First Niagara may cut as many as 346 jobs. The bank is eliminating the assistant branch manager position at every one of its branches throughout its four-state network. The move is part of the bank's new efficiency strategy to focus on customer sales and service, in hopes of boosting revenues without increasing expenses.
The jobless rate in Buffalo Niagara rose in December, but that is typical. The rate usually increases from November to December. The unemployment rate was 7.9 percent last month--higher than November's 7.3 percent, but still lower than December's 8.1 percent a year ago. The region lost 2,000 jobs from December 2010 to the same month in 2011, a 0.4 percent drop. It was the steepest drop in employment since July 2010. But at the same time, the region's labor force is shrinking, which contains the unemployment rate.
The market for office space in Buffalo Niagara is stronger than expected, according to a new report by CBRE Inc. The overall vacancy was down modestly, despite a near doubling in expected building. But industrial space performed miserably, with more than 1 million square feet of empty space--much of it in the former Quad/Graphics plant in Cheektowaga. Non-mall retail space was also disappointing, but the multi-family market showed signs of stabilizing. Still, the report concludes, Buffalo Niagara is performing better than other larger cities around the country.
The Olympic Towers - an historic building next to the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center and home to the federal bankruptcy court and other federal offices - has finally been sold for $2.5 million. The buyer, Prime Asset Fund of Los Angeles and Tampa, paid $1 million below the asking price, after the building had been on the market for several years. The owners said they plan to invest in some improvements and continue to manage the property.
Customers of NYSEG and Rochester Gas & Electric Corp. are getting some worrisome messages from the utilities: their private information including Social Security numbers, addresses and other bits was beached. The utility says they have no indication that the intrusion was done with malicious intent, but it is offering affected people free access for a year to a credit-monitoring service.
CUBRC, the research center on Genesee Street across from the Buffalo Niagara International Airport, has landed a five-year contract that could be worth $67.2 million from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The center, originally founded as the Calspan-University at Buffalo Research Center, involves research and development on a new antibiotic that might be able to treat biological threats like anthrax and the plague.
The Buffalo Niagara Partnership unveiled a plan - backed by $11.25 million form the City of Buffalo - to help speed up revitalization of downtown buildings. The money is seen as a boost for projects that may have higher upfront costs due to specifics of rehabbing old buildings.
Pizza is big business in these parts, with local establishments dominating national chain pizza restaurants. The secret may be in the sauce, but it's also in the personal touch so many local shops have.
Among the quiet, powerful community banks in the region is Community Bank System. The bank focuses largely on rural and suburban markets with its 170 branches in 40 counties. CEO Mark Tryniski spoke about his banks strategy.
M&T Bank Corp. saw profits fall during the fourth quarter. Profits were down 27 percent from the same period a year ago. The drop was attributed to increased operating expenses related to its acquisition of Wilmington Trust Corp. as well as one-time impairment charges on investments. Operating expenses, not including accounting and merger-related factors, increased to $706 million from $455 million. It had net income of $148 million, or $1.04 per share, down from $204 million, or $1.59 per share, in the same quarter a year ago.
Excelsior Orthopaedics has completed its merger with the Hand and Shoulder Center of Western New York. Drs. Dale R. Wheeler, Owen J. Moy, James J. Kelly and Timothy V. McGrath--all surgeons from the Hand and Shoulder Center--are now partners at the Amherst-based Excelsior. It now employs 150 people and is expected to see 76,000 patient visits annually.
It will eliminate more than a quarter of its workforce here. It has lost more than 170 workers since 2010. The most recent cutbacks at Northrop Grumman are being attributed to anticipated cutbacks in defense spending.
Local automobile sales slipped in December, but overall 2011 was stronger than 2010. December sales fell 5 percent compared to a year before, with 3,996 vehicles sold versus 4,200 the previous December. But the year represented a turnaround for the automotive industry. Locally that meant a 3.4 percent hike over 2010 sales.
The giant former Quad/Graphics printing plant on George Urban Boulevard in Depew is on the market. The plant, once home to the regions largest printing operation, has 850,000 square feet of space on 65 acres.
Developers brought plans for two empty buildings in Niagara County to the county's industrial development agency Wednesday. T-shirt and promotional product-maker Impressive Development is looking to expand its Division Street operation to an abandoned plant at 525 Wheatfield Street. It says it will cost $960,000 to purchase and renovate the property. The company asked for a 10-year payment-in-lieu-of-taxes arrangement, plus a sales-tax exemption and a mortgage recording tax break. Surjit Singh is seeking a five-year, 100 percent tax exemption on a Niagara Street gas station in Niagara Falls near the Seneca Niagara Casino. The $800,000 project will have an attached convenience store and franchised restaurant--either a Dunkin' Donuts or a Bruegger's Bagels.
