Get local news delivered to your inbox!

Here's a roundabout way to get back to the conversation about traffic safety at Buffalo's Gates Circle.

A pair of civic planners known for their work in transportation and walkability are proposing to convert Gates Circle into a roundabout, hoping to reduce the speed of traffic, minimize crashes and make it easier for vehicles, bicyclists and pedestrians to navigate.

Confused? You're not alone, since the words "circle" and "roundabout" seem like synonyms. But they aren't.

A traffic circle is often large, involves higher speeds, can include traffic signals or even stop signs, and can entail more than one lane of vehicles. A roundabout has a much smaller diameter, slower speeds and usually a single lane of traffic, with entering vehicles always yielding to the traffic already in the roundabout.

A proposal by two transportation experts would convert Gates Circle into a slower roundabout to make it safer for cars, bicyclists and pedestrians.

The Gates Circle plan by Dan Burden and Michael Wallwork would narrow the six converging streets and the loop itself by creating more landscaped islands, effectively forcing traffic to slow down as it winds around. That would bring the average speed down from 35 to 23 miles per hour. Sidewalks would be at least six feet in width, while two-way colorized bike paths would be 10 to 12 feet in width.

"It will be greener and quieter than the existing Circle, but with the historic Olmsted center fully preserved," according to the plan's backers. It would also complement the city's plan to change Delaware Avenue to one lane in each direction from North Street to Forest Avenue, with a center turning lane, they said.

Burden – a walkability expert – and Wallwork, a transportation engineer, previously collaborated to design four roundabouts in the Village of Hamburg in 2007. Their current proposal is backed by the resident councils of the Park Lane Condominium, Canterbury Woods at Gates Circle, T.M. Montante Development and Uniland Development Co., as well as GoBike Buffalo, Partners for a Livable Western New York, and Common Council members Darius Pridgen and Joel Feroleto, who represent the Gates area.

But they still need to find federal and state funding to make it a reality.

Want to know more? Three stories to catch you up:

• Tonawanda eyes 3 roundabouts to slow traffic, boost safety

• City takes steps to protect Gates Circle from errant drivers

• Not all drivers are square with those roundabouts

Welcome to Buffalo Next. This newsletter from The Buffalo News will bring you the latest coverage on the changing Buffalo Niagara economy – from real estate to health care to startups. Read more at BuffaloNext.com.

Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up to get the latest in your inbox five days a week.

What: Nonprofit social services agency People Inc. has opened a new store in the Tri-Main Center in Buffalo as part of its vocational training initiative, designed to give people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities the opportunity to gain hands-on work experience and interact with the community.

Tell me more: The store will sell items for tenants and guests at Tri-Main, such as mints, mini-packs of pain medicine, greeting cards, gift items, ice cream novelties and original products made by clients of People Inc.'s day services, such as decorative pillows, water bottles, framed canvas prints, pet scarfs and catnip. Store hours are Monday through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Why it matters: Every purchase from the new People Shoppe at 2495 Main St. supports People Inc.'s mission by teaching its clients every aspect of operating a store – from inventory to stocking to customer service to sales – and training them for future careers in retail. All purchases must be on payment cards.

“The primary purpose of the space is not a retail outlet, but instead a space for people to come and build relationships, engage in the community and enjoy a hands-on experience," People Inc. President and CEO Rhonda Frederick said. "This fits into the mission of People Inc. to expand relationships and how we work together to help make Buffalo and Western New York a more inclusive community.”

The County of Chautauqua Industrial Development Agency is establishing a revolving loan fund to support brownfield remediation and redevelopment of key properties, using a new $600,000 grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and supplemental funding from the county.

The fund will be used to provide loans and sub-grants to facilitate cleanup of polluted properties so developers can bring them back to active use.

The effort will focus on already identified sites in Jamestown and Dunkirk, but the money can also be applied across the county. The program is expected to open up for applications by year-end.

“This funding is one more tool in our toolbox, and will provide critical gap financing to make complicated brownfield remediation and redevelopment projects feasible," said Deputy County Executive of Economic Development and CCIDA CEO Mark Geise.

What: A joint venture of Ciminelli Real Estate Corp. and Gordon Brothers has acquired yet another property in the Greater Boston area, paying $19.8 million to buy a 93,500-square-foot research-and-development building located on 7.4 acres in Andover, Mass. 

Tell me more: The property is adjacent to a 78,000-square-foot office building that the same joint venture acquired from the same prior owner last November, and adds to their holdings in the Interstate 93 high-tech and research corridor north of Boston.

Why it matters: Buffalo-based Ciminelli has been investing in real estate projects and buildings in faster-growing regions outside of the Western New York market, where it can obtain higher returns. It partnered with Gordon Brothers, a global advisory, restructuring and investment firm. 

Catch up on the latest news from Buffalo Next:

Buffalo Transportation Inc. has been suspended from operating its vehicles for 60 days by the state, the result of a penalty long ago imposed by the Department of Motor Vehicles that was just recently upheld by the state Supreme Court.

A former church rectory that later became home to the Larkin Men's Club for workers at the Larkin Co. is getting ready for a new use as market-rate apartments and commercial space, with the husband-and-wife team of Michael Myers and Kayla Zemsky renovating the 696 Seneca St. building.

Shea’s has revived a $26 million plan from a few years ago for a five-story addition with new elevators, concessions, bathrooms and lobby. The project will be in front of the Buffalo Preservation Board on Thursday.

SUNY Erie Community College’s Board of Trustees approved a resolution Thursday supporting the elimination of 90 positions at the financially troubled college. The jobs are mostly part-time clerical and maintenance positions at the college.

Workers at 12 for-profit WNY nursing homes have authorized one-day strikes. A major issue revolves around low wages for service workers, such as dietary aides and housekeepers, who can start at the regional minimum wage of $13.20 an hour.

Buffalo Place, the nonprofit business improvement district for downtown Buffalo, has won another $300,000 state grant to support revitalization of buildings and facades on Main Street.

Niagara Falls Mayor Robert Restaino has a vision to create a $150 million "gateway" park downtown, with an ice rink, indoor arena and outdoor amphitheater, but the 12 acres of land he's eyeing for the proposed Centennial Park is owned by Howard Milstein's Niagara Falls Redevelopment, and Milstein's firm isn't interested in selling it.

Chinnici's Legacy Development is proposing to construct a pair of large new apartment buildings on a 6.1-acre site on McKesson Parkway, off Union Road, in Cheektowaga.

Kaleida Health and two major unions have agreed to a second extension of their existing contract, which was set to expire May 31 before the two sides extended it until June 30, as they try to iron out a new collective bargaining agreement.

The push to redevelop the LaSalle Metro Rail station and surrounding acreage is generating more interest than any previous real estate bid by the city, as 10 developers or groups submitted responses to the city's "request for qualifications" in early May.

Buffalo Next reporters Jonathan D. Epstein, Jon Harris, Natalie Brophy, Matt Glynn, Janet Gramza and Mike Petro contributed to this roundup.

Four reads from Buffalo Next:

1. Retailers and new entrepreneurs making the move toward the sale of recreational marijuana are in limbo: They're awaiting regulations from the state and preparing for the application process expected to begin sometime this summer, all the while having to compete with the black and gray markets.

2. You might be familiar with the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser as a popular stain removal product. But did you know it is made in the Buffalo Niagara region, in a new plant on the former Bethlehem Steel site?

3. New apartments are popping up across Western New York: From the Elmwood Village and Allentown to South Buffalo and the West Side, from Tonawanda and Amherst to Orchard Park and Hamburg, developers are putting up new apartment buildings or converting old industrial warehouses and offices.

4. At 41, Steve K. Stoute is the youngest and the first person of color to lead Canisius College in its 150-year history. He said his first focus will be on growing enrollment, including more students of color, first-generation college students and new Americans.

The Buffalo Next team gives you the big picture on the region’s economic revitalization. Buying a building? Redeveloping a property? Got a tip? Reach Real Estate & Development reporter Jonathan D. Epstein at 716-849-4478 or email him at jepstein@buffnews.com. 

Email tips to buffalonext@buffnews.com.

Get local news delivered to your inbox!

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the State Department of Transportation announced Friday that they had agreed on improvements to the intersection of Route 77 and Indian Falls Road, the site of frequent accidents where Lockport residents Christopher Rowell and Arnold Herdendorf were killed in a collision with a tractor trailer.

The intersection of State Route 77 and Indian Falls Road had been identified as dangerous even before two veterans were killed trying to make a turn there last year. 

Cars moved smoothly along Fuhrmann Boulevard and on Route 5 both before and after the concert by rapper T-Pain Sunday, without the kind of delays seen at past Outer Harbor shows. The main reason? Capacity was limited to 4,500 people.

A comparison of the report released last week with an earlier draft obtained by The Buffalo News shows several major changes and omissions. For example, the April draft said: "A roundabout, a potential permanent improvement, not only calms traffic, but would have a significant safety impact," but that sentence was cut from the draft that the public got to see.

Schumer left no doubt about where he stands, saying it was time for the VA and the State DOT to work together to improve the intersection of Route 77 and Indian Falls Road, where two Army veterans were killed in a collision with a tractor-trailer.

Installing a roundabout near the Western New York National Cemetery in Pembroke would prevent most accidents at an intersection where two veterans were killed in a collision with a tractor-trailer in September.

Town officials are bringing back and expanding a proposal to install mini-roundabouts at several points on Parker between Englewood Avenue and Sheridan Drive, along with changes to the road to make it easier for pedestrians to cross and safer for bicyclists to ride along.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the New York State Department of Transportation will quickly study the intersection where two veterans died last year.

"I think that my dad would most definitely happily give up his life to bring light to a dangerous situation and save somebody else's life," the daughter of one of the accident victims said.

A public meeting in the Village of Lancaster will discuss the two new roundabouts planned as part of the downtown renaissance. The roundabout project aims to ease traffic congestion and improve pedestrian safety by changing the conventional signal intersections at Pleasant and Central avenues, and at Aurora Street and Central. Officials hope to complete the design phase by December,

The wish list for transforming Sheridan Drive includes shrinking the number of driving lanes, creating dedicated bicycle lanes, bringing express bus service to the road and adding “smart” traffic

A proposal by two transportation experts would convert Gates Circle into a slower roundabout to make it safer for cars, bicyclists and pedestrians.

Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.