With politics in Albany creating a cloud over the future of UB2020, President John B. Simpson pushed forward Monday afternoon with the expansion of the Downtown Campus.
In an announcement with Rev. Michael Chapman, pastor of St. John Baptist Church and president of the Oak-Michigan Housing Development Corporation, Simpson announced the purchase of the McCarley Gardens housing complex for $15 million, which will be used for future construction for the Downtown Campus.
In addition, Chapman announced a $500 million East Side development plan, which will "be a catalyst" for economic development and improve the quality of life for residents in one of Buffalo's poorest neighborhoods.
"This will give the university the ability to do the things it needs to do without any costs to taxpayers to build UB2020, to build the downtown academic health center and to move forward in partnership with our community," Simpson said. "We have a shared vision for revitalization and we agree on how to get it done."
According to Chapman, the urban development project could be the most comprehensive plan currently underway in the country.
"We could have just made this a real estate deal," Chapman said. "But the leadership of St. John's said that the entire community should benefit from this endeavor. We want the entire community to be blessed by this."
The plan includes $60 million worth of new townhouses for displaced residents from McCarley Gardens. The new homes will be located on High Street. Also, new housing for senior citizens, residential areas for veterans, a youth center costing $20 million, a mental health facility and a business training center will be built as part of the revitalization plan.
"I think this kind of investment in this community will bode well for anybody who lives in the Ellicott District right away, said Assemblywoman Crystal Peoples, D-NY.
The purchase of the land comes from the UB Foundation, which manages gifts, grants and fundraising done by the university. But funding for the construction of the new campus will be dependent on reforms proposed in the Public Higher Education Empowerment and Innovation Act and no more cutting of the university's budget.
"We have a shared vision for revitalization and we agree on how to get it done," Simpson said. "Now, we need the state to let us do this. We need the tools to get the job done."
Simpson says that if PHEEIA reform is passed, nearly 7,000 jobs at UB and 20,000 construction jobs will be created immediately due to the project, while $2 billion will be pumped into the Western New York economy. He hopes that a tuition plan that lets UB decide how much it charges students will be better due to the quality of the university's research programs comparable to other state schools.
If everything works according to plan, Simpson said that a lively medical campus in the heart of the city could bring nearly 13,000 students, faculty and staff to the area.
"There are a lot of important things to deal with before this becomes reality and it's several years down the road," Simpson said. "But it's a perfect location and has the potential for being a genuine campus that would have a significant effect on downtown."
According to university officials, the Oak-Michigan Housing Development Corporation believes that the new High Street townhouses will begin construction by 2013, with final conditions for the sale of the property will be met by 2017.
E-mail: news@ubspectrum.com
University acquires key plot of land in medical corridor
Proper use dependent on state legislation
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