Buffalo has seen an infusion of $1 billion in state aid over the past five years. Most of it was designated to go toward the development of a solar plant on the Buffalo River.
Off of Main Street downtown, “Just Fries”, a restaurant, opened up this past summer. General Manager Autumn Reinard says business is booming, especially during warmer months.
“We’re not directly seeing the money from the state, but we’re seeing the people because of what the state is doing, which is definitely bringing business,” Reinard said.
Governor Cuomo wants to keep the pedal down, by proposing an additional half billion dollars for Buffalo. Part of it would be spent revitalizing Main Street, which the folks at “Just Fries” are ready for.
This is all happening more than an hour from Rochester, even though your tax dollars are paying for it. So, we asked the governor why Buffalo deserves so much money.
“Buffalo has had the highest need in the state,” he told us. “Highest poverty, by their size, by their level of loss of jobs.”
“It depends on how you measure things,” Ken Girardin said in response. He is an analyst with the Empire Center for Public Policy. “All of upstate has been struggling.”
“The Buffalo economy between 2009 and 2011 was growing at twice the rate, nearly, as Rochester’s. So, it’s difficult to say that Buffalo had a unique need.”
According to information provided by Girardin, Buffalo’s GDP, an indicator of economic strength, surpassed Rochester’s in 2011, one year before the Buffalo Billion was introduced.
“By the way,” Governor Cuomo continued, “Rochester also got a billion dollars. Rochester also got more than a billion dollars.”
Some of that money is going to the airport, 390, and the photonics initiative. But, the Finger Lakes region did have to compete against other areas of the state for 500 million of those dollars.
© 2017 WHEC
