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Paladino wins auction for riverfront parcel

Chris Caya/WBFO News

Developer Carl Paladino and his partner Victor Liberatore are the proud new owners of a prime piece of Buffalo riverfront property. At an on-site auction Wednesday morning, the two men bid $2.17 million for 201 Ganson Street. Paladino, founder and chairman of Ellicott Development, says his company is starting two new projects just across the river on Ohio Street in the coming months.

"The river's going to have a whole new world. If you ride up the river on a boat, it's really fantastic, the stuff that you see, those old grain mills and the industry that we had. We expect things are going to be getting better down in this area," Paladino said following the auction.

The site is an old industrial property next to Buffalo RiverWorks which once served as a ship-building facility for American Ship Builders. The 13-acre parcel includes 1,650 feet of Buffalo River frontage.

Paladino says a few years ago he might have paid $15. But he says now, the area has new focus. 

Credit Chris Caya/WBFO News

"We're very hopeful for things like a new football stadium to come down generally into this area," Paladino said. "We all know the solidity of the Old First Ward area. Hopefully, we get the Perry projects torn down."

Paladino says he has no immediate plans for the land, though he says he would like to keep it non-residential.

"We're very open to ideas," Paladino admitted.

The developer, who also sits on the Buffalo Board of Education, said he didn't even intend to bid on the parcel earlier in the morning prior to the auction.