A new 162,000-square-foot
student housing project that includes retail space is coming to Grant Street,
and it’s nearly complete. Construction on Greenleaf Development’s off-campus
student housing project is on track to finish in July 2017 and open for students
by August. The
apartment complex will bring more than 300 beds to a property that borders Grant,
Rees, and Bradley streets and SUNY Buffalo State’s Rockwell Road. The project will include 5,000 square feet of retail
space in the building facing Grant Street. Project Manager Sarah
Witherell-Nayman said Greenleaf hopes to fill the three retail spots with possibly
a coffee shop, pizzeria or other restaurants. Greenleaf purchased more than 40
properties back in 2008 in hopes of building student housing. Many aged,
decaying houses were knocked down to make room for the project. Other houses
were restored by Greenleaf and are now being rented out. “It’s easily the
biggest development on that part of Grant Street in a long time,” Greenleaf
President Jim Swiezy said. “Five years
ago nobody wanted to walk down Grant Street. We bought a lot of homes, cleaned
them up and now we’re doing this project. It’s transformational for this
neighborhood.” By Dave DeLuca and Patrick
Koster
