Mayor Byron Brown Wants the Utica NFTA Station Named After Black Architect Robert T. Coles

Robert Traynham Coles is one of Buffalo's 'unsung heroes' who recently passed at the age of 90, according to archpaper.com and was the

"founding member and inaugural secretary of the National Organization for Minority Architects (NOMA) "

Mr. Coles designed the Utica Bus Station facility and Mayor Byron Brown is proposing that the station be named after Mr. Coles, according to WGRZ, and said this of Mr. Coles and the naming of the station:

"Mr. Coles was widely acknowledged as a leader, innovator and trailblazer in both local and national architectural circles.  Naming a station—one that he designed—in his memory would ensure that his public legacy leaves a lasting mark and serves as a continuing inspiration in the community he lived in and loved so much.”

Robert T. Coles was born in Buffalo and graduated from MIT with a master's in architecture,  according to WGRZ , and aside from designing the Utica Station, he also designed the JFK Community Center, the Frank E. Merriweather Jr. Library and Alumni Arena at the University at Buffalo.

WGRZ noted that there are less than10 public places in Buffalo that are named after African-Americans in Buffalo.  Mr.Coles would be a welcome addition so that, as Mayor Brown said, his architectural expertise and notable historical works in Buffalo would allow his legacy to be celebrated indefinitely.