In the wake of its failed attempt to subsidize a Bass Pro store in downtown Buffalo, the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation, a New York State public authority, is attempting to acquire land from the city of Buffalo by arguing that HSBC, a major employer downtown, is considering relocating to the ECHDC’s proposed Canal Side project, but will only do so if ECHDC gains possession of the land immediately. The Buffalo News version of the story is here.
PAI’s statement on the issue is below:
The land transfer that is being pushed with such urgency today has been framed as a transfer of land from a government to a business, specifically, HSBC bank. However, this is in fact a transfer of land from one government – the City of Buffalo – to another government – the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation.
The Harbor Development Corporation is a new government, an unelected government, a dysfunctional government, and an unnecessary government.
It was created by Albany in 2005 for the purpose of directing public funds to an out-of-state retail company. The recent implosion of the Bass Pro project has highlighted the Harbor Development Corporation’s record of failure. Having sought for five years to construct a publicly-subsidized Bass Pro store without considering any alternative development proposals or tenants, it now finds itself with no plan B.
The cold, hard fact is that, as currently structured, the Harbor Development Corporation has no reason to exist.
In the midst of this existential crisis, the Harbor Development Corporation is grasping for a new project, and is presenting the possible relocation of HSBC as a justification for its continued existence, and for the expansion of its power through the acquisition of more land.
Why is this costly middleman necessary for economic development in Buffalo? Why should the Common Council abdicate the responsibilities they are expected to fulfill by the citizens who elected them, in favor of handing the city and the region’s future over to an unelected body that is accountable to no one, has a record of failed leadership, and is riven with glaring conflicts of interest?
The Harbor Development Corporation and its supporters have framed this land transfer proposal as a struggle between pro-business forces and anti-business forces. But so long as there is no actual plan for this land, other than that it be turned over to the Harbor Development Corporation, the only logical conclusion is that this is merely a power struggle between governments. The choice to be made is whether economic development policies in Buffalo will be governed by an elected government, or an unelected government, by democracy, or plutocracy. Will the decisions governing the future of Buffalo’s waterfront be made in Albany, Manhattan, and Florida, or will they be made in Buffalo?
The time has come to hold the Harbor Development Corporation accountable for its actions. If one were to evaluate this government’s record over the past five years, taking into account its relentless pursuit of the Bass Pro project in direct contradiction of public and expert opinion, its squandering of public funds, its alienation of the public it is supposed to serve, and its contempt for elected officials at all levels of government, what grade would it receive on a scale of A through F? If the answer is F, then clearly serious thought should be given to the dissolution of this unnecessary layer of bureaucracy that has been foisted on the region by Albany. And even if the answer is a passing grade, such as a D, or a C, then it would be clear that some changes need to be made with the aim of improving this public authority’s performance in the future.
Based on our research on the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation, the Public Accountability Initiative recommends that the Common Council not approve the transfer of any land to this entity until changes are made in its leadership and structure such that the people of Buffalo and Western New York can feel confident that this it is acting in the public interest.
