Mayor Byron W. Brown wants federal funding to help build a 900-space parking ramp near the

Statler Towers, claiming the project would make the shuttered building more marketable.

Brown discussed the city's "wish list" for federal funding and other issues this afternoon,

one day after his return from Washington, D.C.

Topping the list is a request for $7 million in federal aid to help finance a $35 million

project at South Elmwood Avenue and Mohawk Street. Brown said the city would work with

businessman Mark Croce on a 15-story mixed-use facility that would essentially be a parking

ramp, topped off with several floors of commercial space.

Brown on parking ramp

But parking is not the only hurdle. An attorney for a trustee who has been overseeing

bankruptcy proceedings for the Statler estimated that renovating the cavernous 90-year-old

structure would cost at least $70 million.

"Tragically and sadly, this building is now a dead building," Peter Allen Weinmann told a

city panel last month in a hearing that resulted in the Statler's assessed value being slashed

by two-thirds.

The city is also asking federal officials for $800,000 to continue installing global

positioning devices in all city vehicles. Snow plows and garbage trucks currently have GPS

devices. The mayor wants to expand the system to include police cars, fire trucks and all

other city vehicles. The city has about 545 vehicles.

Other funding requests include $1 million to expand youth employment and training programs,

$800,000 for projects tied to the African-American Cultural Corridor along Michigan Avenue,

and $360,000 to buy eight new anti-crime surveillance cameras.

While he was in Washington, Brown said the city delegation also met with "somebody high up"

in Google's hierarchy to discuss the company's plan to build a handful of experimental,

ultra-fast broadband networks around the country to connect consumers to the Internet. Google

is seeking proposals from municipalities that might be interested in being test sites for the

fiber-optic networks.

The Buffalo News asked the mayor about the status of national searches for new police and

fire commissioners. Brown said several candidates have been interviewed, and he's hoping the

searches will wrap up within two months.

Brown disclosed that the interim commissioners are candidates for the permanent jobs.

Daniel Derenda is acting police commissioner, while Garnell W. Whitfield Jr. serves as interim

fire commissioner. The mayor said both men are doing an "excellent job."

The mayor was also asked about scandals facing Gov. David A. Paterson. Brown said the

"chaos and level of crisis" in Albany is a major concern to city officials. But the mayor

stopped short of calling for Paterson to step down, saying that's a decision for the governor

to make.

Brown on Paterson

Brown also said he sent letters today to various state leaders underscoring the importance

of amending state historic tax credit legislation. The revisions would make it easier for

developers to renovate older buildings. Projects at the Hotel Lafayette and the former AM&A's

department store have been stalled due to state delays in revising the law.