WBFO Business & Economy Desk

With Erie County on the brink of elevating to the CDC's next level of COVID transmission status, County Executive Mark Poloncarz addressed the Buffalo Niagara Partnership Friday morning, advising them they have the authority to require masks on their premises, regardless of vaccination status.

Lina Young wants her father, John, remembered as the man who made the Buffalo chicken wing an essential part of Western New York's cuisine.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo encouraged business owners Wednesday to close their doors to unvaccinated individuals, saying the move could help slow the spread of COVID-19 as indicators for the virus continue to rise.

A local restaurant owner says a new mask mandate could negatively impact an industry trying to recover from the worst of the pandemic.

A local program to help small businesses purchase protective equipment may have kept them open, according to the Erie County Industrial Development Agency. Agency staff told the board Wednesday the grant program reimbursed 110 small businesses and non-profits for $701,000 in PPE.

A program formed with Buffalo Billion money seven years ago has created more than double the jobs it expected, state leaders say, while providing important information in the treatment and tracking of COVID.

Roughly 60 years after fire swept through its historic district, the Village of Lancaster's West Main Street has been extended, allowing a partial shopping district to one day grow back in full.

2020's pandemic turned the 40th running of the J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge race into a virtual experience. Tuesday, organizers announced this year's race will once again take place in person.

A state lawmaker is taking the Thruway Authority to task for one of the vendors chosen as part of a makeover of Thruway service areas.

This year's Taste of Buffalo didn't have the array of restaurants from other years. Rain also scared away some foodies. But after a year and a half of COVID, organizers were happy to be back in Niagara Square this weekend.