Buffalo Rising Online

I'm interested to see where this goes since I live near the Heights. It has sounded like a lot of the problems there lately (robberies, muggings) have been directed at students and residents, not by the students. The area has had a student presence for decades and thus was never that affluent, but until now it wasn't dangerous. I think it's up to students to be good, responsible neighbors; landlords to be responsible and active in keeping up their properties; and equally so, the rest not to treat students as outsiders without an interest in the neighborhood. Is Hoyt just going to call the state schools or is he going to talk to Canisius too? If UB is a problem, Canisius' aren't perfect either.

How about a zero tolerance towards lying and philandering politicians?

Enrique - University Heights has been quickly declining since the late 80s. I remember reading about similar initiatives at that time, and into the early 90s. The local councilman, the Mayor, the UB President, and Police Commissioner were aggressively targeting house parties, underage drinking, illegal parking, occupancy and housing violations, and other quality of life issues for University Heights residents. They forced the closure of several fraternity and sorority houses, and pushed many of the students out of the houses on streets like LaSalle, Minnesota, Lisbon, Highgate, Englewood, Tyler, Heath, etc. I recall a series of violent home invasions against college students in the early 90s, there was a college student who was raped and bludgeoned in her Lisbon apartment, and a couple of fraternity parties that were crashed by a street gang.

Unfortunately for the University Heights, students began to migrate towards the Amherst Campus, living in rentals along Sweet Home Road, Niagara Falls Boulevard, Millersport and Forest. UB began construction of on-campus housing and private companies began development of off-campus housing in Amherst just a few years later.

A lot of the vacated houses in the University Heights were rented to families who were leaving the East Side neighborhoods further down Bailey and some were not rented at all. With this migration came the departure of many long time homeowners who may not have minded living next door to students, as long as they were in line, but didn't like the poverty, violence, and drugs in their neighborhoods.

With the closing of the bars along Main Street, many students lost interest in the University Heights, the few that remain are typically careful of where they walk and ensure that their houses are kept locked all the time. Most students now live on-campus (an option that didn't exist 15 years ago) or in off-campus rentals elsewhere in the area (again, an option that wasn't open 15 years ago). The neighbors got what they wanted, the students no longer have a negative impact on the resident's quality of life.

"zero-tolerance policy for nuisance law infractions " WHat about a zero tolerance policy towards violent crimes such as rape, assault, robbery, because those are the real problems that seem to be plaguing the university district.

rydog71, I disagree with some of your comments. If the property is not properly maintained then that would be the landlord's responsibility. But underage drinking, disturbances? Uh-uh. What's a landlord supposed to do - ask on the rental application; do you drink? Are you responsible? The landlord does make the choice of who can rent, but it's difficult to judge a person's character and/or actions based on what the law dictates a property owner can inquire about a potential tenant. And eviction? Easier said than done; it can literally take months to make a bad tenant go away.

The property owner is responsible to a point, but an individual is responsible for their own actions.

smythie, not all landlords are "dirt bags" and "slumlords" as you assume. I know several property owners who rent to college students and these guys put a lot of time and energy into maintaining their properties and trying to rent to decent people. They don't charge "ridiculous amounts of rent and pocket it." Some tenants completely trash places when they move out; leave furniture, food, garbage, etc. that the landlord has to take care of to say nothing of the repairs that need to be done to the structure itself. The property owners I know are working class people playing by the rules and - believe it or not - live in the big bad city. They aren't slumlords who pocket their money and run to the suburbs as you describe.

I agree these concerns need to be addressed but don't put the blame solely on landlords; that's naive. Also, the city has a whole lot of multiple units and not all of them can be owner occupied. There's always gonna be landlords and there's always gonna be tenants . . . .

Ok, so quick (not so quick) News flash/reality check:

1. UB, and for that matter Buff State and Canisius are the glue that hold Buffalo together and from the outside looking in (believe me I've faced many of these comments when I tell people where I'm from while displaced in NYC) Buffalo is viewed as a college town. Not to say that I agree but you have to look at how important UB and our other colleges and these students are to the region and to the neighborhoods that surround them. This neighborhood is a ghost town in the summer. Also, how would the Buffalo region look like right now without having the largest public university in the state? Exactly. In order to get the benefits you have to deal with the kids from Long Island, NYC, arround upstate and those who were like me, from Buffalo taking advantage of a free beer now and again.

2. Parties will happen off campus, it's what you have to live with when in a college neighborhood in this day and age. If you go across the country most college neighborhoods are the same if not worse. The important crimes to pay attention to are the home invasions (which many of the students have been victim to), the robberies and murders that have increased in this neighborhood in the last few years that are in most cases not at all attributed to the student population except for them being victims and would be worse if the students and the university wasn't in UNIVERSITY Heights, hmmm, side note I wonder why it's named that. I addition most of the "good" or calm students have fled the Heights because of crime, so maybe we should start with reducing the real crimes in the area and encourage students to come back to the area.

3. The University of Buffalo needs to invest in ALL of their communities and not just the North and Medical campuses. For too long UB has turned a cold shoulder to Buffalo and University Heights. This neighborhood would be much safer if UB police would take 10 minutes out of their hour stop at Mobile on the Run to patrol the neighborhood and protect a large %age of their student population. If the University would, I don't know, buy a few houses on the same street and create some type of safe residential housing presence in the neighborhood or even better, build student housing on South Campus and create a large mass of students, the Main St corridor would benefit greatly. Making the neighborhood more attractive for home buyers because of increased retail services and less crime.

4. As a former Urban Planning student at UB my impression of the university heights district was it does get beat up a little bit from students and their parties (I attended my share) but that's part of the neighborhood's unique flavor. I never had the opportunity to live in the heights as I always a commuted from North Buffalo but most of my friends enjoyed their stay, and I only graduated 3 years ago....what's really sad is to see that students for the most part aren't welcome by the home owners anymore. Once there gone and all in Amherst or downtown there will be no one left to blame, property values will plummet because investors will no longer look to the areas good returns – grass cut or not and crime will have the ill effects that it has had on so many streets on the fringe of this neighborhood and homeowners will beg for these rowdy students to come back, because it's better than a crack house next door.

In summary this neighborhood has so much promise and most don’t get the point that it’s the gateway to many from outside the region to get their first residential experience of Urban Buffalo, what do most of them get in return, after their hangovers of course, “we don’t want you here” and “give me your wallet or I’ll shoot.” That’s not a good welcoming from the city of neighbors. And despite all of the good news I read while away from home (side note #2: I do want to come back, just busy following my dream right now) the reality is, I don’t know if Buffalo is in the position to turn people away, no matter how late they stay up, how much noise they make and if the drink out of red cups they leave on their lawn or not. My suggestion to the homeowners...go next door and have a couple of beers and chill out, YOU live in the UNIVERSITY district, not Pleasantville. My suggestion to UB, there is still BUFFALO in the title of the University and it doesn’t matter how many facilities you build for classes on South Campus, the neighborhood will suffer if you don’t get on your job about providing better quality living (especially off campus) opportunities!!!

downtowndweller had it completely right and its yet another failing of President Howard. This college needs a small business incubator so that these kids have a higher chance of being employed in their field of study.

Howard should also be buying up property in the surrounding neighborhood for off campus dormatories. There are plenty of colleges that have rowhouses and townhouses as part of campus housing.

Howard could also do alot to move college students from Elmwood to Grant, Amherst and Tonawanda where land is cheap, housing is cheap and the college can easily expand.

It was in the news today that the hispanic gangs are targeting the Westside for an expansion of their drug activity which if left unchecked will devastate the westside just when there was hope that economic activity would cross the Richmond barrier.

As far as the complaints about college students, its time everyone just admitted that if it wasnt for those college kids providing rent there would be no elmwood and the westside would look like the eastside...or Niagara Street or Connecticut Street.

College kids and their parties can be dealt with by passing and enforcing a noise ordinance past 9:00. No noise...no parties...no drinking.

Grant Street needs to be the college street for Buffalo State not Elmwood. Elmwood is growing into an entirely different animal geared more towards adults and should be encouraged to do so.

In my opinion, Howard should be buying property along Grant, Tonawnda and Amhrest and moving things like the Bookstore, dormatories, stadiums and non-academic services more off the core campus. Declining 10,000 applicants per year is declining a huge economic impact for Buffalo State and the surrounding westside.

Buffaloweiner - you really have it out for Dr. Howard, don't you? I've seen you bash her in other posts too. Obviously you are a disgruntled Buffalo State employee who is blaming all the world's ills on Howard. As for "Elmwood not existing if it wasn't for college kids" is very laughable.

High smythie! I agree with you whole heartedly that the mess left over from the parties are a problem, but it's not the #1 issue facing that community and it won't be the reason abandonment takes hold of the neighborhood, crime and UBs lack of investment in the heights neighborhood (not their campus) are the reasons. This neighborhood has taken a change for the worse, and I'm not just saying that from someone detached from the situation. I own property (that has been broken into in the last year) in the neighborhood and lived there for a brief stint after graduation before I left for grad school at NYU and while I don't rent to students, I chose to rent to families, I would have if they provided ample security deposits and the rent was high enough to justify the work needed to bring the place back up to code for the next group of students the year after, but the students are not the issue. The better question is why the rent and security isn’t enough and why its not used to fix the broken doors and windows, etc....crime and the flight of students from the neighborhood primarily on the east side of Main St has weakened demand for student housing in that area, which asking rents are directly correlated, therefore the investment whether it be a door, a paint job or an entire house is less worth the interest from the owner (I’m not excusing the bad ones just providing insight on future issues). An investor, will take their chances with anything if the return rewards the risk and in previous years university heights while risky provided great returns for investors, but because of students leaving the area for other safer and institutional options (Amherst, Elmwood, you name it) the demand has gone down and the interest from investors/landlords has decreased, hints the conditions you speak off with abandonment on your street and it will only continue. The irony is that the University plans on increasing enrollment to 40k students by 2020 and while enrollment has increased year over year there are most likely less students living in University Heights today than say 2 or 5 years ago and will be less going forward if these issues aren’t addressed, I see a problem with that. That's when crack houses and abandonment happen, when the demand doesn't meet supply and even though there are home owners in the area there are not enough to occupy the entire supply on market creating more opportunity for crime. And I'm sure I'll receive no arguement that once you take in account that to gain homeowners you have to compete with an over supplied market for used homes (the entire city of Buffalo), that it becomes harded to fill those homes. That's why I believe it vital that UB step in and do something about the housing supply in University Heights. Furthermore the point I was alluding to earlier with the go and get a beer was not literal, but more interaction between "neighbors" for however brief should be attempted. Accepting students into block clubs as temporary members so they feel a part of their community, speaking with the university to provide a program that allows 1 to 2 credit(s) a semester for community participation (through block clubs or Gloria J) to clean up the neighborhood on the mornings after the parties are all better solutions than telling someone they're "Fat, drunk and stupid" in whatever context presented to the receiving party. Because in most cases these rowdy students are neither fat, drunk or stupid, but individuals in undergrad with promising futures that if introduced to the Buffalo I know, might stay, start a family or business and stop the brain drain hemorrhage complained so much about or be part of the creative class Buffalo so desperately seeks.

I think it really aggervating to hear this crap about students making a neighborhood bad.. its the homes and the properties that make the neighborhood bad. Any rental situation can turn out bad regardless because they do not own the home, take certain parts of the east side or west side - or wait those are black and hispanic neighborhoods so they are going to be bad... those mostly consists of renters as well. Its all about the idea of having renters period. If you want to avoid this problem live in a neighborhood in clarence or hamburg where there are single family homes. I hear alot of home owners complain about something that was probably there (rental homes) before they moved in the neighborhood. Can you imagine if we took a neighborhood in the west/east side (keeping the same renters from there) and placed in between elmwood village (gassp!)... tell me it would be better??? Buffalo needs the college students because no one wants to even live in some the neighborhoods they rent in plus they do actually give the city's businesses income..What is really the point of this story anyway.. sam hoyt needs to get the police on the street taking care of all the criminals waiting around till we arent looking to steal something out of homes. cars and businesses... we cant even live in the nice parts safe..we all have to paranoid freaks about everything "did you lock the door.... did you lock the house.. did you get the windows closed...did you close the curtains!!

I think Sam Hoyt would be a great neighnborhood activist. Why doesn't he start acting like a good Assemblyman and focus on larger issues such as helping the City negotiate with the police union and enhance our overall public safety.

Landlords need to be held accountable but it is difficult when many are unreachable. Housing is an issue but crime should be the priority.We need a regional police force to deal with a regional problem .By deploying these officers to the areas of greatest need we can save these neidgborhoods and give ALL citizens the protection they deserve.

SnarkFest we are not talking about housing versus crime. We are talking about worrying about a student population over the thug that is going to steal your wallet.

backtobuffalo- they go together

blackrocklifer:

perhaps, but not the point. The point is that Sam Hoyt would rather waste his time on an issue like this when there are so many other more important issues out there. It's pandering at its worst - an on top of that an opportunity for him to take punches at the Mayor (not that he doesn't deserve some).

smythie to make my response as brief as possible (I'm long-winded). My father takes great care of my property as he does his own, including the grass, but I am young and it's my first house and I don't have endless resources so its not perfect. I know where the quote is from...the point was that they wouldn't get it, joke or no joke. And the whole idea that an owner or a student is the real problem is the problem. SPRAWL combined with POPULATION LOSS is the problem. This results in the abandonment you see throughout the city of Buffalo and that is now approaching the inner ring suburbs. As far as debating urban planning and real estate I have no problem doing so, as I am well versed in both, but you're right let us save time.

Generally, policies and incentives that provide(d) the option to live and continue to push the spread of suburban neighborhoods in the region while the regional population is declining is the real problem. Its not entirely absentee landlords. A real estate economics class will point out all of these factors that go back to the supply and demand balance. Less people, more responsibility = more burden/resident and more abandonment. I'm not saying that UB and it's students are the answer and everyone should suck up to them or that some bad landlords aren't a large part of the problem. What I am saying is that nit picking about insignificant issues without providing quality answers to the larger problem only satisfies yourself at the end of the day. And those students are one of the best resources we have, at least when there sober. Half of Buffalo is vacant not because of landlords and investors half of Buffalo is vacant because there was housing stock for 600k people in 1960 and now there are only 285k or less people in the same 40+ square miles of city, that equals abandoned houses and vacant lots while people still build further into suburbs creating more supply. It's an ugly cycle and it should be looked at as a regional issue as opposed to individual municipalities. Blaming landlords is as useless as blaming me, the Buffalonian who left to pursue education and employment after exhausting every option to do the same at home. The blame lies with failed policy and the stubborn individualism of the municipalities in a home rule state. But back to the neighborhood, don't knock the idea until you try it, most students would clean up their mess and take an easy 2 credit A to help boost their GPA.

there goes buffalo rising again, off posting sam hoyt press releases...

when will you guys realize he's using you and any other outlets willing to print anything? 9 out of 10 times there is zero follow up, no action, and zlinch for buffalo, but plenty of thinking that hoyt is doing something. you acutally think those folks give two sh*ts about what he says?

oh but he's progressive!.....get a life.

Maybe Sam is going after the rowdie college students because he didnt get invited to the party with his teenage staffers that he is accused of commiting adultery. LOL.

Im not judging...Im joking sarcastically though no boss should be hitting on their subordinates....thats just kinda stupid.

yes, ed is correct with Buffalo having old housing stock and losing half its population that is a recipe for the housing crisis we have multiplied by suburban sprawl which is now devastating 1st ring suburbs which really makes me think Kenmore and Lackawanna should merge with Buffalo.

There are alot of areas of Postwar housing in the 40s and 50s with no garages which are going to be as worthless as some of our older urban houses.

As I have said many times, there is old Buffalo and new Buffalo.

Old Buffalo is pretty much between Niagara and say Main (possibly Michigan) and the intact sections of south Buffalo.

New Buffalo radiates out between the I-190 to Main (possibly Michigan).

The cobblestone and the wharf and downtown are going to be hybrids.

If the city plays its cards right, then it follow this recipe....so that it actualy has a historic district....and it has an area where it encourages infill and new development.

The housing around Grant, Tonawanda and Amherst...I just look at that area and say this is all going to eventually be Buffalo State Campus. If the housing goes down it just makes it cheaper for Buffalo State to expand...unfortunately...Buffalo State wont expand as long as it has a do nothing minority/gender appointment that doesnt have to accomplish anything to keep her job

SNARKFEST..you are right..Councilman Franczyk authored and pushed this law thru on the pretence that the funds would hire many more building inspectors for code enforcement..it has NOT! These funds collected go into the general fund and the bldg insp dept is still slow,understaffed, and in the dark ages..not thru any fault of the inspectors. Their districts are overwhelmed with problem properties, they're overworked, and Housing court followups take months. Hell, Franczyk, the author of this Landlord Licensing law has represented one of the worst devestated districts for years, what has he done to stem the tide of the housing problems..other than to generate a misdirected law that has no effect on it's original intent. Hiring many more bldg inspectors to enforce violations and bring these absentee landlords to housing court to answer for their actions. I have a building that has problem properties onboth sides, one is owned by an England investor, with a mgmt co. that could care less other than collect the rent. T here has been 55 police calls there since May 07.....YET nothing has been done, on the other side of me the house owned by a Williamsville owner, was so bad that the health dept made the lower occupant vacate. Both houses have numerous code violations, the bldg insp was out there in June to write up the owners, but he is so overwhelmed that he has not been able to write up and forward the case to Housing court. I f funds from this legislation had been used for it's intended purpose, there would have been more bldg insp on the street, the time lag would been minimal from citation to court, as it stands now, time is the enemy along with the system that is UNDERSTAFFED AND UNDERFUNDED. Being the Housing problem as big as it is here in Buffalo, you would think that enforcement would be the key to having to woory about future funding for DEMOLITION. MANY TIMES I wonder where these city politicians' heads are!! the

Until the police are required to reside in the city that pays them (very well) most will not really feel a sense of ownership and they will continue to be seen as an occupying force rather than a helpful neighbor.