By T.J. Pignataro
December 17, 2011
All summer long, hundreds of thousands flocked to Canalside, soaking up the sun by the harbor, listening to music festivals and watching fireworks.
They kept coming for leisurely walks in the autumn air even as the afternoon daylight grew scarcer and chilly winds stripped trees of their leaves.
Friday night — five days before the official start of winter — Canalside was still populated. A few dozen hearty souls braved a biting westerly breeze and wind chills in the mid-20s to watch a trio of the area’s newest celebrities light a 32-foot Christmas tree.
On count, Buffalo Sabres owner Terry Pegula, Rep. Kathleen C. Hochul, D-Amherst, and Erie County Executive-elect Mark C. Poloncarz pushed down on a plunger. Seconds later, the tree bloomed with multicolored lights, symbolically inviting even more visitors to the harbor.
The spirit of Canalside continues to come alive. And, its mission is clear.
“It’s the start of putting a stake in the ground that we are going to be a 12-month destination,” said Jordan Levy, chairman of the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp. “We have five months of winter. To ignore that would be foolish.”
Added Hochul, who said she was thrilled to be home for Friday’s event (even if it had been 65 degrees in Washington, D.C.): “Being down here in December proves this is a four-season opportunity. This is absolutely awesome.”
That, from a congresswoman. Eat your heart out, Joffrey Lupul.
Lupul, the Toronto Maple Leafs’ forward who electronically face-washed the Queen City Thursday from his Delaware Avenue hotel room, was nearby at First Niagara Center, a venue that draws roughly 700,000 hockey fans to the harbor during its coldest months.
Sabres’ President Ted Black said the team values its role as a “good neighbor” at Canalside and encouraged Sabres fans to enjoy the holiday tree and other new attractions there. Many, whether clad in blue and gold or Maple Leaf sweaters Friday, seemed to enjoy the spirit.
“It’s just a wonderful opportunity,” Black said.
Friday evening also offered a preliminary glimpse of the downtown neighborhood’s coming bistro, The Liberty Hound, which will officially open its doors in early April inside the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park.
Liberty Hound co-owner Mike Shatzel previewed designs for the new bistro and some menu items with visitors at Friday’s event.
“I think it will really bring a lot of attention to the museum,” said Shatzel, who also owns Cole’s on Elmwood Avenue and other area taverns.
Shatzel and partner Jason Davidson won the approval of the development corporation and the city in recent months over several other applicants after presenting a naval and military-themed concept that encompasses the historical significance of the site.
A restaurant at the site had been long-envisioned but experienced some delays because of funding and later after Mayor Byron W. Brown raised some objections over its construction and financing.
Shatzel explained that Liberty Hounds were those U.S. Navy men noted for being the first off a boat in port and last ones back.
“This wasn’t because they were troublemakers,” according to a restaurant placard. “It’s because they believed in squeezing every bit of life out of the precious free time they had.”
It’s that kind of spirit Shatzel and Donald A. Alessi, chairman of the board at the naval park, hope the bistro evokes from its visitors.
“They were so committed to the concept and the project,” Alessi said of Shatzel and Davidson, adding his belief that the 20 percent increase in visitors the museum enjoyed in 2011 can only grow from here.
What visitors will find when the bistro opens in the spring will be a 14-seat bar, indoor and outdoor seating, upscale pub fare and a breathtaking harbor view.
Construction isn’t slated to begin until the New Year.
“They told us they will come and they proved they will come [to the museum],” Alessi said. “Now, it’s starting to snowball.”
http://www.buffalonews.com/city/communities/downtown/article675878.ece