Rep. Brian Higgins believes the region's psychology is changing as residents see the emergence of new buildings and an active waterfront. The congressman delivered that message at a talk at Medaille College Thursday night. The South Buffalo Democrat was speaking at the college's Buffalo's Future series. He says a key feature of local development is that it is locally sponsored, with the community not waiting for someone to come in from somewhere else to get projects going.
In his home neighborhood, Higgins says he is seeing everyone from the building trades working and as the son of a bricklayer, he watches that issue. He says he sees the growth continuing.
"It's sustainable. It's the public sector. It's the private sector. It's everybody working together toward moving the Buffalo and Western New York economy forward. And there's great confidence. It was at RiverWorks today. We now have five ice surfaces within a five-block area and there's no concern on the part of any of the entities that it might be too much, might reach saturation," Higgins said.
Higgins says word of the development and growth here is spreading across the nation with coverage in key publications. He says that might bring people here to see what's going on and he hopes more and more arrive by boat to help make Buffalo a recreational boating center on the waterfront.
