Our Services and Programs

Our Vision calls upon us to fulfill many roles within our region and Preservation Buffalo Niagara is already doing so on many fronts. Preservation works best in communities where its principles are so deeply rooted that efforts are initiated and supported by a variety of public, civic and private organizations and individuals. A November 2010 report reviews our progress.

Laison with State and National Organizations We are a National Trust Local Partner, and a Preservation Colleague of the Preservation League of New York State. We also work closely with the State Historic Preservation Office.

Educational Services Buffalo Tours is our primary educational arm, which utilizes a cadre of trained, volunteer docents reinforced by our staff to conduct a wide variety of tours. This season Buffalo Tours will offer 27 unique tours, including daily downtown tours (during the summer), canal harbor tours, and a variety of tours of historic sites and neighborhoods. We are also working with area school and colleges to show students our historic places and provide orientation tours to incoming freshmen.

Field Services Our Partners in the Field program was launched in September 2009 with the hiring of Andrea Rebeck, a preservation architect with over 30 years experience and a former SHPO staff person. The goal for the Preservation Specialist is to be an onsite advisor, cheerleader, supporter, liaison to other resources, and more with the goal of reinforcing the efforts of neighborhood and community organizations, preservation boards, owners of historic properties, congregations, developers, historic sites, municipalities, additional public agencies and others involved in historic preservation.

Advocacy Our cities and other communities have yet to develop sufficient resources and protections to insure that our historic resources will remain for generation to come. Our most significant preservation effort has been working in concert with the National Trust and the Preservation League of New York State regarding the proposed Peace Bridge Plaza Expansion, including our joint letter stating that the mandated analysis of preservation impacts was flawed by an inadequate summary of alternatives.

Workshops and Lectures We have obtains funding for a series of workshops in 2010 entitle Preservation for Buffalo-Niagara's Future, supported by the New York Council on the Arts. Our first regional effort was co-sponsoring a conference on historic preservation in Medina in May 2009. We are seeking funds to launch a series of workshops on historic preservation.

Cultural Resource Surveys The Preservation League of New York State has awarded PBN $7500 to conduct a survey of the historic and cultural resources in the North Prospect Hill neighborhood. That survey is now underway and we’ll seek additional funds for more survey work. This web site will also include or provide links to other surveys.

Understanding our Historic Resources The web site Buffalo Architecture and History, is among the world’s most elaborate web site dedicated to a city’s architectural heritage (its creator is our Trustee, Chuck LaChiusa). We plan to use this web site to reinforce this effort.  In 2009 we collaborated with Squeaky Wheel and filmmaker Diedie Weng to create the film Building on the Past for Our Future, which is available for showings and talks.

BUILDING ON THE PAST FOR OUR FUTURE (22:00) by Diedie Weng from Squeaky Wheel on Vimeo.

Promoting the Buffalo Region We believe in telling the world about our historic resources! Our most significant achievement benefiting our city was escorting New York Times architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff around Buffalo, and ultimately receiving his affirmation that our city’s architecture is of great importance and every care should be taken to revive it in it’s original form — His wonderful article appeared in the New York Times November 14th, 2008 with more than a dozen stunning photos of Buffalo.

Luncheon and Awards Program We utilize our awards program to recognize and reinforce persons and organizations that are doing significant preservation work in Buffalo and throughout the region.