For more than a century, Tonawanda Island in North Tonawanda sat largely underdeveloped despite one of the most distinctive locations in Western New York -- a 30-plus-acre island at the confluence of the Niagara River and the Erie Canal, surrounded by water and separated from the mainland by a short bridge. That is about to change. This summer, Clarence-based developer VisoneCo is expected to break ground on the first-ever residential development on Tonawanda Island: a $21.9 million, 80-plus unit mixed-use complex at 78 Bridge Street.

The project -- known as Bridge Street Landing -- will transform a 3.3-acre parcel that previously served as the site of the Niagara County Fire Training Center, and before that, for lumber and boat storage. The development will consist of a three-story, 100,430-square-foot building with 73 market-rate apartment units, seven vacation rental and residence hotel units, and ground-floor retail and public waterfront access. Unit types will include studios, one-bedrooms, two-bedrooms, and three-bedrooms.

A Public-Private Infrastructure Model

The project's most structurally significant component may be what sits beneath the building. Before vertical construction can begin, the island needs $5.6 million in infrastructure upgrades to water lines, storm water drainage, gas, electrical, sewer systems, sidewalks, and roadways -- work the City of North Tonawanda has been unable to fund on its own.

Mayor Austin Tylec has structured this as a public-private partnership: VisoneCo will construct and finance the full $5.6 million in infrastructure improvements, which will then turn over to the city upon completion. The city carries no new bond obligation. According to local reporting, North Tonawanda received $2.5 million in state Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) funds in late 2025 specifically to support this infrastructure upgrade, which Tylec has called a catalyst for the broader island.

The project also received $750,000 from North Tonawanda's $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative award to fund a public waterfront benefit area along the riverside frontage -- ensuring that the island's scenic water access is opened to all residents and visitors, not restricted to Building residents.

How the Site Was Selected

The City of North Tonawanda began actively seeking a developer for the 78 Bridge Street site in 2019, going through three separate Request for Proposals processes over five years. The RFP issued in May 2024 set out requirements for mixed-use development with housing, commercial uses, and public waterfront activation.

North Tonawanda's Common Council named VisoneCo as its preferred developer in January 2025 and sold the city-owned parcel for $389,000 the following March. VisoneCo is also applying for assistance through the state's Brownfield Cleanup Program, which, if granted, would provide additional tax credits tied to the site's environmental remediation history.

VisoneCo is not a newcomer to North Tonawanda. The developer has already built or is constructing the 88-unit 600 River Road Apartments, the nine-unit 622 River Road mixed-use building, and the 108-unit 624 River Road Apartments along the Niagara River corridor. The company also completed site work for the Herschell Carrousel Factory Museum expansion. This track record was central to the city's confidence in the developer for the island's first residential project.

The Island's Long-Term Potential

Mayor Tylec has framed Bridge Street Landing as far more than a single project. In comments to WKBW, he described the island's long-term economic potential as over half a billion dollars of investment if the remaining 30-plus acres -- most of it privately owned -- can be activated by the infrastructure improvements being built through the Bridge Street Landing deal. He estimates a fully developed Tonawanda Island could increase the city's population by more than 1,000 residents.

That projection reflects a core challenge facing North Tonawanda and many Erie County communities: the need for new housing inventory to support economic growth without displacing existing residents or straining municipal finances. The public-private infrastructure model used here -- where VisoneCo carries the construction cost and transfers the completed utilities to the city -- offers a template for how smaller municipalities can unlock major development without incurring new bonded debt.

Construction Scope and Timeline

Groundbreaking on the Bridge Street Landing complex is expected in summer 2026, with the first tenants targeted for summer 2028. The construction program encompasses both the $5.6 million site infrastructure phase and the vertical construction of the 100,430-square-foot residential and mixed-use structure. The infrastructure work -- water, sewer, gas, electrical, storm drainage -- will be the first phase, creating the utility backbone that future development on the island will also depend on.

For construction contractors in the region, the Bridge Street Landing project represents a rare combination: civil site work, utility installation, and a three-story mixed-use residential building, all on a waterfront island that has never had a residential structure. The site's constrained access and waterfront location add logistical complexity to an otherwise standard mid-rise construction program.

Sources

WKBW: North Tonawanda Takes Step Closer to Tonawanda Island Redevelopment
North Tonawanda Using State Funds for Bridge Street Landing Infrastructure
Lumber City Development Corp.: 78 Bridge Street RFP, May 2024 (PDF)
Governor Hochul: North Tonawanda DRI Transformational Projects, December 2022
VisoneCo Site Development: Real Estate Development