Articles for I'Jaz Ja'ciel

Dec 11

2024

Council: Not so fast on forgiving Braymiller loan

Braymiller Market. Photo by Garrett Looker The City of Buffalo could call in the $561,000 it loaned to Braymiller Market and reallocate the money for a different use, according to city officials and an Investigative Post review of records. Some lawmakers want to know why the acting mayor, facing a financial crisis that threatens to starve city departments and initiatives of funding, seems reluctant to do that. “I want to know why we wouldn’t require somebody who didn’t honor their commitment, who took money from the city, to at least pay it back,” Common Council Majority Leader Leah Halton-Pope[...]

Posted 3 months ago

Dec 10

2024

Buffalo schools replacing lead poisoning risks

Buffalo’s challenge to address lead poisoning of children includes cleaning up contaminated water sources in city schools. Lead in school water isn’t a result of lead pipes leading from streets or in the buildings, but plumbing fixtures, school officials said. Testing conducted in 2022 and 2023 revealed 237 fixtures, including water fountains, with lead levels above current state limits, Investigative Post found. Lead-contaminated water fountains and cafeteria fixtures — 34 fountains and 19 kitchen/cafeteria faucets and kettles, according to an Investigative Post count — have been replaced districtwide over the past few years, school officials said. “Fixtures that are used[...]

Posted 3 months ago

Dec 5

2024

Report: Jail death “may have been preventable”

Story updated Dec. 8. Sean Riordan’s death might have been prevented if he was given proper medical care while an inmate at the Erie County Holding Center in 2022, a state oversight commission has concluded. Instead, the holding center staff failed to transfer Riordan to a hospital for alcohol withdrawal treatment, and failed to provide adequate care while he was in the jail, the state Commission of Correction concluded in a newly released report. There were “serious deficiencies” in Riordan’s medical care during his incarceration that might have contributed to his death, according to the report. “Had established medical policy[...]

Posted 3 months ago

Nov 20

2024

Lawsuit alleges housing discrimination against families

The Elliot on Linwood Avenue, owned by Buffalo Management Group. Photo by I’Jaz Ja’ciel Fair housing advocates are suing a large apartment manager on claims they’re refusing to rent to families with children — a violation of state and federal laws. In its lawsuit, Housing Opportunities Made Equal said it sent prospective renters with children to inquire about living in apartment buildings near the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus — The Mayflower at 66 Summer St. and The Elliott at 171-175 Linwood Ave. — owned by Buffalo Management Group. The lawsuit, filed Nov. 14, contends the company ignored phone calls, screened[...]

Posted 3 months ago

Nov 12

2024

Low-income tenants for high-income towns

Section 8 rent allowances to vary by neighborhood. Photo by I’Jaz Ja’ciel With rents increasing throughout Erie County, a trio of Buffalo-based housing agencies hope to see more low-income rentals in some of the region’s most affluent communities. These housing agencies, which administer federally funded rental vouchers, say they are looking for more private-sector landlords in East Amherst, Clarence Center, Orchard Park and similar communities to participate in the government’s Section 8 subsidized rent program. Attempts to increase Section 8 housing in suburban and other higher-income areas have occurred in the past, according to representatives of the housing agencies —[...]

Posted 4 months ago

Oct 30

2024

Buffalo readying hostel’s former home for sale

Hostel Buffalo-Niagara in downtown Buffalo’s Theater District. Photo by Garrett Looker. Members of the Hostel Buffalo-Niagara board are working to reclaim the lodge’s former home at 667 Main St. – though they may have some competition. The Buffalo Urban Renewal Agency last week said its real estate team has been showing the property – located in the heart of the Theatre District – to several potential buyers. BURA officials didn’t name any interested parties beyond the hostel, which is partnering with developer Sam Savarino to create a construction plan for the property. The hostel’s board hopes that Savarino can acquire[...]

Posted 4 months ago

Oct 24

2024

Buffalo asks judge to dismiss lead inspection lawsuit

Attorneys Matthew Parham, far left, with John Lipsitz, representing groups suing Buffalo, and Assistant Corporation Counsel David Lee, right, representing the city, appear before State Supreme Court Judge Michael Siragusa. Photo by I’Jaz Ja’ciel. The City of Buffalo is asking a judge to toss out a lawsuit accusing the city of failing to enforce a rental inspection law aimed at reducing lead paint in its aging housing stock. Here’s why the case has no merit, according to the city: Buffalo is enforcing its inspections law, known as the Proactive Rental Inspections Program or PRI — just not as quickly as[...]

Posted 4 months ago

Oct 16

2024

KeyBank approving more mortgages for Black borrowers

Story was updated Oct. 18 to reflect the current relationship between KeyBank and the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. After years of criticism over its lending record to Black homebuyers, KeyBank is reporting a sharp increase in the number of mortgages granted to African-American applicants in the Erie-Niagara region. The latest data obtained through the federal Home Mortgage Disclosure Act shows that in 2023 KeyBank made 48 loans in the two counties, compared to 12 the year before. “All the progress that we have made over time is the result of just being able to listen to the community,” said Chiwuike[...]

Posted 4 months ago