Tag: Urban Affairs

Jan 17

2025

Judge tosses lead lawsuit against Bufffalo

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Community groups last February rally in front of City Hall for more funding for lead inspections. Photo by I’Jaz Ja’ciel A judge has dismissed a lawsuit that contended the City of Buffalo is failing to enforce a law that mandates inspection of rental units for the presence of lead paint. Partnership for the Public Good and three other community organizations filed the lawsuit last July against the city and the Department of Permits and Inspections. It claimed a failure to fully implement the rental inspections law contributed to substandard living conditions for city residents and increased risks for lead poisoning[...]

Posted 2 weeks ago

Jan 15

2025

Buffalo demolishes the ‘House from Hell’

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An excavator sits at the former site of 149 Arkansas St. following its demolition. Photo by I’Jaz Ja’ciel The troubled house at 149 Arkansas St. that plagued an West Side neighborhood for years has finally been torn down. The property, a symbol of failures on the parts of police, city court and government officials, was razed by excavators Tuesday morning, following a demolition order that then Housing Court Judge Patrick Carney issued last August. This was the third demolition order that Carney issued for the vacant house, which has been a nuisance and safety concern to neighbors since November 2022,[...]

Posted 2 weeks ago

Jan 13

2025

NAACP legal arm sues Realtor alleging racial steering

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The NAACP Legal Defense Fund filed a complaint this morning against a Western New York realty company alleging racial discrimination among prospective homebuyers in Buffalo. The complaint accuses Charles Glander, real estate broker and founder of Avant Realty, of violating the Fair Housing Act by “steering” — an illegal practice in real estate that involves directing prospective homebuyers toward or away from certain neighborhoods based on factors like race. “We are very alarmed by that, and we hope that our action — filing this complaint and bringing these allegations to light — will help Black residents of Buffalo access housing[...]

Posted 2 weeks ago

Jan 1

2025

Staying with the story

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When last we spoke in December 2023, I touted my reporting on Black homeownership rates as some of my best work of the year and promised some follow-ups to dive deeper into the issue. I’d like to think I delivered on that promise this year through some in-depth pieces I wrote on the region’s mortgage lenders. In March, I produced a two-part package exploring how banks and non-bank lenders in both Erie County and the City of Buffalo were approving mortgage loans. I scoured tens of thousands of records from Census and Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data to determine where[...]

Posted 4 weeks ago

Dec 31

2024

Dabney appointed to Buffalo Housing Court

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Buffalo Housing Court, Part 17 of Buffalo City Court. Photo by I’Jaz Ja’ciel After months of speculation, Buffalo City Court Judge Phillip Dabney Jr. has been named the city’s new Housing Court judge. Dabney, 55, was a fill-in judge for Housing Court several times this year and that experience  prepared him for being appointed to the position for the coming year, said Eighth Judicial Administrative Judge Kevin Carter. “I’ve heard that he’s been doing a really nice job. He seems to be serious about it. He also wants to do it, so that’s an important factor,” Carter told Investigative Post.[...]

Posted 1 month ago

Nov 12

2024

Low-income tenants for high-income towns

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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 3 months ago

Sep 13

2022

The tentative return to Tops

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Rose Wysocki’s family pleaded with her to transfer from the Tops Supermarket on Jefferson Avenue after she was trapped in the store during the May 14 shooting. She considered the move until she ran into a customer. “She had hugged me and was very happy to see that I was OK, and said, ‘I can’t wait for you to come back. I can’t get cleaned greens like at your store,’ and that was what helped me make my decision — to know that my community needed me and wanted me to come back,” Wysocki said. It was then she knew[...]

Posted 2 years ago
Investigative Post