make enough money available to fund much of the project. Higgins and State Sen. Tim Kennedy, a fellow Buffalo Democrat and advocate for the project, will need to convince other lawmakers that the millions they are asking for will be well spent.