U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced that the Senate Appropriations Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee has approved the FY11 Appropriations Bill which includes $3,000,000 for the City of Buffalo-Buffalo Development Corporation. The funding will be used to develop a mixed-use commercial building that will include more than 11 floors of parking and 4 floors of premium office space . Schumer and Gillibrand worked closely with members of the Appropriations Committee to include funding for the project in this year’s spending bill.
“This project is about creating jobs in the short term and laying the groundwork for economic opportunity in the long term,” Schumer said. “I’ll fight to keep this funding throughout the appropriations process so we can keep property taxes from rising and build a base for economic growth that will last into the future.”
“This is a great investment for Buffalo,” Senator Gillibrand said. “This federal investment will help support businesses and workers, keep the local economy growing, and help hold the line on property taxes. Right now, in the face of an extremely difficult economy, we need to come together and make smart investments in job creation and economic growth.”
Funding of the Statler Intermodal Facility will support current and future development in Buffalo’s downtown governmental district bringing parking to the Statler Building, the new Federal Courthouse, and the existing Dillion Federal Courthouse. The project will generate 250 construction jobs laying the groundwork for future economic growth and job creation through improved infrastructure. The development will also be extremely energy efficient, outfitting new buildings with the latest in clean energy technologies to reduce costs for taxpayers and government. Also, the upgrades will work to keep property taxes low by increasing revenue.
Now that the bill has been approved by the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee, it will be sent to the full Senate Appropriations Committee. Following approval by the Full Committee and the Senate, the bill will move towards Conference with the House and then to the President for signature.