Our friends at PUSH (People United for Sustainable Housing), the wonderful group developing a green zone on the West Side, are finalists in Changemakers competition for an award for sustainable urban housing. Go here to vote – you have to register first but it’s not a big deal:

www.changemakers.com/en-us/sustainableurbanhousing

PUSH’s project is the only one in the running (ten finalists) that’s not in the developing world. Ah, Buffalo – our little bit of the developing world, so close to home!

Next Wednesday, March 30, at 6pm, Buffalo ReUse will be part of a discussion at Medaille College about “Leadership in WNY”.

Some points of discussion:

• What goals for community improvement do you and your organization(s) work to achieve? How do these help contribute to building a civic and sustainable future for Buffalo and the region?
• Why do you work toward these goals? What is it about Buffalo’s history that makes these goals important? What is it about Buffalo’s history that makes these goals achievable?
• What perceptions of (or stories about) Buffalo and the region can sometimes be obstacles or barriers to reaching these goals?
• What opportunities and conditions exist to help you and your organization(s) realize these goals?
• Why should students learn to “read” and “engage” in writing the story of their community? What can they do to contribute to the long, hard work of building civic and sustainable communities? In what ways is personal success only meaningful in the context of community?
• What are the personal challenges and rewards of actively engaging in your community and working to make it a better place?

Medaille Website

Starting next Tuesday, November 16th there will be a series of three public meetings to inform city residents about the new zoning code that the City of Buffalo is going to create over the next couple years.

As stated from the Buffalo Green Code website;

The new Buffalo Green Code will be the first opportunity Buffalonians have had in nearly sixty years to establish a new regulatory framework for the development of our neighborhoods.

Zoning is the tool by which we build our communities.  It determines what gets built and where.  It’s essentially Buffalo’s DNA.  The process to re-imagine the city’s future and write a code that matches the community’s vision will be an exciting opportunity for the people of Buffalo.  As this process gets rolled out, over a period of three years of serious work, encouraged that all citizens in every section of the city participate and take an active role.

If you do not know what zoning is, the question and answer section of the green codes website does a decent job covering the topic.  It definitely is a very important tool in creating and maintaining cities and is going to be a key part to Buffalo’s accrued success moving forward.

We have one of the most friendliest and enthusiastic cities out there and it shows as you walk up and down the streets of Buffalo, no matter what neighborhood you are in.  So please come out and continue the support and give your input on our City’s own future.  If you want something done you have to go out and do it.  Things don’t happen on their own. So come out and have a say next week, there will be three different meetings that are held to provide Buffalonian’s an opportunity to have a say in our promising future we all have known this City is capable of.

Tuesday, November 16th, 7pm.   Central Public Meeting

Buffalo Musuem of Science. 1020 Humboldt Parkway, Buffalo, NY,  14211

Wednesday, November 17th, 7pm.  North Region Public Meeting

Bennett High School. 2885 Main Street, Buffalo Ny 14214

Thursday, November 18th, 7pm.   South Region Public Meeting

Tosh Collins Community Center. 35 Cazenovia St. Buffalo NY 14210

Keep up with the Buffalo Green Code’s development by becoming a fan of their facebook page and signing up for the website’s newsletter. Issue #1 is already out. Follow this link to read more.

From our good friends at PUSH:

Let’s Go Buffalo!

The countdown to Buffalo Takes Manhattan IV continues. Thousands of wings, Bocce’s pizza, a tailgate party with Labatts and Flying Bison, an array of Buffalo-themed prizes, and a great dance party to boot.

We know that the Bills are a better team than their record suggests. To give them the extra edge they need to win a game, we will ask Steve Mesler, Olympic Gold Medalist, to lead us in a moment of silence, during which we will focus all of our positive energy on our favorite team as they prepare to beat the Lions the following day and garner their first win.

Other reasons to be there include:

• At 7:30 PM, right at the start of the party, we’ll screen two short films highlighting organizations, including PUSH, that are working to rebuild Buffalo’s historic neighborhoods and preserve its architectural treasures
• Several of Buffalo’s leading artists will show work at the party.
• A date with Steve Mesler, Buffalo’s Olympic Gold Medalist, will be auctioned off.
• Bocce’s pizza will be in effect. What else do you need to know!

Buffalo Takes Manhattan IV!
Saturday, November 13th, 7:30 PM to 1 AM
A Tailgate Party in Times Square
330 W. 42nd Street, 33rd Floor
$25 online, $30 at the door, food included

A free drink to those dressed in Buffalo tailgate apparel

Get your tickets now at this link.

The City of Buffalo owns the most properties in Buffalo–most of which are vacant. Every October the City holds an auction on foreclosed empty lots, vacant commercial buildings and vacant houses. Many property owners who shop at The ReSource have successfully bid on properties and rehabbed the structures to live in themselves or to earn income as landlords. Maybe this is something you’ve thought of yourself but don’t know where to begin. I encourage you to attend our info-session October 2nd at 2pm. Megan McNally, Cassie Wilson, Michele Johnson, Harvey Garret and Diane Wray will be present to provide strategies, share their personal experiences and answer questions. There are a lot of options for acquiring property in Buffalo–this just one, but it might be the method that works for you.

Join us at 298 Northampton St.

There’s a need from Grace Community Church (175 Potomac Ave) for rides and/or carpooling to this event–not sure how many people. If anyone can assist, please coordinate with Matt Kauffman of the Homebuyers Club–maybe meet there at 1:30pm and then head over to ReUse before 2pm.

Governance for a NEW New York
The Coalition for Economic Justice to host State Senate Candidates Forum

What: An opportunity for the Buffalo public to interface directly with the State Senate Candidates in Erie County (58th, 59th, 60th and 61st districts) and to seek insight regarding candidates’ plans for the state.
When: Thursday July 29th, 2010 at 5:30p.m
Where: Allen Hall Theatre University at Buffalo – South Campus
Who: Coalition for Economic Justice, State Senate Candidates, Community, Faith, and Labor Leaders.
Why: The elections for State Senate will be held on November 2nd. CEJ seeks to promote opportunities for citizens to meet and learn more about the candidates that will directly affect the residents of Erie County and its communities. This forum will provide concerned citizens with a chance to hear directly from the candidates and to foster a dialogue between community members and elected officials.

The Coalition for Economic Justice and our allies are interested in how the candidates plan on addressing some of the major issues impacting the greater Buffalo area: sound economic growth and development, public accountability for government and enterprise, and providing good jobs to residents.

A message from Jason Crane, executive director of the New York Bicycling Coalition (and Green Options Buffalo):
New York State’s ‘Complete Streets’ Bill Is In Jeopardy—We Need Your Help!

TAKE ACTION:
We’re asking you to make one phone call, with a one-sentence appeal: “Please amend the ‘complete streets’ bill (Assembly Bill 8587-a) so that it matches the version passed in the Senate on June 17.”
Assemblyman David Gantt’s contact info:
District Office: 585-454-3670
Albany Office: 518-455-5606
GanttD {at} assembly.state.ny(.)us

(June 22, 2010) — In Albany, bicycling advocates are working overtime to help assure the passage of a Complete Streets law—sweeping legislation that will create more livable, bikeable and walkable communities across the state. This proposed law would direct the state Department of Transportation to consider bicycle and pedestrian accommodations in the planning and development of state, county, and local roads and other transportation facilities. NYBC is working closing with the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, AARP and other groups to get this legislation passed.

On June 17, the Senate passed the bill 53-3. Unfortunately, Assemblyman David Gantt of Rochester has amended the Assembly version of the bill in a way that would render the legislation nearly useless. Assemblyman Gantt’s amended bill covers only state roads, meaning that more than 90% of the roads in New York State would not be covered by the law. Additionally, of the 21 most dangerous roads in the state, as defined in a recent study by the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, only 6 would be covered under Assemblyman Gantt’s amended version of the law.

The only way to get this process back on track is if we can get bicycling advocates — particularly those in Rochester, where Assembly Gantt is based — to make their voices heard!
Thank you for supporting Complete Streets in New York State!
Sincerely,
Jason Crane
Executive Director
New York Bicycling Coalition

It has been announced that President Barack Obama will be visiting Buffalo next Thursday as part of his “Main Street Tour.” Of course, we at Buffalo ReUse are more than eager to host the President for a short visit. We have sent out letters to everyone and anyone we can think of, but if you have some kind of insider connection or pull, or you’re actually Obama’s third cousin twice removed, please consider helping us make this dream a reality!!

Buffalo ReUse is eager to share vision and accomplishments for green job creation, social entrepreneurship, and community regeneration with the President.  Since our inception in 2007, we have worked tirelessly to create Buffalo ReUse because of our unyielding desire to improve the City of Buffalo, our passion and hope for livable communities, and our belief in the unique capacity of young adults in forging solutions to rebuild our communities for the future. We have leveraged the unique assets of our region to address the most pressing needs of our neighborhoods, and while our region is unique, we believe that our ideas can be implemented in many communities all throughout the country.

If you have friends in high places, please help us use this unprecedented opportunity to share our entrepreneurial ideas that can play a critical role in regenerating neighborhoods and creating more green and local jobs in the years to come.

Last night I watched Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A Love Story. I have seen most of his films and I always think there are a ton of though-provoking points that somehow get glossed over or ignored by the movie reviewers and pundits. I heard almost nothing about this movie when it came out, except the usual critics dismissing Moore as a crackpot.  Moore even used a recent incident in Buffalo to drive home one of his examples of capitalism’s failures that resulted in tragedy. But Moore made me aware of something that I never learned in school. You may be saying, “Big surprise, you missed something in school–textbooks are notorious for sanitizing or omitting or altering facts in history” True, but I took all my History and Civics classes seriously and even took AP Government and AP US History and no one ever mentioned anything to me about the 2nd Bill of Rights. Most of us remember the tenets of our first Bill of Rights, namely, “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” but this other suggested set were completely new to me.
Since my involvement in the nonprofit world, I have come to know about them through networking with other nonprofit groups and learning the ways in which our missions overlap, especially in the areas of social justice (CEJ & PUSH & PPG), but no one has ever specifically mentioned them in context of a Bill of Rights.

I remember very little about FDR. I remember that he was our longest running president, he died in office and he created jobs for artists and others in a time where no jobs existed, he got through the Great Depression.  In that historical context, FDR drafting another set of rights–an Economic Bill of Rights made perfect sense.  Here they are:

• The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the nation;
• The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;
• The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;
• The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;
• The right of every family to a decent home;
• The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;
• The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;
• The right to a good education.

Wow.  These seem so simple, why do they sound so revolutionary?  Don’t these seem like rights we already believe we are entitled to? and this was six decades ago.  If our government did actually work toward securing these basic rights for citizens–how different would our nation be?  Roosevelt drafted these to ensure equality in our individual pursuits of happiness–because people who are desperately trying to survive–are not truly free.