Jun 7
2016
Jim Heaney, in first of two stories broadcast on WBFO and other major NPR stations across upstate, reports that Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s model for revitalizing Buffalo and other major cities has several serious shortcomings. Is his model a game changer? Hardly. Heaney’s second story broadcasts Wednesday.
Jun 3
2016
In an interview with Susan Arbetter of The Capitol Pressroom, Investigative Post Editor Jim Heaney took on what he termed the “fundamental dishonesty” of politicians who continue to claim the Buffalo area economy is surging. Heaney was responding to a letter to the editor published earlier this week in The New York Times from four prominent public officials who took the newspaper to task for its coverage of the federal investigation into the Buffalo Billion program. Heaney also discussed Charlotte Keith’s recent story about continuing problems at Erie County’s Child Protective Services, Mayor Byron Brown’s pending selection as chairman of the state Democratic[...]
May 26
2016
Pre-apprentice programs that prepare minorities to enter the building trades are critical to diversifying the construction workforce, a national expert said Wednesday at an event hosted by Investigative Post. Buffalo needs a “big pot of money” for apprenticeship programs bolstered by community groups that work together to promote diversity in the construction trades, said John Goldstein, a national expert in workforce diversity in construction. “That seems like one critical piece that might be missing,” said John Goldstein, a national expert in workforce diversity. That money could come from contractors, foundations or be included in project labor agreements, he said. Download Goldstein’s[...]
May 20
2016
Investigative Post Editor Jim Heaney and Susan Arbetter of The Capitol Pressroom discuss the latest developments involving the SolarCity project in Buffalo, including a reduction in planned factory jobs from 1,460 to 500. The interview, taped Thursday, runs from 22:30 to 37:19.
May 13
2016
SolarCity has sharply reduced its job creation commitment for the solar panel manufacturing plant under construction in Buffalo from 1,460 to 500 jobs, according to state records and filings the company submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission last fall. The company remains committed to a total of 1,460 jobs in Buffalo, but the majority of them will not be employed at the plant. Documents do not specify what kind of jobs they might be. “With new advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment that enables automation, we believe 500 is the minimum number of manufacturing jobs the factory will require,” said Kady Cooper,[...]
May 10
2016
When Minnesota lawmakers agreed to put millions of dollars toward building a new football stadium for the Minnesota Vikings, contractors were told they had to what some thought impossible: ensure that minorities accounted for a third of the construction workforce. Work on the $1.1 billion stadium is wrapping up, and contractors, despite their initial skepticism, have not only met the 32 percent goal but exceeded it, reaching 36 percent minority participation. This kind of ambitious goal-setting has been absent on major projects in the Buffalo area. The minority workforce goal was just 13.2 percent on the $130 million renovations[...]
May 10
2016
I’ll dispense with the MayDay! declarations of past and get to the latest double-barrel dose of bad news regarding SolarCity. The company released its first quarter earnings report Monday afternoon and it was drenched with more red ink than usual. SolarCity lost a record $283.1 million. That was double the $149.9 million it lost for the same period in 2015. The stock market reacted as you’d expect, with the trading price dropping by 21 percent from the close of trading Monday to Tuesday. SolarCity is now going for $17.54 a share, down from $57.26 as recently as mid-December. Yet another crisis in[...]
May 2
2016
One Albany insider told The Buffalo News over the weekend that “everyone is literally flabbergasted” at the turn of events in the federal probe of what can safely be termed the “embattled” Buffalo Billion program. I suppose the spectacle of Cuomo insiders turning on each other as the governor scrambles into damage control mode is a bit jarring. But no one who has been paying attention to Cuomo’s governing style in general, and his administration’s management of the Buffalo Billion program in particular, should be the least bit surprised. In short, the Cuomo crowd is obsessed with secrecy and operates[...]