Anticipated state award to improve Grant Street

Grant Street florist April Whalen

 Grant Street has lost its vibrancy over the years with businesses moving to other sections of the city and into surrounding suburbs. Now, striving to get some of that vibrancy back, People United for Sustainable Housing, a West Side non-profit organization has received a $500,000 grant to improve upon blocks of Grant Street. PUSH, community organizers and local businesses are hoping the grant will eventually lead to economic improvement and business development, once again restoring Grant Street’s reputation of being a gateway to the West Side. Full story

'Tis the season, again, to get a flu shot

 Nurse Barbara Sullivan

With another dreary winter approaching, local citizens are getting ready to begin a new season of influenza prevention. After the H1N1/swine flu scare that Buffalo’s West Side experienced a few years ago, there is an increased emphasis on the importance of receiving an annual flu shot, as well as at home disinfectant techniques. Full story.

From old to new: West Side soon to recycle

New recycling initiative will help eliminate street clutter

 Plastic, paper, metal, and glass. Residents in the City of Buffalo will no longer be sorting through these items come recycling day. The Department of Public Works has decided to implement some changes in the ways residents do recycling. New totes designated for recycling will be distributed and the schedule for pick-up will be changed as well. The city is hoping these changes will encourage more residents to start recycling. Full story

West Side combats rising health concerns

 The West Side is currently facing a number of health issues affecting many of its residents. One issue is poor air quality directly related to the diesel exhaust from the Peace Bridge, which is causing respiratory problems. Another is a general health concern toward community members due to lack of exercise. Since its inception in 2002, the Near East and West Side Task Force is working to find solutions by advocating health education to the residents of its communities. Full story

Healthy menus lead to healthy choices

Dave Alessi, manager of  LaNova Pizzeria

 Erie County will be the first in the nation to start an initiative to put nutrition facts on local menus. Some West Side restaurants plan to jump on the bandwagon to create a healthier image for their consumers that either demand or request healthier options. Under this new initiative restaurant patrons will have the information to make healthy meal choices, if they so choose. The software Erie County hopes to implement to West Side and other area restaurants is called Menu Calc. This software allows local restaurants to analyze calorie counts, fat content, vitamins and sodium among other things. Full story.

Collaborative polishes up West Side to fight crime

Eight years ago, West Side Community Collaborative started a five-year initiative plan to revitalize Buffalo’s West Side community. The goals included increasing the commercial district by bringing in more storefronts, cleaning up the landscape by gardening and erasing graffiti and raising homeownership. Other goals included reducing abandoned buildings and reducing crime and violence on the streets and in the homes. It’s been three years since the plan has reached its conclusion, but that doesn’t mean the West Side Community Collaborative’s work is finished. The group continues to revitalize this Buffalo community and work to keep drugs and violence out of the neighborhood. Full story

Local gardeners learn how to winterize

 How does someone live in Buffalo and still take up gardening as a hobby?
 The cold, harsh winters are anything but a conducive atmosphere for some of the plants gardeners hope to see grow and flourish. However, Urban Roots, an urban agriculture and gardening center on the West Side, hopes to solve that problem with its overwintering plants workshop.
 The local business paired up with guest speaker and avid gardener, David Clark to help teach local gardeners how to preserve their exotic plants.
 It was a forum not only to hear a how-to from an experienced gardener, but also a gathering of neighbors and gardeners alike. Full story