Five years ago, a local nonprofit, Centro Cultural Italiano di Buffalo, expressed interest in converting an old unoccupied library into a cultural center for the group. The ball didn’t get rolling until Signature Development got involved, according to Joel P. Feroleto, a member of the city’s Delaware District Common Council, who has been involved in this conversion for more than two years.
Feroleto credits Rocco Termini, Signature’s CEO, for gathering support for the cultural center from both political parties. The state agreed to kick in $350,000 for the renovation, which was matched in February by Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. The city also donated the land for the center to the community.
After Brown’s announcement, says Feroleto, two buildings near the library were purchased by developers. They plan to convert one of the buildings, a restaurant that had been closed for a decade, into a wine bar, and the other, a church that had been closed for three years, into eight luxury apartments.
Termini, who will oversee construction of the cultural center, and Tomasso Briatico, whose architecture firm is designing it, are working pro bono. Briatico says his design has 4,000 sf of usable space on two floors, including a downstairs kitchen for cooking classes, plus classrooms for cultural preservation education.
“Buffalo is turning a corner, and becoming more of a financial center,” says Termini. His group recently purchased an entire street, where it is developing an incubator space under Start-Up NY, a program that allows new businesses to operate tax free for 10 years. He is also converting an 80,000-sf building in which a software development company and a ceramics manufacturer have each committed to taking 30,000 sf.
Related Stories
| Aug 7, 2012
Shedding light on the arts
Renovating Pietro Belluschi’s Juilliard School opens the once-cloistered institution to its Upper West Side community.
| Aug 7, 2012
Suffolk Construction builds new Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum
Construction management firm links history with the future by building museum using state-of-the-art virtual models and BIM technologies.
| Aug 7, 2012
Essex Builders to build church in Somerville, Mass.
The project’s design documents were prepared by Boston Bay Architects and reflect the church’s mission to serve the broader community as well as worship.
| Jun 22, 2012
Golden Gate Bridge Celebrates 75 Years With the Opening of New Bridge Pavilion
With features such as Nichiha's Illumination series panels, super-insulating glass units, and LED lighting, the new Golden Gate Bridge Pavilion not only boasts the bridge's famous international orange, but green sustainability as well
| Jun 22, 2012
Revitalization Efforts Advance in Hackensack, N.J.
Work progresses on Cultural and Performing Arts Center and Atlantic Street Park
| Jun 1, 2012
New BD+C University Course on Insulated Metal Panels available
By completing this course, you earn 1.0 HSW/SD AIA Learning Units.
| May 29, 2012
Reconstruction Awards Entry Information
Download a PDF of the Entry Information at the bottom of this page.
| May 29, 2012
Thornton Tomasetti/Fore Solutions provides consulting for Phase I of Acadia Gateway Center
Project receives LEED Gold certification.
| May 24, 2012
2012 Reconstruction Awards Entry Form
Download a PDF of the Entry Form at the bottom of this page.
| May 22, 2012
Casaccio Architects and GYA Architects join to form Casaccio Yu Architects
Architects Lee A. Casaccio, AIA, LEED AP, and George Yu, AIA, share leadership of the new firm.