Design Competition Seeks Redevelopment Ideas for 998 Broadway

Yes In My Back Yard Buffalo (YIMBY), Designing to Live Sustainably, Design Buffalo, and Cedarland Development are sponsoring a design contest to present ideas on how to develop 998 Broadway in Buffalo. The kickoff event, a workshop for prospective entrants, will be held on Saturday September 15, 2018, from Noon to 3pm, at 998 Broadway, Buffalo NY 14212. The workshop and contest will be facilitated by DesignBuffalo.

Contact Information

Any questions about the workshop and contest may be directed to crystalsurdyk@gmail.com.

About the Kick-off Event

The workshop, led by members of the Design Buffalo team, will focus on educating potential entrants and other interested parties about the site, the community, Green Code compliance, and the competition itself. Maps of the site will be available, local community members will speak about their community and what they would like to see. Representatives of the property owners have been invited to hear what people have to say and give their own input. Some “charrette” style design sessions may be offered, getting participants sitting down with pencil and paper to investigate ideas with guidance from Design Buffalo members.

Community input is an essential part of the competition and will be encouraged. Several boards describing the competition will be displayed, with opportunity for attendees to write their comments, and offer ways to participate in the competition and ongoing discussions.

About the Site

998 Broadway is a 5.28 acre parcel in Buffalo’s Broadway/Fillmore neighborhood. It contains the 80,000 square foot former K-Mart building, set back from Broadway, and bordered by Gibson, Lombard and Beck Streets. It was also the site of the flagship store of Sattler’s, a famous Buffalo department store. The property’s owner, Cedarland Development Group, is inviting ideas on community-friendly redevelopment of the property and building.

About the Competition

Entries will endeavor to show how to develop the 998 Broadway site in a community-positive way. Entrants may come up with a broad range of suggestions, and may present their proposals in a number of different ways. Teams with architects may want to present architectural drawings, planners may want to present conceptual diagrams, community activists may want to present written proposals, and artists may present any kind of visual concept. A sociological study of the community with recommendations for what sorts of development are needed could be one type of acceptable written proposal. Concepts should include redevelopment of the entire site, not just the building. Having a community member on the team, or other significant community input, will be strongly encouraged.

The workshop on September 15th will kick off the competition, and entrants will then have several months to work on their proposals, with a submission deadline of January 15, 2019.

At the awards event the entries will be displayed, either on boards, or, if the entry is a written report, by copies of the report. The public will be able to vote for a People’s Choice award, and the judges will select the overall award winner. There may be a significant cash prize for the overall winner. The panel of judges will include architects, planners, community activists, and a representative of the building owners.

Competition Timeline

  • Kick-off event/Orientation Session – September 15, 2018
  • Deadline for submissions – January 15, 2019
  • Judging – Mid-January to Mid-February 2019
  • Awards event – mid-February 2019.

About YIMBY

Inspired by YIMBY Toronto, the Buffalo Yes In My Back Yard initiative brings together Block Clubs, neighborhood groups, grass roots organizations and interested individuals to get to know each other, share ideas and experiences, and develop skills and strategies that can improve the City of Buffalo, one block at a time. YIMBY promotes the role of community groups as an integral force for positive and sustainable change in the Buffalo-Niagara Region. www.buffaloyimby.org

YIMBY is an initiative of Designing to Live Sustainably, an organization whose mission is to collectively embrace our responsibility to future generations by doing more than merely coping with the effects of climate change, designing built environment and policies that facilitate doing well and to nurture a culture of economic, social, and environmental responsibility within the greater Buffalo-Niagara community. www.d2ls.org

DesignBuffalo is a forum for architects, designers of all stripes, concerned citizens, preservationists, environmentalists, urban planners and armchair urban designers in Buffalo, New York. DesignBuffalo brings together architects and other design professionals to actively promote quality design through hands-on collaboration with developers and key stakeholders. www.designbuffalo.org

Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/729288794128525/


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