More Affordable Housing Now Available In Buffalo, New York

Western New York has had a problem that has been building for decades. It's well known, but only recently have community groups and government officials been working to address it.

According to the most recent information from the  City of Buffalo Affordable Housing Taskforce, the 716 region will need thousands of new and affordable housing units to keep up with demand in Buffalo.

Considering that Buffalo continues to have one of the hottest housing markets in the country, that feat is becoming more difficult every day. However, the wheels of progress seem to be rolling in New York State's second-largest city as more rental homes are coming on the market.

READ MORE: Buffalo To Get $80 Million In Housing Help From New York

With the completion of the recent Eckhardt’s Department Store redevelopment into 28 affordable rental units, more than two dozen families will be able to find a nice and safe place to live.

Designed by architects Lawrence H. Bley and Duane Shuyler Lyman in 1940, the Eckhardt's / Kobacker's Department Store is one of the few remaining examples of an Art Moderne-style building. Constructed for John H. Eckhardt, this structure housed several department stores of the time, including Eckhardt's, Kobacker's, and Sears. In its later years, the building even housed the New York State Department of Labor.

READ MORE: Dozens of New Homes To Be Built In East Buffalo and Cheektowaga

However, the building has sat vacant since at least 2010 and was in a general state of disrepair until Cedarland Development Group teamed up with New York State, the Community Action Organization of Western New York, and other partners to turn the 50,000-square-foot building into 28 affordable apartments. Those apartments include four two-bedroom units, 14 one-bedroom, and ten studio apartments.

In addition to the apartments, the new Eckhardts Academy Head Start program will be housed on the first floor and operated by the Community Action Organization. The 12,000-square-foot academy includes six classrooms with enough space to care for more than 70 children.

You can check the Cedarland Development website here for more information about this program and to apply for an apartment.