Odds and More Odds: Mayors and cities

Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown [right] has it easy. He tells his police department to start telling the media -- and thus the public -- where crimes are being committed, just as we said he should. For awhile at least, the police will do the right thing and the media will back off.

Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick [left] spent Thursday night in jail, and on the front of newspapers and Web sites worldwide, ordered there for violating a don't-leave-town order issued by the judge in his perjury case. He's also facing an assault charge. The media will not back off.

Also, back on yesterday's subject of downtown areas being reborn:

* Today's Cleveland Plain Dealer reports: A riverfront site at Tower City is the proposed location for Cleveland's new convention center and medical mart -- the project billed as the region's best shot at economic revival. The estimated $536 million cost is already $26 million over budget, and groundbreaking is a long way off. But in return for the public investment, backers say the development would create thousands of jobs and entrench the region as a top health-care hub.
* From the Virginian-Pilot in Virginia Beach: Two Oceanfront landholders are shopping around a half-billion-dollar concept to create a mixed-use village, complete with a light-rail station, on what is now the Colony Mobile Home Park. The developers call their idea Ocean Center and note it could be the resort area's equivalent to Town Center, the designed downtown that city officials hail as their jewel of redevelopment.
* Back here in Buffalo, this morning's Buffalo News has this: Buffalo Niagara Partnership President Andrew J. Rudnick [right] has a message for the folks at Forbes magazine who ranked Buffalo among America’s Top 10 “Fastest Dying Cities.” “I strongly beg to differ,” Rudnick said.

Rudnick made a list of things Buffalo has going for it: advanced manufacturing, agri-business and food processing, back office operations and financial services, along with life sciences and logistics.
What wasn't on that list is something positive that Buffalo has in common with Cleveland and Virginia Beach -- waterfront property.

--George Pyle/Editorial Writer

Comments

[Rust Belt Catholic]

Another major force in this city is the higher education market; between UB, Canisius, and Buffalo State, there's thousands of employees. And that's not counting the smaller schools (Trocaire, Hilbert, Daemen, Medaille, etc.) or Erie Community.

[zach]

www.botheredinbuffalo.blogspot.com
check it

[Texas Kid]

This guy Rudnick with the dorky looking bow tie is your local economic growth guru!! LMAO. No wonder business and large corporations won't move to Buffalo. They must think everybody in Buffalo dresses like that. What a poster child for a city with the 3rd largest vacant housing problem, 2nd highest poorest city ranking, and now top 10 in dying cities. Haven't you people in Buffalo ever heard of 3 strikes and you're out!! That suit looks like something Jed Clampett would think is stylish. If that's the best you got, no wonder you're in the sorry state of affairs you're in. You reap what you sow!!!

[BobbyCat]

If Buffalo were a football team what would it's 20 year record be? By any measure, (especially population loss) pretty dismal, right? So then, why do we maintain the same coaching staff? Why, for example, is the same person running the Chamber of Commerce? (I use that term because most people don't know from 'the Partnership'.)

This isn't about personalities, it's about progress, about success and failure. Why has there been no change in leadership?

[Reposted from Good News/Bad News/aug 8th]:

[WNYMind]

RIP Buffalo.