Categories for Co-produced with WGRZ

Dec 16

2012

Q&A: Howard Zemsky

Published by Jim Heaney

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

Published by Jim Heaney

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

Dec 6

2012

First $1B beneficiary awash in red ink

Published by Jim Heaney

The biotech company the state plans to spend $50 million on to lure to the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus has lost $112 million the past three years and hasn’t posted an annual profit since 2008. And that’s just the beginning of the financial difficulties confronting Albany Molecular Research, according to a probe by Investigative Post. The company has laid off at least 80 employees since 2010 and shuttered one of its foreign facilities, with plans to close a second operation near Seattle. The Albany-based company’s stock price, meanwhile, sunk from $61.66 in 2001 to $2.26 in December 2011, although the stock[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Dec 2

2012

Q&A: Matt Enstice of the downtown medical campus

Published by Jim Heaney

Matt Enstice is chief operating officer of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. He’s been involved with the project since its inception 10 years ago and has used an unassuming, innovative management style to lead the effort to transform 120 acres on the northern edge of downtown into a world class medical campus. A native of Western New York, Enstice earned an undergraduate degree in English from Hobart College and a master of business administration from Canisius College. He left Buffalo after school to work in the entertainment industry and spent five years in the 1990s working at Saturday Night Live[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Nov 25

2012

Q&A: Stephanie Simeon

Published by Jim Heaney

Stephanie Simeon is executive director of Heart of the City Neighborhoods, a non-profit housing development corporation serving Buffalo’s Lower West Side. Simeon, 31, is a native of Brooklyn who moved to Buffalo to attend the University at Buffalo, where she earned an undergraduate degree in social science and master’s degree in urban planning. She serves on the board of the Erie County Commission on the Status of Women. Last year she was selected by Business First as one of the region’s top 40 young people under 40. Investigative Post Editor Jim Heaney interviewed Simeon on Nov. 20. A 4 minute, 45[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Nov 15

2012

Lax enforcement at the Peace Bridge

Published by Jim Heaney

Five months after being asked to crack down on idling trucks, state environmental officials have visited the plaza only twice and handed out only a handful of tickets. Story is part of a three-post package.

Posted 12 years ago

Nov 15

2012

DEC idling on enforcement

Published by Dan Telvock

Diesel fumes permeate the air near the gate to the Peace Bridge Duty Free store as nearby trucks idle in traffic and parking lots. The idling trucks are a sore spot for residents of the West Side that borders the bridge and its plaza on the American side. Diesel fumes contribute to air pollution believed to be partly responsible for health problems – including asthma rates nearly four times higher than the national average – among residents on the city’s lower West Side, according to Dr. Jamson S. Lwebuga-Mukasa, a leading researcher of air quality in the neighborhood. The World Health[...]

Posted 12 years ago

Nov 6

2012

Election night analysis

Published by Jim Heaney

Investigative Post Editor Jim Heaney and WGRZ reporter Aaron Saykin will provide election night results and analysis starting at 8:30 p.m. via a live webcast on WGRZ.com. We’ll focus on local races, including the Congressional race pitting Kathy Hochul and Chris Collins, and the state Senate contest involving Mark Grisanti, Mike Amodeo and Chuck Swanick.

Posted 12 years ago