BUFFALO, NY — Joined by preservation advocates, New York State Assemblymember Jon D. Rivera today announced the passage of legislation (A10733) that authorizes the Commissioner of General Services, with the consent of the Commissioner of Mental Health, to transfer approximately 1.62 acres of state-owned land on the former Buffalo Psychiatric Center campus to the Richardson Center Corporation for redevelopment as part of a mixed-use campus that will serve residents, visitors, and the broader Western New York community.

The legislation marks a significant victory for historic preservation efforts while advancing a long-term vision to better connect the Richardson Olmsted campus to Buffalo’s thriving cultural corridor, including the Buffalo AKG Art Museum and the Burchfield Penney Art Center.

"The Richardson Olmsted Campus is one of Western New York's most treasured architectural landmarks, and this legislation helps ensure its future remains as bright as its past is significant," said Assemblymember Rivera. "By authorizing the transfer of these underutilized parcels, we are preserving historic buildings, preventing demolition, and creating new opportunities for housing, arts, culture, and economic development. This is about protecting our history while investing in Buffalo's future."

The former Buffalo Psychiatric Center campus, designed by renowned architect Henry Hobson Richardson and landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, represents one of the region's most historically and architecturally significant sites. Over the past decade, a successful public-private partnership led by the Richardson Center Corporation has transformed portions of the once-vacant campus into a destination for tourism, hospitality, recreation, and community engagement.

Despite that progress, several smaller parcels remained under state ownership and could not be incorporated into the broader redevelopment plan without legislative authorization. The parcels covered by A10733 are no longer needed for state operations and have remained underutilized, creating gaps in the cohesive redevelopment of the campus.

The Richardson Center Corporation now envisions a mixed-use development that could include housing, artist residency space connected to nearby cultural institutions, and additional arts-focused programming. The project would further strengthen connections between the Richardson campus, the Buffalo AKG Art Museum, and the Burchfield Penney Art Center, creating a more unified cultural destination on Buffalo's West Side.

Importantly, the legislation ensures that historic structures located on the property will be rehabilitated and reused rather than demolished. Among them is a vacant three-story brick building originally constructed in 1904-1905 as housing for male attendants of the asylum and later repurposed as the Nurses Training School.

"The Richardson Center Corporation and citizen preservation groups have demonstrated time and again that historic preservation and economic development can go hand in hand," Rivera added. "Their stewardship of this campus has transformed neglected buildings into vibrant community assets. This legislation gives them the tools they need to continue that work and bring these remaining properties back to productive use."

Paris Roselli, President of the Richardson Olmsted Campus said, “On behalf of the Board of Directors of the non-profit Richardson Olmsted Campus, we would like to thank Assemblyman Rivera and his team for facilitating the transfer of these buildings as we restore and reactivate one of Buffalo’s most iconic sites. Through a successful public-private partnership, vacant and blighted historic buildings have been reimagined and reactivated, and the historic Olmsted landscape has been rehabilitated for the benefit of the community.

“Over time, this project has added three buildings to the tax rolls, supported countless construction and trade jobs, and delivered a unique boutique hotel experience for visitors to Buffalo while employing dozens of people,” he continued. “Now, a fourth building, the Lipsey Architecture Center Buffalo is undergoing a multi-million-dollar rehabilitation just across the street. Instead of being demolished these buildings will be reactivated and will connect the Museum Corridor from the historic Richardson Campus to Burchfield Penney, AKG, Forest Lawn, Olmsted Parks and more.”