STAFF REPORTS
news@allwnynews.com
BUFFALO — Congressman Brian Higgins released a statement this afternoon following the 10-4 vote in favor of placing Buffalo’s new train station at Canalside rather than Central Terminal.
Higgins was one of the four dissenting votes.
“This process needed a little more imagination, a little more vision, and a lot more guts. We’ve lost a generational opportunity to restore the Central Terminal and extend Buffalo’s renaissance into its neighborhoods.
“We should be capitalizing on our unique architecture and investing in our historic but forgotten neighborhoods. Instead this is a decision to invest millions of dollars in the status quo – another station almost exactly where Exchange Street sits now, just on the opposite side of the tracks under a highway overpass – not the forward-thinking, bold vision this community deserves.
“This decision was not based on what train riders want, what Canalside visitors want or what the people of Western New York want, because they overwhelmingly support the Central Terminal. In fact, 87.9% of public comments submitted to the train station selection committee favored the Central Terminal. This should have been a decision by Buffalo and for Buffalo.
“We don’t take up fights because they are easy, we fight for what’s right. While I am disappointed by this missed opportunity I remain optimistic about the Central Terminal’s future, and will continue to fight for this historic treasure and the Broadway-Fillmore neighborhood.”
