Buffalo Spree Magazine

Elmwood of the future:
today's successes, tomorrow's trouble spots

By Jana Eisenberg; photos by Jim Bush

All of the participants in this roundtable live and work in the Elmwood Village, and most of their professional activities and affiliations tend to be centered in the neighborhood. As a result, each of them seems ideally qualified to offer opinions about what’s going on in the Elmwood area right now, and what the future may hold.

Newell Nussbaumer,
publisher of Buffalo Rising.

Jessie Fisher is an urban planner and the president of Forever Elmwood. Paul Johnson owns Johnson and Sons Contractors and is the vice president of Forever Elmwood. Newell Nussbaumer, a former business owner on the street, is the publisher of the combination print magazine and website Buffalo Rising. Karen Powell owns and operates the Elmwood Village Inn: Honu House, on the corner of Elmwood and St. James Place.

What do you love about the Elmwood area?

Jessie Fisher: The Elmwood district is one of the most urban and diverse places in Western New York. I love that I can stick my five-month-old daughter in her stroller and walk to get almost anything.

Karen Powell,
Honu House.

The buildings—and thus the businesses—tend to be smaller and locally owned. That gives character and economic strength. When large stores dominate a neighborhood or district, it is devastating if one closes. But here, if a store closes, the essential community stays strong.

Paul Johnson: I have always lived within the Village—my roots don’t seem to be “up-rootable.” I love the area’s park system, vibrant business district, private school choices, art galleries, and amenities.
Newell Nussbaumer: Forever Elmwood has done wonders for the community. Unlike more established business associations, they are open to young businesspeople getting involved. [Current executive director] Justin Azzarella is a good example of what the district needs: he is young, creative, and open-minded. He listens to every business owner, each of whom has different idea of what he or she can contribute and what would be good for the street.

Jessie Fisher,
president of the Forever Elmwood
board of directors.

Karen Powell: In this village, you have what is necessary to sustain life. Like Al Gore says in his new film, we don’t need cars to get what we need. The week that my husband Ed Powell died, we had just bought a house on Lafayette Avenue. In my journey since then, I knew that I wanted to be in the Elmwood area. This is one of the friendliest communities in Buffalo, and one of the only ones with different races and classes.I also like all the new businesses, where people can pursue their dreams. Again, this is one of the few areas where there is a true diversity and networking.

What would you like to see ideally for Elmwood moving forward?

Paul Johnson,
Johnson & Sons.

JF: I would like to see its strengths continue to the extent possible: keeping things small, localized, and compact, oriented toward pedestrian vs. car. New development will happen, but it should respect the character of the community. If everybody tore down the building next door to make parking lots, the neighborhood would not be as successful. One of the things that makes Elmwood work is the way it is now. So we need to add compactness and more people, not “de-densify” by giving up available land to parking.

PJ: I do see the continued increase in property values, and development of areas that are considered quasi-problematic or undervalued. A few other developers and I are actively pursuing more in-fill development, to maximize parcels as far as their density. A positive result of the vibrant real estate market is a higher demand for condominium properties.I would like to see cohesive involvement from business owners to attract more financially viable businesses: not necessarily chains, but stronger local businesses like a Stereo Advantage or a Laux Sporting Goods.

NN: Cooperatives between businesses offer a positive “outdoor mall” effect. Places like Spot Coffee/New World Records and Caffe Aroma/Talking Leaves are becoming crucial destination areas, center-stones where people gather and [then] spread out.Festivals are also essential. They literally open people’s eyes to the area, not just residents but businesses as well.There is a new generation of stores on Elmwood, established by young people who never thought they’d be able to open, for example, a high-end fashion store here. I see cooperatives and super-progressive stores creating different and positive experiences on the street.

KP: We should go more in the direction of making lists of what we don’t have, so that we don’t duplicate what we do. I would like more free arts—the Albright-Knox is striving for diversity. I also think that we must work more to consciously pursue a continuing dialogue—keeping antennae up for problems that might be coming.

What fears or worries do you have for the area?

JF: I worry about the library and schools. The county has plans to close the Crane library on Elmwood and Highland, and make a bigger one, further away. But I’d rather have this one in walking distance, even with its cut-back collection, its lack of parking, and no air conditioning. It would be terrible to lose this library. It’s very empowering for those with no cars, such as children and elderly, to be able to get to these public amenities. They make this neighborhood work for all kinds of people, and [that] makes families want to move here.

PJ: I’m disappointed that the city seems unwilling to adopt design guidelines that we have been advocating, so that we don’t keep running into Rite Aid/Pano’s type of controversies.When the city does its planned reconstruction of Elmwood north of Forest, near the art gallery, I hope that, rather than just simply repaving the road, it will consider additional enhancing to create more of a gateway to the Elmwood Village. Along the same lines, one of my fears is that, because our district seems to be doing well, the city will forget about us and neglect us [when it comes to] money for capital improvements.

NN: One of the biggest problems is skyrocketing rents. Some landlords are ahead of their time in terms of asking prices. As a businessperson, I understand holding out for a longer lease and a higher rent. But from the retailer’s angle, the street suffers from having vacant spaces. Maybe some of these landlords could go for incremental increases rather than gouging right now.Obviously the chain question comes up over and over. As Elmwood grows, it will be interesting to see if we attract them. I would love to see a Crate and Barrel. Starbucks did not have an adverse affect. I was sad to lose Pier One. We almost landed the Gap about six years ago. But now, instead of having a Gap or Banana Republic, Lou Schreiber—who is from Buffalo and has been in fashion retail for a long time—is opening up a new store. He said, “They are not coming, so I’ll do it myself.”

KP: I am concerned about the new hotel, not as competition for my business, but about what neighbors on the block feel about it. There is a great attitude among businesses here; of course we are competitive, but we acknowledge that we all want to make it: there is a sense of support—if one of us makes it, it’s more likely that the rest will.If I have any other qualms, they are about “gentrification.” People in this area really need to continue to realize that we can include everybody. If some people aren’t comfortable with street people, they can still do their own thing. But if you want to be involved and open, you can still sit out on your front porch and visit with street people. Within the few blocks where I am, we get to know one another. If we see a new person, even a street person, we will watch for a while, see if they have an energy that fits.I love watching children here. I have many friends who are out in the suburbs because of fear. But I see children here with a sense of themselves in their world, and I think that is the most important thing.

Jana Eisenberg is a freelance contributor to Spree and the Buffalo News. She happily lives, works, and plays in Elmwood Village.

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