Social Class in Buffalo
A West Side Walking Tour
SPC 333
Time: About 2 hours.
Distance: About 2 miles.
UPDATED 2011
Choose a nice sunny day during business hours (many of the more interesting businesses close at about 5 PM). You will be walking through neighborhoods that are segregated by social class. It is important that you complete the entire circuit as it is mapped out. Allow at least 2 hours for a leisurely stroll with breaks for refreshments. Blend in and try not to look like a tourist - you'll be more comfortable and have a better perspective for observation. Try walking in groups of no more than two. Remember, this is a walking tour, not a driving tour, and not a virtual Google Street View tour -- it will show.
Please Note : Two students were harassed by a rouge police officer while completing this assignment. The college filed a complaint, and this should not happen again. Please be aware, however, and do not react in a confrontation manner if questioned or otherwise harassed by a police officer. Remember, you are doing fieldwork, and your job is to observe. Jot down any observations AFTER any such encounter -- not during the encounter. Also, if anyone has medical or disability reasons that precludes your being able to complete this tour, or have any other reasons why you can't walk on this tour, please contact me.
WRITE A SHORT REACTION TO THIS TOUR AND HAND IT IN WEEK EIGHT.
Please Note: Your outdoor activities on Grant Street and Elmwood Ave. will be monitored by police cameras mounted on street light poles. The cameras are in operation 24 hours per day and capture images of people (and cars) as they enter and leave side streets and buildings.
Begin by parking your car at West Side Center (Grossman's Bargain Outlet) parking lot on West Ferry Street west of Grant Street. By bus from campus, take Grant Street Bus South (Tops Side of Street) to West Ferry and get off at corner of Grant and West Ferry. Or walk or bike (Blue Bikes available on campus for BSC students – check http://www.buffalobluebicycle.org/) south from Buff State on Grant Street to West Ferry. Walk bike on tour.
The former Quality Market is now Grossman's Bargain Outlet, leaving this community without a supermarket. When it was open, students observed that it regularly sold out-of-date meat.
This plaza's parking lot mis mostly empty, as are its stores. Why doesn’t this plaza work?
Look at the people eating at McDonald 's. Do they look like the folks in the ads? Explain. Do you think the folks in the ads eat at McDonald 's?
Across the street from McDonald’s is the Rent-a-Center. "Easy Ownership" "No Credit Needed" "Get it Today."
Also across the street is Dibble's True Value Hardware. It 's a great place. They have all those odd sized screws and a good selection of cast iron cookware. Why hasn't Home Depot driven them out of business?
Walk east on West Ferry back toward Grant Street.
On your right is the Eckerd Building. It displaces the small storefronts that were previously there. The setback architecture is designed for autos, not people. This is the same architecture that failed in West Side Plaza. This big box is destructive to the unique urban character of this neighborhood. The DVD Dot (out of business) building across the street is another big box that displaced another slew of small storefronts. It was initially built for a Rite Aid, but they moved four blocks away where they destroyed another group of storefronts to build yet another big box. The new businesses provide low wage jobs for generally unhappy workers, while extracting wealth from the neighborhood and providing profits for their corporate owners. This macroeconomic relationship contributes to the poverty you see around you. More on Rite Aid later.
Stop in at Russ' Pastry shop (closes at 5PM) (Update - Now Closed Forever - Peek in the window) and treat yourself well. If you're not into that sugar thing, they also have coffee and tea. I recommend the cannoli. Talk to people while eating. Who is there? What's the buzz? How does this place differ from Starbucks? What types of payment do they accept?
Rental center number 2, the Rent Way, is across the street.
Proceed north (left) on Grant. The boarded up store window on the next corner used to sport a large “no loitering” sign. As a teenager, did you ever commit this crime? What was your punishment. Are you loitering now? Are they watching you at the control center? As a child, did you and your friends have space to be?
Notice the small independent businesses.
Rental center number 3, Aaron's Rental, is on the left.
Rental center number 4, Rent A Center, is on the right. Stop in and "shop" at one of these stores. Pick an item you already own such as a TV or a boom box or a watch, chair or lamp (something you know the value of) and check out the price. Ask the salesperson (almost always a man in these shops) questions about a product whose price you are familiar with? Is s/he a thief? A parasite? A saint? Have you been to a Rent-a-Center before? If not, why not? Did you have stores like this in your neighborhood? Why are there so many of them here? How do you feel about these stores? Who owns them? What is their effect on the community?
Maybe have lunch at the small outdoor garage-sized restaurant if the weather is nice (Update - It is closed).
Continue north to Grant Street's gaming and banking district. Poke your head into OTB and sit a spell. Observe people here. Do folks at OTB seem happy or hopeful? Do they seem like they win often? Do they seem like they can afford to be taxed like this? Treat these as open ended questions. What's going on here? Sit here and jot down as many observations as you can.
Next go across the street to Frontier Beverages. A lot of things are going on in this store, which serves as a beer store, a sort of bank, and a bit of a (lotto) casino. What services dows this store provide andWhy?
Walk on into the store proper. (This really isn't a bad store at all). There used to be a sign at the checkout register for free Lay-A-Ways on Easter Candy. What's up here? Do you shop on lay-a-way? Do you find the expense of Easter Candy to be prohibitive?
Who's hanging out on the street?
Are you comfortable here?
Continue north past the Family Health Center and the Meating Place.
Continue north past the Salvation Army and G&L flooring. Will Home Depot kill G&L?
Poke your head into the Grant laundry and see what's on TV. Where did your family do laundry when you were a child?
Continue north past Church on right and Nails shop on left, former home of the Lay-A-Way mattress shop.
Poke your head into the Sweetness7 Cafe. What's up with this business?
Go into Guercio's . Guercio's will draw you back to Grant Street. Buy something - perhaps a deli sandwich (if someone feels like making one for you). Get drawn into a conversation - you "ll learn stuff. Ask the cashier for a recipe. Don't be afraid - nobody bites hard. Mrs. Ippolito's Sewing Room is next door.
Maybe visit Sweet Sound music. What’s the difference between Bachata and Meringue?
Proceed north to C.O.P.S. storefront. If the door is open you can poke your head in for a few anti-crime brochures (Update - C.O.P.S. is closed)
Turn around now and double back south on Grant until Breckenridge street. Make left (EAST) on Breckenridge and head east toward the Elmwood Strip. You are now traveling through Buffalo 's class maze. The further east you go (on this tour), the higher the social class status of the community.
Notice as the age, condition and density of parked cars changes from block to block. Notice the housing stock (condition/size/detail/quality) change as you move east. Continue until Breckenridge ends at Elmwood Ave.
Stop at the corner of Elmwood for a few moments and carefully look around. Compare these shops to the ones on Grant Street. How do the restaurants differ? How are they similar? How are the boutiques different? Walk into Spot Coffee. How does it differ from Russ' Pastry Shop? (well, it's open, I guess). Who is shopping here on Elmwood Ave.? Check out Elmwood one block in each direction. Think Grant Street. Have you been to this section of Elmwood Avenue before? Have you been to Grant Street before?
Are you comfortable here? Do you feel you can sit down and organize your notes here?
From the corner of Elmwood and Breckenridge, Make a left (north) on Elmwood and then a right (east) on Cleveland Ave. (Cleveland is only a few hundred feet north of Breckenridge at Spot Coffee and begins at Elmwood - it is basically the continuation of Breckenridge). Walk east on Cleveland Ave. As you stroll (people "stroll" here) down Cleveland, think Breckenridge and Grant. Observe differences. Similarities.
Coming up on your right will be St. Catharine's Court. This is a public street. It is a loop. Take a short walk on St. Catharine's, then continue east on Cleveland. On your left will be Nardin Academy, a private Catholic girls school with a fairly steep tuition. Students here score well on standardized exams. Were they born smarter? Continue past Nardin.
Note various visible clues differentiating this neighborhood from the Grant Street neighborhood.
Make a right (south) onto Tudor Place (only one block long). This is an important part of the tour so I hope you are still with us. No need to say anything here. Oh yeah, stay off of people's lawns.
Are you comfortable here?
Make a right (west) on West Ferry . Continue west across Elmwwod and Richmond Avenues towards Grant street while again noticing the block by block change in social class. When you return to Grant Street you'll pass the best lit corner in Buffalo at Fort La Nova. Continue past the strip mall tanning salon and finally back to your car/bus stop. If Russ' is still open, pick up a treat for the housemates (Sorry, No Russ's) .