Short
Histories of
Not-for-Profit Preservation Organizations in
Buffalo, NY - Table of Contents
Explore Buffalo - A Short History
Explore
Buffalo
does not list preservation in its mission statement, but, in
effect, it functions as an important educational wing of Buffalo
preservation.
Existence:
2014-present |
Reason
for Formation: Formed
by about three dozen
experienced docents who wanted to develop their own tour
organization
to educate the public about Greater Buffalo’s architecture,
history and
neighborhoods |
Mission:
Explore Buffalo promotes Buffalo
and Western New York history, architecture, and neighborhoods
through
quality education to learners of all ages. |
Some
of the leaders: Founders: Ron EatonBoard Presidents: Chuck LaChiusa Executive director: Brad Hahn |
The
Origins of Explore
Buffalo Speech
given
on May 9, 2023, at the Explore Buffalo Tenth Anniversary
Celebration Held
at
the Buffalo Yacht Club, 1 Porter Avenue, Buffalo By
Chuck
LaChiusa In 2011, Buffalo became known nationally in the
preservation world for its historic architecture. Here’s how it
happened: Before 2011, there were three preservation orgs in
Buffalo: the Landmark
Society of the
Niagara Frontier, the Preservation Coalition of Erie
County, and the Campaign
for Greater Buffalo History, Architecture & Culture. The main mission, of course, was preservation, but each
organization
also had a tour program. The tour groups of the Landmark Society
and the
Preservation Coalition worked closely together, even the though
the
organizations were separate. The three organizations, in concert, attempted to bid for
the 2011 National Trust
Conference, but
the National Trust refused to entertain a
bid that was being sponsored by three small preservation groups,
so two of them
– the Landmark Society and the Preservation Coalition -
merged into a
larger organization: Preservation Buffalo Niagara. Preservation Buffalo Niagara won the bid to host the 2011
National Trust Conference, and this is when Buffalo became
known nationally
in the preservation world for its historic architecture. By 1913, Preservation Buffalo Niagara had about 100
volunteer docents giving tours.
A
conflict developed between the preservation group (wing?) and
the tour group (wing?)
over the direction and leadership for the tours.
In the fall of 2013 the docents decided to spin
off and form their own organization. They called it Explore
Buffalo. About a dozen docents donated and loaned money to hire an
executive directive who was a docent and who had graduated from
UB the previous
May: Brad Hahn.
Explore Buffalo began functioning publicly on
Jan 1, 2014. The office for the new organization was a broom closet in
First Presbyterian Church. It cost $90 a month and
included free Wifi
and use of the church’s copier. ·
We decided against offering public
memberships. Voting members are still our active volunteers. ·
The board, with one exception, was comprised
of docents. The docent-only board policy continued until 2018 ·
Board terms would be three years, and no one
could serve more than two terms, insuring new blood into the
organization. Here are some other milestones in our
history: ·
The first annual fundraiser
gala was
held in January of 2014 ·
We started email alerts
in 2014 and
expanded them significantly during the pandemic in 2020. ·
Children’s tours
were offered starting in 2014. By 2019 we provided tours to over
4,500
students. ·
We moved out the closet and
into larger rooms
in First Pres in June 2015. The former office is now
used once again as
a closet. ·
We started annual training
for new docents in
2015. 22 new docents graduated in that class. ·
We added a docent-led
speaker series at
First Pres in January 2015. We thought we might get 30 people.
191 showed up. ·
We started selling annual Explorer
Passes
in 2015 ·
We offered winter tours
starting in
2016 ·
We received our own 501c3
status in 2017. Until
then we had been part of the Wellness Institute of Greater
Buffalo, led by the
late Phil Haberstro. ·
Doors Open
began in 2019 ·
Houses of Worship
tours were started in 2020 ·
Because of Covid, we
started training new
docents partially by Zoom in 2021 ·
We have added a full or
part time staff
member approximately every year. ·
Today we have about 150
active docents. ·
We offer about 200 tours each month during
the summer. For a total of more than 1,500 tours annually. And here we are 10 years later. Not bad. |
Operation: Website 2020 - Sells annual passes (no memberships) 2020 - More than 90 different tours available by foot, bike, bus, kayak, and boat: some tours available year-round 2020 - Tours provided for K-12 students from local schools, for local colleges, and for private groups 2020 - Three annual docent training classes for new volunteer docents: winter, spring, and fall 2020 - Winter Speaker Series features a variety of local history topics 2020 - Staff include the Executive Director, Deputy Director, Education Coordinator, and Development Coordinator |
Accomplishments: Annual Attendance: 2014: 6,2192019: K-12 school tour attendance increased by 35% to 4,600 students, including more than 1,000 Buffalo Public School students who received a free tour. 2019: Explore Buffalo organized the first Doors Open Buffalo event, providing free access on a Saturday to 36 downtown locations for 3,800 people. Awards: 2019 - Buffalo Spree Best of WNY - Best Tours (New category) Visit Buffalo Niagara Volunteer of the Year: 2016 - Ann Palmer2018 - Visit Buffalo Niagara Tourism Executive of the Year: Brad Hahn 2015 & 2016 - Artvoice - Best of Buffalo - Best Tours (Awards Discontinued) |
Additional
online information: 2014 - Elizabeth Licata, Preservation: Explore Buffalo (online April 2020) August 2014 - NY Magazine, "Weekend Escape Plan: Buffalo" (online April 2020) July 2016 - Toronto Star, "How to love Buffalo's Silo City" (online April 2020) July 2017 - USA Today, "Buffalo Builds on Architectural Tourism" (online April 2020) July 2017 - The Globe & Mail, "Buffalo's past glory lives on in its architecture" (online April 2020) July 2017 - Cleveland.com, "Exploring Buffalo's Waterfront Renaissance (online April 2020) Aug 2017 - Toronto Star, "Restored classic architecture gives a window in to Buffalo’s prosperous past" (online April 2020) 2017 - Annual Report Sept 2018 - Wall Street Journal, "Escape to Buffalo" (online April 2020) Dec 2018 - Washington Post, "Things to do in Buffalo" (online April 2020) 2018 - Annual Report Aug 2019 - Boston Globe, "What better way to tell the story of a place than through its buildings? (online April 2020) Explore Buffalo 2020 Guidebook 2020 |
Page
by Chuck LaChiusa in 2020
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