Buffalo

Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Southern Ontario. The city and nearby Niagara Falls together make up the two-county BuffaloNiagara Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which had an estimated population of 1.1 million in 2020. Buffalo is also known for its winter weather, Buffalo wings, and two major-league sports teams: the National Football League's Buffalo Bills and the NHL's Buffalo Sabres. In 2019, the gross domestic product of the BuffaloNi Niagara Falls MSA was $53 billion, making it the 49th largest MSA in the United States. Before the arrival of Europeans, nomadic Paleo-Indians inhabited the western New York region from the 8th millennium BC. Seventeenth-century Jesuit missionaries were the first Europeans to visit the area. During the mid-19th century, Buffalo transitioned to manufacturing, which came to be dominated by steel production. Later, deindustrialization and the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway saw the city's economy decline and diversify. It developed its service industries, such as health care, retail, tourism, logistics, and education, while retaining some manufacturing. The University at Buffalo, Buffalo State College, Canisius College, D'Youville University and Medaille College are among its educational institutions.

History

Buffalo is the primary city name, but also Amherst are acceptable city names or spellings, University At Buffalo, University Buffalo on the other hand no longer accepted or obsolete and are no longer used as a designation. The official name is City of Buffalo. Before the arrival of Europeans, nomadic Paleo-Indians inhabited the western New York region from the 8th millennium BC. The region was sparsely populated and occupied by the agrarian Erie people in the south and the Neutral Nation in the north. The Neutral grew tobacco and hemp to trade with the Iroquois, who traded furs with the French for European goods. Seventeenth-century Jesuit missionaries were the first Europeans to visit the area. After the American Revolution, the Province of New Yorknow a U.S. statebegan westward expansion, looking for arable land. The Erie Canal, grain and commerce brought prosperity to the area, and Buffalo was incorporated as a city in 1832. It opened in 1825, ushering in commerce, manufacturing and hydropower. The city is named for Buffalo Creek, which is a tributary of the Genesee River. It is also the location of the Niagara-Lake-Lake shoreline, which was destroyed by British forces in 1813 during the War of 1812. The town of Niagara-on-the-Lake was established in 1815, and later became the site of the Buffalo International Airport. It was named after the Buffalo River, which runs through the city. The village of Buffalo was named for the nearby Buffalo Creek. The word Buffalo means "Buffalo River" in French, which means "the river" or "the stream" in English. The name Buffalo was also used for the town of Buffalo, New York, where the Erie Canal was built.

Geography

Buffalo is on the eastern end of Lake Erie opposite Fort Erie, Ontario. It is at the head of the Niagara River, which flows north over Niagara Falls into Lake Ontario. The city is divided into five districts, each containing several neighborhoods, for a total of thirty-five neighborhoods. Buffalo's architecture is diverse, with a collection of 19th- and 20th-century buildings. Buffalo has a humid continental climate (Köppen: Dfb/Dfa), and temperatures have been warming with the rest of the US. Lake-effect snow is characteristic of Buffalo winters, with bands (producing snow in the city and surrounding area) depending on wind direction off Lake Erie. However, Buffalo is rarely snowiest in the state, with the snowiest storm in 1977 occurring twice: on February 9, 1934, and February 2, 1961. Although snow does not typically impair the city's operation, it can cause significant damage in autumn (as in October 2006). In November 2014 (called "Snowvember"), the region had a record-breaking storm producing over 5+12 ft (66 cm) of snow which produced over 170 cm (66cm) in snow. The Buffalo Common Council adopted its Green Code in 2017, replacing zoning regulations which were over sixty years old. Its emphasis on regulations promoting pedestrian safety and mixed land use received an award at the 2019 Congress for the New Urbanism conference. The U.S. Census Bureau says Buffalo has an area of 52.5 sq mi (136 km²) The city's total area is 22.66 percent water.

Demographics

Buffalo's population peaked at 580,132 in 1950, when Buffalo was the 15th-largest city in the United States. In the 21st century, Buffalo is classified as a majority minority city, with a plurality of residents who are Black and Latino. The city's population began declining in the second half of the 20th century, due to suburbanization and loss of industrial jobs, and began stabilizing during the 2010s. In 2019, it was estimated that 30.1 percent of individuals and 24.8 percent of families lived below the federal poverty line. Burmese, Somali, Bhutanese, and Iraqi Americans were the four largest ethnic immigrant groups in Erie County between 2008 and 2016. Buffalo's average 2019 lifespan was three years lower (78.4 years) than the rest of the state; its 17-percent smoking and 30-percent obesity rates were slightly higher than the state average. According to the Partnership for the Public Good, educational achievement in the city is lower than in the surrounding area; city residents are almost twice as likely as adults in the metropolitan area to lack a high-school diploma. Buffalo is the 76th largest city in America, and its metropolitan area had 1.1 million residents in 2020, the country's 49th- largest. Buffalo has a population of 261,310 in the 2010 census, which increased to 278,349 residents in the 2020 census, making it the nation's 76th biggest city, and the 49th largest metropolitan area.

Economy

The Erie Canal was the impetus for Buffalo's economic growth as a transshipment hub for grain and other agricultural products headed east from the Midwest. In 2019, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis valued the gross domestic product (GDP) of the BuffaloNiagara Falls MSA at $53 billion. Despite the loss of large-scale manufacturing, some manufacturing of metals, chemicals, machinery, food products, and electronics remains in the region. New York State, with over 19,000 employees, is the region's largest employer. In the private sector, top employers include the Kaleida Health and Catholic Health hospital networks and M&T Bank, the sole Fortune 500 company headquartered in the city. With state aid, Tesla, Inc.'s Giga New York plant opened in South Buffalo in 2017. The average salary ($43,580) was six percent less than the national average in 2017, with the pay gap increasing to ten percent with increased career specialization. Workforce productivity is higher and turnover lower than other regions. The region's economy began to improve in the early 2010s, adding over 25,000 jobs from 2009 to 2017. With the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, however, increased the local unemployment rate to 7.5 percent by December 2020. The local unemployment rates had been 4.2 percent in 2019, higher than thenational average of 3.5% in the same year. The Buffalo area has a larger-than-average pay disparity than the rest of the US.

Culture

Buffalo was ranked the seventh-best city in the United States to visit in 2021 by Travel + Leisure. The city's cuisine encompasses a variety of cultures and ethnicities. Buffalo area has over 600 pizzerias, estimated at more per capita than New York City. Several craft breweries began opening in the 1990s, and the city's last call is 4 am. The Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra was formed in 1935 and performs at Kleinhans Music Hall. The Goo Goo Dolls, Spyro Gyra and jazz saxophonist Grover Washington Jr. got their start in the city. The AlbrightKnox Art Gallery is a modern and contemporary art museum with a collection of more than 8,000 works, of which only two percent are on display. The Burchfield Art Center is operated by Buffalo State College and is a museum commemorating civil-rights activists throughout the years. Buffalo's historic business district and harbor, attracts more than 1.5 million visitors annually. It includes the A restored 1924 carousel, a restored solar-powered boathouse and a replica of the Erie County Naval & Military Park, and a number of restaurants and shops. It also includes the Explore More Museum, which includes the Buffalo Museum of History and Science, the Buffalo History Museum and the Museum of Science and Industry. The National Geographic Society ranked Buffalo third on its "World's Top Ten Food Cities" list. In 2003, the Anchor Bar received a James Beard Foundation Award in the America's Classics category.

Sports

Buffalo has two major professional sports teams: the Buffalo Sabres (National Hockey League) and the Buffalo Bills (National Football League) The Bills were a founding member of the American Football League in 1960. The Sabres, an expansion team in 1970, share KeyBank Center with the Buffalo Bandits of the National Lacrosse League. The Bandits are the most successful of the city's three major-league teams, with four championships. The Bulls participate in the Football Bowl Subdivision, the highest level of college football. The Buffalo Bisons (Triple-A baseball), who play at Sahlen Field, are the Buffalo Beauts (National Women's Hockey League). The Bulls have 16 varsity sports in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) The Canisius Golden Griffins field 15 teams in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), with the men's hockey team part of the Atlantic Hockey Association (AHA) The Buffalo Bulls and the canisius golden Griffins compete in NCAA Division I. The Bills are the only NFL team based in New York State, and have played at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park since they moved from War Memorial Stadium in 1973. They had a close loss in Super Bowl XXV and returned to consecutive Super Bowls after the 1991, 1992, and 1993 seasons (losing each time). The Bills, Sabres and Bandit are owned by Pegula Sports and Entertainment, which also owns the New York Yankees and New York Rangers. They play in the National Football League's East Division.

Parks and recreation

The city's Division of Parks and Recreation manages over 180 parks and facilities, seven recreational centers, twenty-one pools and splash pads, and three ice rinks. The non-profit Buffalo Olmsted Park Conservancy was created in 2004 to help preserve the 850 acres (340 ha) of parkland. According to the Trust for Public Land, Buffalo's 2021 ParkScore ranking had high marks for access to parks, with 89 percent of city residents living within a ten-minute walk of a park. The city ranked lower in acreage, however; nine per cent of city land is devoted to parks, compared with the national median of about fifteen percent. Buffalo collaborated with its sister city Kanazawa to create the park's Japanese Garden in 1970, where cherry blossoms bloom in the spring. The Shoreline Trail passes through Buffalo near the Outer Harbor, Centennial Park, and the Black Rock Canal. The North Buffalo-Tonawanda rail trail begins in Shoshone Park, near the LaSalle metro station in North Buffalo. Buffalo Harbor State Park has trails, open recreation areas, bicycle paths and piers. The park's Gallagher Beach, the city's only public beach, has prohibited swimming due to high bacteria levels and other environmental concerns. Under Mayor Byron Brown, Canalside was cited by the Brookings Institution as an example of waterfront revitalization for other U.S. cities to follow. Summer events have included paddle-boating and fitness classes, and the frozen canals permit ice skating, curling, and ice cycling in winter.

Government

The Buffalo Common Council enacts laws, levies taxes, and approves mayoral appointees and the city budget. Byron Brown, the city's first African American mayor, has held the office since 2006, longer than anyone else. No Republican has been mayor of Buffalo since Chester A. Kowal in 1965. The city is part of the Eighth Judicial District. Court cases handled at the city level include misdemeanors, violations, housing matters, and claims under $15,000. The proposed budget includes a slight increase in the commercial tax and a slight decrease in the residential tax to compensate for the COVID-19 pandemic. The fire department has about 710 firefighters and thirty-five stations, including twenty-three engine companies and twelve ladder companies. The department also operates the Edward M. Cotter, considered the world's oldest active fireboat. Buffalo ranked second nationwide to St. Louis for vacant homes per capita in 2007. In May 2022, a mass shooting in Buffalo began a program to demolish five thousand vacant, damaged and abandoned homes. Ten victims were shot by a white supremacist who was not a Buffalo native in a racially motivated attack. Ten people were injured and three were injured in the attack by the white supremacist. In 2018, the Buffalo Police Department had a roster of 740 officers during the year, about two-thirds of whom handled emergency requests, road patrol and other non-office assignments. The police-to-citizen ratio of 28.9 officers per 10,000 residents in 2020 is higher than peer cities Minneapolis and Toledo, Ohio.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Buffalo, Erie County, New York = 31.7. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 71. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 10. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Buffalo = 3.3 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 278,349 individuals with a median age of 35.5 age the population dropped by -8.26% in Buffalo, Erie County, New York population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 6,893.41 residents per square mile of area (2,661.58/km²). There are average 2.25 people per household in the 114,202 households with an average household income of $28,291 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 10.20% of the available work force and has dropped -3.61% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 22.58%. The number of physicians in Buffalo per 100,000 population = 263.3.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Buffalo = 36.5 inches and the annual snowfall = 82.4 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 166. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 155. 80 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 18.3 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 55, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Buffalo, Erie County, New York which are owned by the occupant = 34.51%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 24.0 years with median home cost = $81,280 and home appreciation of 0.16%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $28.34 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $10,101 per student. There are 13.8 students for each teacher in the school, 768 students for each Librarian and 514 students for each Counselor. 7.77% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 10.93% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 8.09% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).