Upcoming event: Advancing the Theatre District

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Downtown Buffalo’s Theatre District got a second life in the late 1970s and 1980s when Shea’s Buffalo was saved from the wrecking ball and Mayor James Griffin began using federal dollars to invest heavily in the area. 

The district has since had its ups and downs over the years and now stands at a bit of a crossroads. It has never enjoyed the economic vitality originally envisioned and the loss of some 20,000 downtown workers since the pandemic has made the prospects of that success that much more elusive. But there’s renewed energy to move forward.

The past, present and future of the Theatre District will be the subject of a panel discussion hosted by Investigative Post on Tuesday, March 24 at 7 p.m. at Shea’s Smith Theater, 658 Main Street in downtown Buffalo.

Panelists include Brian Higgins, executive director of the Shea’s Performing Arts Center; Donny Kutzbach, co-owner of the Town Ballroom; Randall Kramer, executive director of MusicalFare; Kristin Bentley, executive director of Second Generation Theatre; and John Cimperman, owner of 42 North Brewing. The discussion will be moderated by Jim Heaney, editor of Investigative Post.

Tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at this secure link. Information can also be found at Investigative Post’s Facebook event page.

“We’re fortunate, for a city our size, to have a Theatre District. Arts matter in this world,” said Mike Schmand, the recently retired executive director of Buffalo Place, which markets and maintains Main Street, including the 600 block that’s the heart of the district. 

“The Theatre District, compared to what it looked like in the 1980s, is remarkable,” he said.

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Key to the revival was the effort by the “Friends of the Buffalo Theater” to save and restore Shea’s, followed by Griffin’s election and subsequent investment of government funds by him and his successor, Anthony Masiello, in the 600 block and nearby streets.

Restaurants, bars and music venues opened, as did a multi-screen movie theater. The Irish Classical Theater opened and Studio Arena Theater reopened. Office towers were built and renovated. The abandoned Market Arcade reopened after renovations and Shea’s underwent extensive restoration.

But all was not well, as Heaney, then with The Buffalo News, reported in 2004. While some $60 million in public funds had been invested in the district, most businesses were losing money and had defaulted on the money lent to them. The Theatre District was termed an artistic success but a financial failure.

“The area really hasn’t flourished,” one developer said.

Progress has been hit and miss since then. Shea’s expanded its footprint along Main Street and of late attracted MusicalFare from its Amherst home. A police precinct was built. Automobile traffic was restored to Main Street, but at the expense of a Metro Rail station. 

The iconic Tralfamadore Music Hall closed, as did the movie theater — twice. The hotel at the corner of Main and Chippewa streets struggled, as did the Market Arcade. The youth hostel was closed because the city-owned building it was housed in had deteriorated.

The pandemic and its accompanying loss of downtown workers has intensified the challenges. Identifying obstacles and opportunities will be the focus of the March 24 event.

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Higgins, the former Congressman, has brought ideas and energy to the effort since he took the top job at Shea’s two years ago. He said the objective should be “to build the Theatre District into a 24-hour-a-day, 7-days-a-week operation, as opposed to only when the theaters are open.”

That involves more entertainment options and an improved physical environment in order to attract more people to the area.

“We have to create a pedestrian density that will promote development in and around the Theatre District,” he said.

“The idea is to create a theater district that is more like Playhouse Square in Cleveland.”

Schmand likes Higgins’ vision, adding that converting more commercial buildings — and some parking lots — to residential use is important.

“We need to continue to develop a neighborhood in the Theatre District,” he said.

The event’s panel discussion will be supplemented by dialogue with audience members, who will presumably include Theatre District stakeholders.

Said Heaney: “Our objective in hosting this event is to provide a forum to help advance the discussion and planning of this important pocket of downtown. There’s a lot of potential to be realized with smart strategic thinking and effective follow-through.”