City

The Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority’s 2016-2019 Financial Plan has been rejected by the Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority. The Financial Plan had been architected by Hal Payne, the Buffalo State College administrator who is a close personal friend of Mayor Byron

It was brought to my attention today that I was recorded without my knowledge, and on the recording said something that I am deeply embarrassed by and ashamed of. The statement was totally out of character. I have deep regard

According to Democratic Party rules, accepting the Republican nomination for an elected office immediately and automatically disqualifies that candidate from receiving the party’s endorsement. As a nearly 30 year incumbent, David Franczyk received the Committee’s endorsement based on standing party etiquette. But

Chris Jacobs has avoided education policy issues since his resignation from the school board to become County Clerk. In that special election, he was dogged by criticisms of his long tenure on the board and has since remained silent on

School board member Sharon Belton Cottman is emerging as the leading Democrat contender to challenge  Mike Woolford, the widely respected Buffalo businessman, for Common Council from Buffalo’s Masten District. Woolford is running on the Conservative line — with the Ellicott district’s Darius Pridgen

When you tell someone that David Franczyk has been on the Common Council since 1986, they expect a seasoned and well-groomed statesman — a skilled orator with charm, a conversationalist with personality. But they would be very wrong, because the longtime

The longtime Fillmore district councilman who has grown deeply unpopular among his constituents is cracking under pressure, says a longtime city employee who works at city hall. David Franczyk is “visibly paranoid and delusional” the source says. Earlier this week,

By Tony Farina, The Niagara Falls Reporter Jack Quinn, the former congressman and Hamburg supervisor who has been president of Erie Community College since 2008, didn’t seem too rattled last week when fellow Republican John Mills, chairman of the Erie County

Now more than ever, teachers deserve a friendlier public face on a “pro-public education agenda” that has been badly disparaged by real estate developers and policy reformers. New York State’s teachers’ unions have a deplorable reputation — the result of a

Teachers from across Western New York have been questioning the political leadership of Mike Deely — whose short temper and gruff demeanor make him unsuitable for such a sensitive and pivotal leadership position, some have argued. The Western region of

Desegregation has become an increasingly pressing issue for the Buffalo Public Schools. The national civil rights expert Gary Orfeild offered the district a bleak assessment of decades long trends that has led to starkly segregated schools. The objective of integration

The embattled and deeply unpopular Councilman David Franczyk is resorting to mudslinging early this election cycle, in what observers call “an obvious sign of desperation.” On the first day of petitioning, the Councilman sent three of his taxpayer funded patronage

Two prominent Democrat officials tell me that Maurice Garner, the founder of Grassroots, Inc, is brokering “a  peace deal” with Unity Coalition — a shocking development that would have been unthinkable a few short months ago. The two political clubs have been

Veronica Nichols, the community activist who challenged Assemblywoman Crystal People Stokes in a tree way primary contest last year, is calling out Mayor Byron Brown. Brown’s surprise appointment to the SUNY board of trustees is a conflict of interest, she

The tone was subdued after the presentation of Dr. Gary Orfeild, a national civil rights expert who was charged with investigating the the selection process that governs admissions to the city’s highest performing schools. The system has resulted in one

Assemblywoman Crystal People-Stokes held a rally in support of legislation that has introduced in Albany in recent weeks, for which is seeking passage in the coming days. She is said to have the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is

Common Council President Darius Pridgen took to Facebook Sunday evening to lash out against the Buffalo News for, apparently, implying that he supported a mayoral takeover of the public schools. He clearly feels his views were not represented in the

Legislation being advanced by Assemblywoman Crystal Peoples-Stokes is meeting resistance from both factions of the Buffalo Board of Education and from political activists from both parties. The legislation would disband the elected school board and give Mayor Byron Brown — a