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Jim Heaney

Jim Heaney is editor and executive director of Investigative Post. He was an investigative reporter with The Buffalo News from 1986 to 2011 and a reporter and editor with The Orlando Sentinel from 1980-86. His coverage over the years has focused on economic development, local and state government, politics, education, housing and transportation, and he was an early practitioner of computer-assisted reporting. Heaney has won more than 20 journalism awards and was a finalist for the 1993 Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting.

Jan 20

2013

Interview: Preservationist Tim Tielman

Few people in Buffalo elicit a stronger response than Tim Tielman. To some, he is a champion of preserving the city’s urban fabric. Others consider him an obstructionist. Tielman, 53, is executive director of the Campaign for Greater Buffalo History, Architecture & Culture and principal of The Neighborhood Workshop, an urban design consulting firm best know for its design of Larkinville, aka Larkin Square. He is also a member of the Buffalo Preservation Board.  Tielman has been involved in every preservation issue in the city for the past 25 years, usually as an advocate and sometimes as a plaintiff. His causes have included  the Richardson[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Dec 21

2012

The Bills lease by the numbers

Some perspective on the Bills lease signed Friday. In terms of sheer public dollars, state and local government are getting off relatively cheap, although you’ve got to keep in mind that the improvements are intended as a 10-year stop gap at the aging Ralph Wilson Stadium. New York State and Erie County are on the hook for $95 million. Compare that with Kansas City, where taxpayers spent $250 million to renovate Arrowhead Stadium. Or the $160 million spent by taxpayers to renovate Lambeau Field, home of the Green Bay Packers. Or the $548 million Minnesota taxpayers will pay for a[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Dec 20

2012

Job claims inflated for Billion To Buffalo project

Governor Andrew Cuomo summoned hundreds of muckety-mucks to the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center two weeks ago to make the kind of announcement that politicians live for: government aid to bring jobs to an economically struggling region. In this instance, Cuomo told the assembled that the first $50 million of his $1 billion in promised state economic development funds had leveraged a commitment from Albany Molecular Research Inc. to bring 250 jobs and up to $250 million in private investment to the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. Reads the headline on the governor’s press release: “Governor and (Western New York Regional Economic[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Dec 17

2012

The HSBC plea bargain

Rolling Stone reporter Matt Taibbi, founder of the Buffalo Beast, talks about the federal government’s deal with the banking giant that allows executives to avoid prosecution for laundering billions for terrorists and drug cartels. A report from Democracy Now!

Posted 12 years ago

Dec 16

2012

Q&A: Howard Zemsky

Howard Zemsky is one of the most influential people in Western New York. And certainly one of its busiest. He’s perhaps best known for his revitalization of the Larkin Building and the surrounding area into one of the hottest – and coolest –  commercial, residential and retail districts in the region. It’s only one of several of his business ventures, including Taurus Capital Partners. Zemsky, 53, has emerged as a key community leader and political player in recent years. Most significantly, he is co-chairman of the Western New York Regional Economic Development Council, which is guiding Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s initiative to spend $1[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Dec 12

2012

Zemsky defends use of state economic aid

The co-chairman of the WNY Regional Economic Development Council said that while Albany Molecular Research is losing money, it remains a sound company worthy of state support. Highlights of Jim Heaney’s interview with Zemsky will air Saturday on WGRZ’s Daybreak; the full interview and transcript will be posted on this website over the weekend.

Posted 12 years ago
Investigative Post