Kaleida in talks for Main Street buildings in downtown Buffalo
Paladino purchased cluster in 2000
A cluster of faded buildings in the 1000 block of Main Street near North Street in Buffalo will likely get a shot in the arm from Kaleida Health.
Kaleida is in final negotiations with Buffalo developer Carl P. Paladino to lease a three-story, turn-of-the- 20th-century building at 1010 Main St. for outpatient clinics. That deal could see Kaleida occupying the vacant, 36,000-square-foot structure by late 2009.
The hospital operator is also interested in leasing the Paladino-owned, four-story building next door, at 1028 Main St. That circa-1900 structure was a long-time classroom building for Bryant & Stratton business school.
“Talks are pretty hot and heavy now,” Paladino said. “They’re looking at a phased approach where they’d eventually take over that whole block of buildings. That would get them to more than 70,000 square feet.”
As part of the deal, the developer plans to demolish a nearly 80-year-old, one-story building at 1008 Main St. to create a 39-slot parking lot for Kaleida’s use.
Kaleida spokesman Michael Hughes confirmed Kaleida’s interest in expanding along the west side of Main Street, between Goodrich and North streets.
“As we move forward on our relocation of services from Millard Fillmore [Hospital] to Buffalo General [Hospital], and partnership with the Erie County Medical Center, it’s clear not everything is going to fit,” Hughes said.
Kaleida has not made any final decisions about what clinics it would locate in the 1000 block of Main Street, but the outpatient dialysis center, now housed at Buffalo General, is among the leading candidates.
“Its current location inside the hospital tower is not as patient-friendly as we’d like. Moving it to Main Street would make it more accessible,” Hughes said.
He said tapping available space at 1010 Main St. and adjoining structures will have benefits beyond giving Kaleida needed elbow room.
“It’s more than decompression for us. We’d be revitalizing that section of Main Street, improving the aesthetics and bringing critical mass,” Hughes said.
The Kaleida spokesman described the cost of redeveloping the idle buildings as “significant,” with the price tag running into the millions of dollars. Ironically, Kaleida will be spending money to make improvements on leased space it previously owned.
In 2000, the health firm bought a total of four adjacent properties in the block as part of a master plan to stake its claims on sites bordering the emerging Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. In addition to 1010 Main St., Kaleida also acquired 1008, 1028 and 1030 Main St.
It sold the group of buildings to Paladino in 2004, who floated a variety of plans for the sites, including demolition of the former Bryant & Stratton site to make way for a Rite-Aid drug store.
More recently, Paladino has talked about a mixed-use redevelopment that would include housing, offices and retail space. The developer did convert the former Nirelli’s gas station at 1030 Main St., at North Street, for use as a retail site.
Initial plans for a Quiznos Sub shop unraveled before the restaurant opened, and a local deli operator had only a brief run at the site. Paladino said he’s currently in talks with a retailer to fill space.
Paladino last week obtained approval from the Buffalo Preservation Board to tear down the small building at 1008 Main St. His demolition and parking lot plans will be reviewed by the Buffalo Planning Board next Tuesday.
