Two of the most closely watched development sites in downtown Buffalo are converging on the same milestone at the same time: actual construction. After a combined decade of planning, stalls, redesigns, and financing complications, Heritage Point and the North Aud Block at Canalside are both moving toward active building in 2026. Together they represent more than $230 million in new investment and, if completed, would add 312 apartments and tens of thousands of square feet of retail to the heart of Buffalo's waterfront.

Heritage Point: A Long Road Back

Heritage Point is a $40 million mixed-use project on a small but prominent Canalside parcel. Developer Sinatra & Company Real Estate broke ground in 2021, but construction halted in March 2024 after the financing package fell apart. The site sat idle for most of two years as cost escalation, high interest rates, environmental complications including a high water table, and contaminated soil remediation drove estimated costs from $21 million at conception to roughly $40 million by 2024.

The path back began in January 2025, when Empire State Development agreed to provide a $4 million, 3% interest loan payable only upon substantial completion, with a 25-year term. That gave Sinatra enough leverage to reassemble a lending group — but the process took longer than expected, and promises to restart in spring 2025 went unfulfilled.

The definitive turning point came in February 2026. Empire State Development confirmed that Sinatra had completed a financial closing, and the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation (ECHDC) set a hard deadline: construction must resume by April 1, 2026, weather permitting. The development corporation also required mandatory monthly construction reports and stated explicitly that no state funds would be distributed until completion in spring 2027.

The final ingredient was an investment from Terry Pegula, owner of the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres. Pete Guelli, president of business operations for both teams, confirmed the involvement, stating that given the proximity to KeyBank Center and Harborcenter, Pegula felt it was important to step in to ensure the project is completed as part of his desire to see the area move forward.

When finished, Heritage Point will deliver 61 apartments and ground-level retail space on a site that has been fenced off and half-built for years. The project's completion — now targeted for spring 2027 — is a prerequisite for the area's credibility as a place where large-scale development actually gets done.

North Aud Block: $190 Million, 251 Apartments, Imminent Groundbreaking

A few hundred feet away, on what has been an empty pit at the corner of Main Street and Lower Terrace Street, a far larger project is approaching its own groundbreaking. Brooklyn-based developer Pennrose was selected by ECHDC through a competitive RFP process and spent more than two years working through design revisions, cost increases, and planning approvals before presenting updated plans to the Buffalo Planning Board in June 2025.

The revised $190 million project calls for three buildings on the 1.85-acre North Aud Block: a 12-story tower, a five-story mid-rise, and a single-story retail structure. Combined, the two residential buildings will hold 251 apartments. The retail building will offer 17,000 to 18,000 square feet of commercial space. According to Pennrose's project page, 75 percent of units will be designated affordable (for households earning 40 to 80 percent of AMI), with 25 percent at market rate — an unusual mixed-income structure for a private waterfront development.

The construction timeline targets roughly 30 months from groundbreaking. Local reporting in early 2026 indicated that Pennrose planned to close on the land acquisition from ECHDC by April, with construction starting by mid-to-late spring 2026. The project includes a 130-vehicle parking structure, significant green plaza space, and high-end finishes including terracotta masonry.

The Broader Canalside Picture

Heritage Point and North Aud are not the only activity around Buffalo's waterfront. ECHDC has described an overall effort to deliver more than 1,300 new apartments in or near Canalside as part of a longer-term revitalization vision. The district already draws more than one million visitors per year and functions as a year-round events hub — a foundation that developers and state officials argue justifies the scale of investment now flowing into the area.

The North Aud Block itself carries particular symbolic weight. The site was cleared more than 15 years ago when the old Memorial Auditorium was demolished, and it has sat as a hole in the ground ever since — a constant reminder of the gap between ambition and execution at Canalside. If Pennrose's construction proceeds on schedule, the building shells could be rising by late 2026.

What the Projects Mean for Construction Activity

For the construction sector, both projects represent meaningful near-term work. Heritage Point is a 12-to-13-month build from restart, involving trades including structural steel, concrete, mechanical systems, and finishes on an active urban site with documented environmental constraints. North Aud Block at $190 million and 30 months of construction will demand a substantially larger and longer labor commitment — one of the larger private mixed-use projects to get underway in Buffalo in recent years.

The convergence of both projects in the same construction season is a notable development for a waterfront district that has spent years promising more than it has delivered.

Key Project Figures at a Glance

• Heritage Point: $40 million total cost; 61 apartments; ground-floor retail; developer Sinatra & Company Real Estate; hard completion deadline of spring 2027
• North Aud Block (Pennrose): $190 million total cost; 251 apartments across two buildings (12-story and 5-story); 17,000–18,000 sq ft of retail; 130-vehicle parking structure; 75% affordable / 25% market rate; ~30-month construction timeline
• Combined investment: More than $230 million; 312 new apartments; part of a broader 1,300-unit Canalside-area goal
• State oversight: Both projects are subject to ECHDC monitoring and milestone requirements; no state disbursements until Heritage Point achieves substantial completion

The scale of the North Aud Block project in particular places it among the largest active private mixed-use construction starts in Erie County in this cycle. At 340,000 square feet total — two residential towers, a retail building, and a structured parking component — it will require sustained coordination among multiple trades across a site that sits at the intersection of the city's waterfront and its downtown street grid. Terracotta masonry finishes and an integrated plaza are intended to signal permanence and quality in a location that has been a gap in the urban fabric for 15 years.

Sources

WKBW – Heritage Point Back on Track with Pegula Investment (Feb. 26, 2026) | WKBW – Heritage Point Moving Forward with State Loan (Jan. 15, 2025) | Buffalo Toronto Public Media – $190 Million North Aud Block Development (June 20, 2025) | WKBW – Updated Plans for North Aud Block (June 20, 2025) | Pennrose – North Aud Project Overview | WBEN/Audacy – Canalside New Apartments (Feb. 9, 2026) | Buffalo Business First – Sinatra to Restart Heritage Point (Jan. 14, 2025)