(Brian Meyer, Buffalo News) Buffalo’s historic Broadway Market is in dire straits and could face shutdown within a year unless it undergoes a “radical reimagining,” some city and community leaders are warning.
About 40 percent of the East Side landmark is empty, the highest vacancy rate in at least eight years. KeyBank, an important anchor tenant, left the market in April. Max Poultry, a longtime tenant, vacated its space earlier this year.
The five-year lease between the city and the market will expire June 30, and Common Council President David A. Franczyk said that this is an ideal time to revamp market operations.
“It’s going to die if something isn’t done. This could be the last chance,” said Franczyk, who voiced fears that the market may not last much beyond next Easter.
The time has come for a new director and board
Market management won’t let new places open if they sell competing items. That does not make sense at all. Competition drives better business practices.
The refernces made to the neighborhood by management too in the article are way off the mark. I live in the neighborhood. I am somebody left. There are a lot of people left here. That is sort of insulting. Maybe if they ran the place better the people who are left would shop there more.
It looks like it is time for a change.
Like Marlies Wesolowski stated,
the market has to change with the neighborhood and city and become more multicultural. There should be stands selling Arabic, Vietnamese, Puerto Rican food and wares in addition to the Polish and couple of African American-run stands.
In my view, this is the only way for the market to survive.
The market board could use some diversity to help accomplish this goal.
Successful markets in other cities have more diversity and that in part helps to attract a larger customer base.
The worst idea was turning it into a factory outlet for cheap clothing which is why Rep. Slaughter diverted promised funds elsewhere
The place has turned into a running joke with the WNY food community. Last year I came to the Market and was going to speak with the manager about selling organic foods on the weekends as a way to expand the business we do at the downtown and North Tonawanda markets. I walked in to the office of the place and three people were smoking in the office. I turned around and walked out without speaking to anybody.
That’s good business isn’t it?