An effort is underway to remake and revitalize the Commodore Perry Public Housing neighborhood downtown.
To qualify for federal funding the Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority has one year to come up with a plan.
If all goes according to plan, the distressed Perry Projects, just off Michigan Avenue near I-190 downtown, will be transformed into the Perry Choice Neighborhood.
In an attempt to "get it right," the BMHA converted a couple of former apartments at the corner of South Park and Louisiana into a planning and information center.
"We felt it was important not to just talk about these planning activities on a meetting-by-meeting basis," said Planning Consultant James Pitts.
"The Planning and Information Center is designed to be a continuous process of planning activities where people can come in, find out what's going on, and even to give suggestions."
Pitts says the goal is to turn Perry into a sustainable, walkable community where residents can earn a living wage, get the services they need and raise their children.
The adjacent area includes the Larkin District, Canalside, and the future Buffalo Creek Casino.
But Pitts, a former Common Councilmember, says Perry isn't even on the radar screen.
"This is the area that was the point of embarkation for the development of the city of Buffalo. This is the area, right down here. A lot of people don't realize Perry, where it is located, is a waterfront community."
Pitts says most public housing has a negative connotation and the Perry Choice Neighborhood project could turn that image around.
If the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development goes along, he says construction could start in 2014.