More Steps

Buffalo’s development of a Green Code Zoning Ordinance is a needed overhaul of how land in the city can be used.  Comprehensive in scope, its main purpose is to reduce areas currently zoned for defunct uses such as industry, and increase areas available for more contemporary economic and social purposes.  While this reorganization is a critical step, additional ones that change how Buffalo is perceived by others are needed. In cities with difficult economic outlooks, zoning rules are helpful in guiding redevelopment, but less so in attracting it in the first place.  Until there are reasons people will want to visit, invest and plant roots in Buffalo, the Green Code will be challenged to fulfill its promise to transform the appearance and use of the city’s landscape.