Texas congressman and presidential candidate draws a crowd in East Aurora.

It was an unusual offseason for just about any NFL player this spring and summer. Free agency was crammed in with far less preparation on the practice field, new surroundings and new teammates for ...

When you woke up this morning, did you think about heading to Toronto to go to the Saint Lawrence Market? Or to visit a passive beach along its waterfront (kinda like the one that we recently implemented)? Even if Toronto didn't happen to be on your mind this morning, I bet that there were plenty of Torontonians who are thinking about Buffalo, thanks to our friends at the Toronto Star - see post. A quote from the article "Perfect Weekend: Two days/Two Nights in Buffalo":

Linger a while and you may no longer think of Buffalo as woebegone, but perhaps as a regular destination on your weekend getaway list. -Julia Pelish

Weekend highlights included a stay at The Mansion on Friday night along with dinner at Tempo, then to the Martin House and the Spirit of Buffalo on Saturday afternoon with appearances at the Blue Monk and Allen Street Hardware later that evening, and finally a visit to Globe Market and Betty's on Sunday before a visit to The Knox and the Soho Burger Bar.

Thanks to Visit Buffalo Niagara for shedding some light up in Toronto - recently the VBN has been conducting interviews and has learned that Torontonians have an outdated mindset when it comes to Buffalo. The organization has implemented an ad-blitz in order to promote day-trip tourism, starting today with an ad campaign geared towards getting Buffalo's best draws in front of Toronto's unsuspecting eyes.

VBN's efforts in Canada have garnered several other media hits in recent weeks. From VBN:

Toronto Sun

July 27
"Smooth sailing for Erie Canal Harbor" by Mitchell Smyth
VBN hosted travel writer Mitchell Smyth in fall 2010 and took him to many Buffalo attractions, including the Erie Canal Harbor.

The Star

June 22
"How I overcame my prejudice against Buffalo" by Adrian Brijbassi
Brijbassi wrote this online story shortly after VBN hosted him in Buffalo in June.

Aug. 2
"Brilliant times in Buffalo ..." by Richard Ouzounian
Ouzounian was one of the writers who VBN met during its Toronto media dinner in April. VBN hosted him in Buffalo from July 29 to Aug. 1.
 
Waterloo Record

July 23
"Garden Walk Buffalo is well worth the drive" by David Hobson
VBN hosted a group of Ontario garden writers in Buffalo from July 15 to 17. This is the first story to come out of that media trip.
 
City Bites (Toronto)

Sumer 2011 Issue
"Buffalo's Bounty" by Ivy Knight
(see cover and pages 27-29)
VBN arranged for accommodations for the writer and photographer for this piece.

I’m a sucker for statistics. Ever since I was a kid, I loved tracking the statistics of my favorite teams/players/sports. I would even keep track of the stats for my own little league games and the stats for my virtual players in Based Loaded for the NES. (The game didn’t always do that for you, kids.) I just love the way stats tell you so much about the game and the players in it. Who’s good? Who’s not? It’s all right there in the numbers.

That all being said, some stats are better than others. ERA in baseball? Way overused. Points per game in basketball? Flawed. If a guy is averaging 30 points a game but shooting just 30% from the field, he’s not a star. Likewise, I’ve always hated the “passer rating” stat in football. It doesn’t account for running quarterbacks. The stat doesn’t differentiate between a pass completed in a high-pressure 4th-and-long situation and a pass completed easily against a prevent defense during a blowout. Also, I REALLY hate that 158.3 is a “perfect” score. How the hell does that make sense?

Fortunately, ESPN has recently developed a new “Total Quarterback Rating” statistic – QBR for short. QBR attempts to address many of the weakness of the passer rating stat in evaluating quarterbacks, including:

… [visit site to read more]

Receiver Craig ``Buster'' Davis is so intent on getting a fresh start to his career with the Buffalo Bills that he's willing to forgo his nickname. Davis has been in his new surroundings for three ...

Mickey Walker recalls a time when scores of college recruiters huddled in Buffalo to catch a glimpse of Western New York prospects Cliff Robinson, Keith Robinson and Christian Laettner at an AAU basketball tournament.

Whether it's Bigfoot in Clarence or a serpent in Silver Lake, Western New York has had its share of mysterious creature sightings through the years

A quick look at what's happening today in Western New York

Man travels 241.5 feet on a single breath; verification by Guinness staff could take up to 6 weeks.

’81-ish Plymouth Reliant, Niagara Falls USA Laugh if you will, but this  1981 (or ’82) Plymouth Reliant played a major role in saving Chrysler Corporation from going under. Not so much the K-car itself (as Reliants and their cousins, the Dodge Aries, were known), but the fact that it provided the platform in 1984 for [...]

Jerrold D. Paul of Orchard Park acknowledges that when he visits with his brother Ron—the Republican congressman from Texas who is running for president — the conversations always get interesting.

Fair Hours: 10 a. m. to 11 p. m. today; 10 a. m. to 6 p. m. SundayAdmission: $2 per person for adults, seniors citizens and children 5 and up; under 5 free Parking: Free••••••9 a. m.: 4-H Dairy Goat Show, 4-H Miniature Horse Show, 4-H Swine Skill-a-Thon, Adult Exhibits 10 a. m.: John Cheney 10 a. m. to 5 p. m.: UNYTS blood drive 1 p. m.: Hot Country Liners, Wine Competition winners announced

Zaepfel Development has received initial approvals from the Town of Amherst to build student housing across from the Erie Community College's North Campus. This news comes on the heels of ECC's decision to construct a $30 million Health and Science building in Amherst rather than near the downtown campus which is steps away from the quickly expanding Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.

Zaepfel plans to construct the $18 million three-story complex at 205 Youngs Road, south of Lyndhurst Road.  Town Supervisor Barry Weinstein supports the project but did not want Zaepfel to seek public tax breaks for the project, which the company was unwilling to agree to according to The Buffalo News.

The project will be the first housing development dedicated to serving ECC's Amherst students.  Designed by Dean Sutton Architects, it will include 400 beds in 115 units.

Nearby residents expressed mixed feelings about the project particularly over the height of the building and its proximity to their homes.  Other issues raised included property values, noise, crime, lighting, traffic, and aesthetics.  When the site was rezoned in 1985, the Town imposed height restrictions (two-story maximum), limited the number of units per building (8 to 12 units or less), required the buildings to be substantially brick and restricted the number of unrelated residents allowed.

The main thought driving the project is that ECC will be more competitive with NCCC which already offers nearby student housing.  The developer presented studies to the town to show that if the project is completed next fall as planned, it will reach full occupancy with no trouble at all.

Most residents' concerns were eased after meeting with the developer who agreed to a larger landscaped and bermed buffer between the complex and residents' homes.  The developer assured the Town Board that there will be no smoking or drinking allowed, a live-in assistant manager will be on site, and off-duty police officers will be hired.  With that, the Town Board agreed to lift the restrictions imposed on the site.  The developer will now seek a use permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals and site plan approval from the Planning Board.

Dallas-based Trammell Crow attempted to build a 264-unit upscale apartment complex on the site in 1990.  That project with 30, two-story buildings was opposed by neighbors who sued to block the project.  Trammell Crow walked away. 

Former first-round pick of the Chargers has a history with Nix.