Buffalo, NY (WBEN) The city of Buffalo is out of the parking garage business Monday afternoon the city and the Buffalo Authority sold the BCARoperated parking garages: Turner, Fernbach, Adams and Augspurger. The parking garages sold for a bond price of $58,150,000, plus a $4,250,228 premium, generating approximately $60.9 million in proceeds for the City of Buffalo.
The City will receive $30 million immediately, with the remaining proceeds distributed over Fiscal Years 2026-27 and 2027-28. Completing this transaction before the close of the City's 2025-26 fiscal year was a critical component of the City's financial plan. The sale was finalized before the fiscal year concluded, allowing the City to recognize the proceeds as planned. The final sale price also substantially exceeded the original estimate of approximately $40 million.
"Ultimately, our goal is to put the City of Buffalo on sound financial footing using every tool available to us," Deputy Mayor Ben Swanekamp said. "Together with the 2026-2027 budget we recently adopted and our successful efforts to secure additional direct state aid, this transaction puts the City in a much stronger financial position. While this was a difficult decision, it was a necessary step toward moving Buffalo beyond more than a decade of fiscal instability and onto a path of long-term financial sustainability."
Swanekamp says throughout the process, the City and the Buffalo Parking Authority worked collaboratively to address concerns raised by the BCAR Board and ensure the authority is well-positioned to successfully own, operate and maintain the parking garages.
The Buffalo Parking Authority was established by state law in 2025 to oversee the City's municipal parking system by former Acting Mayor Christopher Scanlon. The Buffalo Parking Authority retained Masterson Advisors as municipal advisor, Ramirez & Co. as lead underwriter, and Barclay Damon LLP as bond counsel. The transaction required extensive coordination among numerous public and private partners. Moving forward, the Buffalo Parking Authority intends to reinvest excess revenues into its parking system to modernize the ramps, improve the customer experience, and support continued investment in downtown Buffalo.
City will receive $60 million dollars
City will receive $60 million dollars
