The Goal: Compete as One Region
Investors, employers and talented young people do not see 44 municipalities. They see one place: Buffalo Niagara. The Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area is home to about 1.1 million people and produced roughly $90 billion in economic output in 2023. That is the scale at which we compete with Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Toronto and the rest of the world. Our region should plan, invest and market itself at that scale.
These are Change Buffalo PAC’s proposals for regional action across Western New York.
1. One Regional Economic Strategy
- A single regional growth plan with a small number of measurable goals for jobs, income, population and investment, reported publicly every year.
- Market Buffalo Niagara as one brand to site selectors, businesses and international investors.
- Build on our strengths: health care and life sciences around the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, advanced manufacturing, logistics and cross-border trade, higher education led by the University at Buffalo, and tourism anchored by Niagara Falls and the waterfront.
- Stop zero-sum competition among municipalities for the same businesses (see our county proposals on IDA reform).
2. Regional Transit That Connects People to Jobs
Buffalo’s Metro Rail runs 6.4 miles from Canalside to the University Heights district, and extending it toward Amherst has been proposed for years. In 2016, about 28 percent of Buffalo households did not own a car, so transit is how many residents reach work.
- Finish the plan to extend Metro Rail toward UB’s North Campus and Amherst, with a firm timeline and transparent costs.
- Frequent bus corridors with faster, more reliable service on the region’s busiest routes.
- Build homes near transit by aligning zoning around stations across municipal lines.
- Connect job centers, including suburban office parks and industrial areas, to city neighborhoods with better service.
3. Highways to Boulevards: Reconnect the City
Mid-century expressways cut through Buffalo’s Olmsted parkways and neighborhoods. The Scajaquada Expressway (NY 198) bisects Delaware Park. The Kensington Expressway replaced Humboldt Parkway. In 2025, after a court required a full environmental impact statement, the state scrapped its $1.5 billion cap-and-tunnel plan for the Kensington and restarted the process with public listening sessions.
That reset is an opening. The PAC’s position is clear: remove barriers and restore the city’s historic fabric. See our plans for Humboldt Parkway Restoration, the Scajaquada Expressway and the Black Rock Waterfront.
- Push for full restoration of Humboldt Parkway in the new environmental review.
- Demand a regional consensus process with firm deadlines, so major corridor projects stop stalling for decades.
4. Reclaim the Waterfront
Canalside’s success led the state to create Buffalo Harbor State Park in 2014. The next step is to finish the job: a continuous, public waterfront from the Outer Harbor through the Inner Harbor and Black Rock to the Niagara River Greenway. See our plans for the Outer Harbor, the Inner Harbor and Black Rock.
- A single waterfront master plan across the agencies that own and manage shoreline land.
- Public access first, with private development where it activates and pays for public space.
- Release underused public land for redevelopment through open, competitive processes.
5. A Cross-Border Economy
Buffalo is a port of entry with Canada, and the Peace Bridge links us directly to the Queen Elizabeth Way and the Greater Toronto region.
- Make the border a gateway, not a barrier. Advocate for faster crossings, trusted-traveler expansion and modern inspection facilities.
- A binational business corridor that helps Canadian firms establish a U.S. presence in Buffalo Niagara.
- Joint tourism that markets both sides of the Niagara River as one destination.
6. Keep and Attract Talent
- Make it easy to stay. Partner with colleges and employers on internships, mentoring and first jobs so graduates build careers here.
- Welcome newcomers. Make Buffalo Niagara a place where immigrants and refugees can quickly build businesses and careers. A welcoming region grows.
- Recruit returners: former Western New Yorkers who want to come home and bring their skills with them.
- Affordable quality of life is our edge. Protect it by building enough housing and keeping taxes in check.
How This Connects
These proposals build on the PAC’s Global Economic Prowess plan and Environment, Conservation and Recreation agenda. Return to the Turnaround Agenda, or read our Citizen Power proposals.
