Tree lighting to highlight shopping season

In preparation for the year’s busiest shopping season, Sales Associate Cassidy Kozub of Sunshine & Bluebirds 798 Elmwood Ave., arranges a festive display to get shoppers in the holiday spirit. Elmwood Village is home to many small businesses that have special sales this month. To kick off the holiday season on Dec. 5, the Elmwood Village Association and Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church will host caroling and a visit from Kris Kringle beginning at 3 p.m. followed by a holiday tree lighting ceremony at 6 p.m. at the church, 875 Elmwood Ave. By Kelly Ackerman

W. S. Community Services to benefit from podcast party

 

Jim Tamol and The Square podcast have selected the West Side Community Services to be the beneficiary of the podcast’s third annual Christmas party. “We’re grateful to The Square Podcast for choosing West Side Community Services as the recipient of the proceeds of their annual Christmas party,” said Mary Schaefer, director. “Their donation will go toward things like enriching after-school programs for K-6, the West Side Teens programs, and the adult program for folks 55 and up. All programs that work to make the West Side  a better healthier and more connected place to live," Schaefer said. The Square is a culture,  politics, and economic podcast covering Western New York. The Christmas party will be held from 7-10 p.m., Dec. 8 at Armory Restaurant, 311 Connecticut St. Admission is $40 for food a drink and the live show. By Michael Mueller

 

 

Annual Anti-Displacement Summit set for Dec. 9

 Leighton Jones, communication director for Our City Action Buffalo, is preparing for the 5th annual Anti-Displacement Summit in partnership with PUSH Buffalo.  The  Summit will be held from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., Dec. 9 at Trinity Episcopal Church, 371 Delaware Ave. The event gives community members insight on issues taking place within the community. The event will consist of several workshops and discussions on topics such as immigration, education, and transportation. PUSH will be hosting workshops and discussions on affordable housing and climate. There also will be a panel discussion on last year’s blizzard and a memorial held for the lives that were lost during the blizzard. “This year we want to have an emergency plan. Are there going to be emergency services in place? Are we going to have emergency vehicles and things of that nature to ensure our community is safe in the future,” Jones said. Reservations requested. By George McClendon, Jr.

Community Beer's blue brew supports Special Olympics

 

Lindsay Pike, a bartender at Community Beer Works, 520 7th St., on drops off a cold and crisp pilsner with quite an interesting color. This special beer is Polar Plunge Pilsner, created to support the Polar Plunge on Dec. 2 at Woodlawn Beach State Park. All proceeds from the sale of the beer will benefit the Special Olympics. Chris Groves, marketing director at Community Beer Works, described the beer as a blue raspberry pilsner. "We made a special batch of beer for this event. Come down and try the beer, you have never seen a beer like this before,” Groves said. The beer is on tap at Community Beer Works and is available at any Fattey Beer Co. store. By Joseph Cali

Folwell Apartments settling in old Children's Hospital

 

Folwell Senior Apartments an affordable apartment building owned and operated by People Inc. for adults 62 and older. The apartments were opened in July in the maternity building of the former Women & Children’s Hospital, 140 Hodge Ave., part of the larger Elmwood Crossing project. People Inc.'s Chief Innovation and  Program Development Officer Concetta Ferguson says seven out of the 44 units are set aside for medically frail homeless individuals. By: Ariel Scarbrough

Esports joins athletic programs at local colleges

By Andrew Forsyth

A pastime that has been held to the bedrooms and basements of teenagers now makes its way onto the college campus as an equal to football, hockey, and other regularly offered sports. With many universities adopting the new sport, students have a new avenue when applying to schools.

Esports has grown throughout the nation and has become a regular offering at many universities in the country. The National Association of College Esports boasts over 200 schools nationwide on its website.

The introduction of esports benefits students, although it also benefits the universities. The ability to entice online students with an organization they can be involved in increases recruitment and retention.

“It brings in students,” Mark Alicea, advisor and coach of D’Youville University esports, said.

Canisius is working to drive retention and recruitment efforts directly through the esports programs on campus.

“It is going to be a big play moving forward, especially as it starts to build and move forward,” said Nick Stenzel, assistant athletic director of athletic facilities at Canisius University.

            Three esports programs are operating in various phases between D’Youville, Canisius, and Buffalo State University. The biggest of the three is at D’Youville, which recently opened a new state-of-the-art eSports arena.

            The $200,000 project, funded by Spectrum Enterprises, pushes the college to the forefront of esports in Buffalo. D’Youville participates in two leagues, the East Coast Conference league against schools in the region, as well as in the NACE.

            “We also play in the NACE, a national eSports conference, against many different schools,” Alicea said.

            These schools include the likes of the University of Georgia and Florida State. He added that there are 1,300 schools in just D’Youville’s division alone.

            D’Youville offers games, including Overwatch 2, Rocket League and Valorant. As well it is adding new teams in multiple different games. It also holds internal Madden leagues for any students on campus.

            Canisius invested in esports early on. The esports program has been around since 2018 and is looking to grow.

            Canisius has built its program from the ground floor and grown the program and esports in the area over the past five years. The school took advantage of an uptick in gaming, specifically online in specific communities, and wanted to add that sense of community on Campus.

            Canisius plays in the Mid-American Conference. The gamers play side by side in the same divisions as the athletes of the traditional sports of football, hockey, and other offered sports. The organization is recognized as a club team, although there is also a travel team to attend matches in the conference area.

            Though esports is not quite at the level of football or other traditional sports at Canisius, in the last few years, it has seen growth in the member size and hopes to expand that number even more.

            “Last year, we had about 30 individuals on the roster. We’ve almost doubled that this year; we’re at 55,” Stenzel said. “We will take roughly 28 to 30 individuals to the MAC Championship in March.”

            Canisius offers an esports lab on campus grounds with 10 state-of-the-art PCs and gear to go along with it. Canisius has League of Legends, Valorant, and Rocket League for league play.

            Buffalo State offers an esports option, though it is still in its infancy. Buffalo State is focused on building the foundations without real space for an esports lab or facility for now.

            “There are challenges obviously of having a space dedicated to esports right now, but we are just trying to find a lot of the resources we can use here at Buffalo State to make sure this program is efficient,” Fardan Allen, assistant director of student leadership and engagement at Buffalo State, said.

            The program now offers an NBA 2K tournament, Smash Bros tournaments, and competing with other SUNY teams. The program also pays for membership to compete in the Eastern Conference Athletic Conference, which includes teams outside the SUNY conference.

            The Buffalo State organization looks to Canisius and D’Youville and other established programs outside the area as a blueprint for success. The goal remains to find a dedicated space on campus for eSports.

            The organization just needs a starting point. Fardan Allen said it doesn’t need fancy computers right now but rather a place for the students to congregate and play games without needing to reserve time and lug around equipment.

Work on Wilson Park to continue through winter

By Joseph Cali

            In the rust belt city of Buffalo, New York, terms like “State of the Art” and “World Class” are not necessarily what you would hear paired with many public amenities in the area.

            Terms like these have been constantly referenced when speaking of the new and improved LaSalle Park, now named the Ralph Wilson Jr. Centennial Park.

            Changes are now visible in the park as construction has been underway for the past

few months. The core facilities of the park are closed, but the skate park, temporary dog park on

4th Street, and football field remain open for residents to use.

            “We are looking at 2025 for the park to be open. Construction started in July of 2023 and they are working at a really fast clip to make sure that the park is completed by the end of 2025,”

Katie Campos, executive director of the Ralph Wilson Park Conservancy, said.

            A project of this magnitude comes at a cost of $110 million. That is where the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation came in, Fillmore District Councilmember Mitch Nowakowski, whose district includes the park, said.

            “While, yes, it is a heavy price tag, being partnered with the Ralph Wilson Park Conservancy helps us foot the hefty bill for the state-of-the-art park,” Nowakowski said.

            The foundation is not the only big donor helping to foot the bill. Major League Baseball has contributed and additional $1 million to help enhance the quality of the baseball fields and other sports fields throughout the park.

            Campos said the combination of funding will create a park with world-class amenities, the likes of which Buffalo has not yet experienced."

            A project like this requires a very cohesive construction plan to obtain all of these goals and provide a world class experience in such a short amount of time. Kelly Maloney, senior project manager at Gilbane Building Co., contractor on the project, said the project is in the first of three phases, which consists of work on the shoreline, underground utilities, electric and the access bridge from the West Side to the park.

            The recent mild weather has allowed Gilbane to conduct in-water work at the shoreline, which is progressing well, she said.

            "Crews are also working on the stormwater drainage system, which can be continued throughout the winter months. Crews are now installing drainage structures, such as manholes and pipes. We are planning to conduct underground utility work in the winter months along with the bridge abutment work,” Maloney said.

            The newly redesigned park is going to have resounding effects on the City of Buffalo and, specifically, the West Side.

            “We are excited to bring that world-class experience so when people come it is safe, welcoming and a lot of fun," Campos said. "Also, for people to feel invited to play and hang out with these world-class amenities that are just going to create a higher standard going forward.”