Analyzing 43North's ROI; what a UAW strike would mean here

When Buffalo’s first unicorn went public in 2021, it marked a historic occasion for the local startup community. Among its potential impacts: An expected tens of millions of dollars for 43North .

The largely state-funded accelerator and incubator established the 43North Foundation , aimed at supporting the Buffalo-area entrepreneurial ecosystem, to administer the proceedings from ACV Auctions ’s initial public offering.

To date, those involved with the 43North organization and its foundation have declined to disclose the exact amount of funding the foundation has and how much it made from ACV's IPO.

But public documents filed with the Internal Revenue Service reveal the payoff the foundation received and give a peek into its potential economic resources today.

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What would a UAW strike mean in Western New York?

福特 and 通用汽车 employ more than 4,300 workers in Western New York, meaning a possible United Auto Workers would have a significant impact here. The Sept. 14 expiration on the current contract is quickly approaching, but the International Union, UAW is still negotiating with the Detroit Three automakers — Ford, GM and Stellantis . The union voted last week in favor of strike authorization, giving its leaders the ability to call for a strike after the contract expires. |? Read more

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Inside the project that killed Savarino Cos.

The problems that led to a decision to shut down Savarino Cos. started about two years ago, during a project gone wrong at Alfred State College.

Savarino now is suing the DASNY (Dormitory Authority - State of New York ) of the State of New York for $3.3 million, alleging wrongful termination of contract, according to a complaint filed in November 2022 in state Supreme Court in Albany. DASNY is counter suing and seeking $4.85 million in damages, according to an answer with counterclaim filed in March.? |? Read more

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August's restaurant news: 8 closings, 11 openings

Tracey Drury reported about dozens of new restaurants or expansions in development across Western New York, as well as eight closings and 11 openings. That’s in addition to more than a dozen projects underway and several site expansions or renovations. |? Read more

Plus, a mixed-use project is coming to the former Locker Room bar; a Thai restaurant is opening in a university food court; Cinnabon will open its first Western New York site; and Pizza Hut's third return-to-area site opens.

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Extra Space exec talks merger strategy

About one month in since the merger deal with Life Storage closed, Extra Space Storage has hit the ground running.

Already, the Salt Lake City-based company has completed step one of training Life Storage workers so that the self-storage facilities operate smoothly from a technical and customer service standpoint. The company has also gotten all of Life Storage’s about 1,150 storage facilities on Extra Space’s point-of-sales system.

“Something that was really unique and special about this whole deal is the cooperation that we were given by the Life Storage team,” Noah Springer, Extra Space’s chief strategy officer who oversaw a lot of the merging projects, told Business First's Lian Bunny for her story about the transition. |? Read more

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July's high-end deals: Million-dollar-plus sales slip

Million-dollar sales slipped in July at the same time high-end transactions — defined as worth $400,000 or more — climbed slightly overall.? |? Read more

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This Weekly Edition was compiled by Sara Paulson Meehan. Questions? Comments? Concerns??Send them to [email protected].