The Delaware North Building – home of Delaware North’s global headquarters in Buffalo, N.Y. – on Monday evening won a statewide award for Excellence in Mixed-Use Development from the Urban Land Institute (ULI).
Acknowledged as one of the most prestigious awards in the industry, ULI New York Awards for Excellence in Development selects winners based on projects in public, private and non-profit sectors that best exemplify ULI’s commitment to responsible land use and creating sustainable, thriving communities. In January, judges from ULI New York toured The Delaware North Building – developed by Uniland in collaboration with Delaware North – as part of the competition.
“This honor from the Urban Land Institute is a testament to Buffalo’s resurgence, which we’re thrilled to be part of with our partners at Uniland,” said Delaware North Co-CEO Jerry Jacobs Jr. “Delaware North is an innovative company operating in an increasingly interconnected and global economy, and we’re continuously moving toward what’s next. We designed our space in The Delaware North Building to reflect and complement our approach to business. We hope that more companies see in our building the potential for Buffalo.”
As one of two finalists for the award, The Delaware North Building was in direct competition with City Point of Brooklyn, a 1.9-million-square-foot mixed-use development featuring 650,000 square feet of commercial space, 430 units of market-rate rental housing and 250 mixed-income rentals. Communities and developers submit projects for office, institutional, housing, hotel, mixed-use development, repositioning or redevelopment, and civic space.
“This is an incredible honor, especially considering the project that we were up against. I interpret this as a sign that we are doing projects in Buffalo that are to scale for our community while making an economic and environmental impact,” said Michael Montante, Uniland vice president. “We look forward to developing other progressive and beneficial types of real estate projects that maintain ULI’s standards in the future.”
Aside from serving as Delaware North’s global headquarters, the stunning building also contains The Westin Buffalo hotel (owned and operated by Delaware North), a pair of company-owned-and-operated restaurants (Patina 250 and Jake’s Café), Class A office space, an adjacent parking garage and underground parking. The project’s design integrates the latest advances in environmental and energy conservation, producing a Silver LEED® certification. The building also features a 7,000-square-foot courtyard and the area’s largest living plant wall, providing an urban oasis in the middle of the city.
“We are thrilled that the Urban Land Institute has recognized The Delaware North Building as a stellar example of mixed-use development in competition with an impressive New York City development,” said Dan Zimmer, vice president of corporate finance and development for Delaware North. “Delaware North worked with Uniland on this project from the beginning and made a very significant investment in the building, so it’s great to see that our designs for the company’s global headquarters offices, The Westin Buffalo and Patina 250 contributed to this honor.”
PHOTO CAPTION: Dan Zimmer (right), vice president of corporate finance and development for Delaware North, and Uniland Vice President Michael Montante (left) are all smiles with the award for Excellence in Mixed-Use Development from the Urban Land Institute.