Masten Park Infill Development

Introduction:

In recent years, there have been many conversations with the residents and stakeholders of the Masten Park neighborhood on how to make sure investments in the community meet the needs of the existing residents, including a planning and engagement process completed by Urban Design Associates (UDA). As a continuation of these efforts and to ensure that we can meet the needs of community residents, the City of Buffalo’s Office of Strategic Planning and the Buffalo Urban Renewal Agency are working on an implementation phase for both the Masten Park and Cold Springs neighborhoods in collaboration with residents, stakeholders, and community partners. 

Contact Us

  1. Crystal Middleton

    Director of Planning and Zoning
    cmiddleton@buffalony.gov

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Project Background and Purpose:

Situated nearby and adjacent to both the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus and the Fruit Belt neighborhood, both Masten Park and Cold Springs are plagued with high vacancy and ripe for impactful investments that will benefit the entire community. The selection of Laurel Street included three components: 

  • Community Support
    • Ensures that we are developing in an area that the community agrees with. The community also provides a unique perspective that forces us to think about things and places that are not normally considered in a siting analysis.
  • Siting Analysis: 
    • Suitable siting ensures that new quality housing is built in an area that maximizes economic and social opportunities while increasing the quality of life for new and existing residents.
  • Opportunities: 
    • Help to ground the project and require that there be an ability to invest in a particular location by way of buildable, city-owned vacant lots.

The overlap of these three components help to answer questions that ensure that the site selected is the most suitable for infill development.

Supporting Plans

The following documents were looked at with considerable detail throughout the process of selecting the most suitable areas for infill in Masten Park and Cold Springs.

  • Housing Opportunity Strategy (2017)

     “The analysis in this document provides a factual basis and a framework for decision-making in a context where resources are dwarfed by the problems that need solving and where all public investments must be thoughtful and strategic to have a measurably meaningful impact. 

  • Masten Park/Cold Spring Revitalization Plan (2018)

    “Housing is the predominant use in the neighborhood and housing strategies need to address home ownership and rental, market-rate and affordable, senior and family, and new and existing residents.”