Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Buffalo Mayor Chris Scanlon has officially commenced legal action under Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law (RPAPL) Article 19-B that will see the city taking ownership of the Buffalo Grand Hotel downtown.
The property has been vacant since 2022 following a fire in late 2021. The mayor pointed out 18 code violations with the hotel, plus $89,777 in unpaid taxes and sewers fee. This despite many efforts to engage with the owner Harry Stinson, including meetings as recently as November 2024.
"Buffalo deserves a safe, vibrant downtown, and this blighted property has stood in the way of that progress for far too long," said Mayor Scanlon on Thursday outside the hotel. "We have tried again-and-again to work with the owner in good faith, but after years of broken promises and inaction, we are taking decisive steps to ensure this property can, once again, contribute to our city’s growth."
Scanlon adds the building has become a public eyesore, along with a safety concern.
"[We] will have a safe and vibrant downtown, and this property, situated right here at the Southern gateway to our city, has stood in the way of that vision for far too long," Scanlon said. "Boarded up doors, graffiti, broken glass, overgrown grass, this is not the Buffalo my administration is building."
The plan is to use Article 19-B in order to take ownership of the building. Commissioner for the Department of Permits and Inspection Services, Cathy Amdur says they have no confidence that the owner can bring this hotel back.
"Our plan is to use Article 19-B to take title of the building, and then find a responsible developer who loves our city who wants to bring these hotel rooms back online and revitalize the area," Amdur said on Thursday.
By initiating a special proceeding under Article 19-B, the city seeks to obtain clean title to the property, which will allow it to issue a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) and transfer the property to a qualified developer. Once it is open for use again, the site has the potential to restore more than 400 hotel rooms to the downtown market, and serve as a major economic engine for the city.
The first steps will be to file the certificate of abandonment, which will give the owner 30 days to respond.
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