Niagara Falls continues Main Street revitalization; unveils Niagara University housing plan

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. (WKBW) — Niagara Falls unveiled plans to turn a Main Street building that has been vacant for decades into Niagara University student housing, as plans to revitalize dozens of properties in the corridor continue.

For decades, several blocks of Main Street in Niagara Falls have been left to rot, but in 2024, plans were announced to redevelop several long-forgotten buildings.

WATCH: Niagara Falls continues Main Street revitalization; unveils Niagara University housing plan

“It’s not going to be the Main Street of our childhood. It’s going to be better,” Mayor Robert Restaino said in 2024.

He and the City of Niagara Falls acquired 38 Main Street properties, between Ontario Avenue and Michigan Avenue, from absentee landlords to resell them to new developers through incentivized deals.

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Restaino said the city has made deals for a little less than half of the 38 total properties. These properties carry so many memories for residents, like Jenss Department Store or The Rapids Theater.

“I would say we are at least in the 20s of properties we still have that we’re looking to develop,” Restaino said. “And now, what was the initial, I would say, linchpin or centerpiece of what we hope to do on Main Street is happening.”

The centerpiece that he referred to is 2018 and 2010 Main Street, a building that has been boarded up since, at the very least, 2007.

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Developer Abe Bose announced plans to invest $25 million into the building to transform it into Niagara University student housing. He said that it would host 100 units of student housing and commercial space.

“It’s not just about replacing blighted structures with modern, premium student housing and ground-floor retail. It’s about creating an economic engine that brings foot traffic and daily activity back to this block,” Bose said.

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While that is a nice addition, Restaino hopes it will be a catalyst to find even more developers.

“Collectively, there’s in excess of $50 million of private investment here,” Restaino said.

Projects underway include both market rate apartments and commercial buildings. They have various completion dates, but Restaino hopes to see the Niagara University housing open late 2028.