The Buffalo Erie Niagara Improvement Corporations’ (BENLIC), Western New York’s regional Land Bank, initiated this Neighborhood Infill Project to evaluate forty-five (45) vacant, Cityof Buffalo-owned, former single-family residential, sites throughout the city of Buffalo located in some important neighborhoods including:
HHL worked with BENLIC to create multiple house concepts of affordable single-family “infill” designs. The Design Guidelines project had two (2) distinct phases: 1) a Site Evaluation and Visioning Phase and, 2) a Schematic and Conceptual Design Phase. In the first phase, HHL visited each neighborhood to better understand its historical evolution and created photographic documents of important architectural features. In the second phase, HHL prepared 4-5 different housing designs including elevations and floor plans, as well as optional façade options, with various material specifications choices.
Once these Design Guidelines were completed and adopted by BENLIC, HHL was the engaged by BENLIC via a competitive selection process to implement these new standards on these available sites. The result is, HHL with their team of Tredo Engineers and Buffalo Engineering, developed four (4) final designs for forty-eight (48) reconstituted residential lots. Buffalo Construction Consultants is leading the construction of these new homes. Once completed, these new single-family houses will be sold to Western New Yorkers who make no more than 80% of the local median income. Restrictions will be held on the sites to ensure that they serve first-time homebuyers and affordable families for years to come. The hope is that this is a first of many phases of similar initiatives led by BENLIC to reinvest in Buffalo’s neighborhoods.
