Tag: #buffalo

Seneca One DEEP DIVE: Connor Kenney + The Progress of Buffalo

Posted on

Welcome to this week’s Seneca One Deep Dive! The team at Seneca One identifies exciting up-and-coming people, projects, and companies to dive into and share with our audiences. This week we’re soaking it all in with Connor Kenney, Development Manager of SAA| EVI.

BUFFALO, NY- Connor Kenney has seen a lot of progress working in commercial real estate and is very encouraged by the progress he sees here in Buffalo. 

Kenney, a developer who currently oversees SAA | EVI’s projects in New York State and throughout the Great Lakes, double dips as a commercial tenant and residential tenant here at Seneca One, a place that he saw as an opportunity to grow alongside the city in this new economic adventure.

“It’s great. As you mentioned, I live in the building as well. I think it takes me two minutes to go from my apartment door to my office,” Kenney said. “Between that, the food hall, and the bar in the lobby – I don’t need to leave much. Douglas has done an amazing job breathing life back into the building and creating a product type that, frankly, did not exist in this city before he came.”

Kenney fell backward into real estate development. He was on the verge of going to law school until a family member who worked at the University at Buffalo told him about the school’s Masters of Science in Real Estate Development program.

This piqued his interest, and in 2017, Kenney finished the program and has since been working in Real Estate Development. He started his career as a Real Estate Developer at PathStone Corporation in Rochester, NY. He was responsible for developing affordable and mixed-income housing throughout PathStone’s geographic footprint during his time there.

In 2020, his development efforts led to closing on a $44 MM, 157-unit Low Income Housing Tax Credit deal at the former Irondequoit Mall just outside of Rochester. His success caught the eye of one of the Co-Managing Members SAA | EVI, David Alexander.

“David lives in Miami now, but he grew up in Buffalo. We have an office in Miami and Baltimore, but our company was founded in Buffalo,” Kenney said. “We thought it was very appropriate to have an office here. Ernst  Valery and David Alexander, and Stuart Alexander before them, have done an awesome job building the company over the years. We have active projects in 9 states right now. That is not easy to do. I’m fortunate to be able to learn from them and grateful to them for trusting me and giving me a platform to do what I am passionate about. I’m excited to see what we can accomplish together in the future.”

Kenney has embraced his return to Buffalo, calling Seneca One home. He conducts business on the 29th floor at Serendipity Labs, and then when he is done, he takes the elevator down the main lobby and makes his way to his apartment.

The ease of access and peace of mind allow Kenney to grow SAA | EVI here in Buffalo. He has also enjoyed returning to his hometown and soaking it all in.

“I grew up in Buffalo. My family is here. I can’t predict the future and where life might take me, but I will always come back to Buffalo,” Kenney said.  “I’ve been fortunate to travel a lot personally, and I am usually out of town for work for a week every month. I’ve seen a lot of different cities. But Buffalo is a special place. There is no place like Buffalo.”

Kenney is proud of his city, proud to be here, and we look forward to seeing him continue on this successful trajectory.

Seneca One DEEP DIVE: Roger Orozco + The City of Good Neighbors

Posted on

Welcome to the Seneca One Deep Dive! The team at Seneca One identifies exciting up-and-coming people, projects, and companies to dive into and share with our audiences. This week we’re swimming to shore with Roger Orozco, Facilities Manager of All Pro Parking LLC.

BUFFALO, NY: It’s a warm summer Friday night at Seneca One, and Roger Orozco is manning the grill.

Through the haze of smoke and the delicious smell of smoked meat is a sea of Buffalonians ready to feast on some Sahlen’s hot dogs after a night at the Buffalo Bisons’ game.

“I GOT TWO READY TO GO,” Orozco says, as a man and his young child approach the table to collect their free hot dogs. The process goes round and round for a few hours until everyone is fed. By the end of the night, Orozco has served 250 hot dogs to over 200 people, with a giant smile on his face.

Orozco is the Facilities Manager for All Pro Parking LLC for Seneca One, Larkinville, and the Buffalo Grand Hotel. He is also on the Buffalo Bills Committee. He wears many hats, and when he isn’t cooking hot dogs for the “City of Good Neighbors,” trying to keep folding tables on all fours at Bill tailgates, he’s helping the tenants and residents of Seneca One and the greater WNY community navigate their way through downtown Buffalo, something he takes great pride in.

“It’s the people at Seneca One that make it my special and favorite place,” Orozco said. “It’s cool to say that I work at the “red building.” Also, the vibe at Seneca One is a fascinating anomaly.”

Since taking over as Facilities Manager in 2014, Orozco has gone above and beyond to provide a positive atmosphere and exceptional hospitality to those of Seneca One. It doesn’t matter to him if the task at hand falls in line with his job description, he’s a team player with the same shared vision as the rest of the team here at Seneca One, and that is to maintain a high quality of life.

Need directions to the best restaurant in town? Roger has a list memorized and has no problem telling you what to order when you arrive. Need a pick-me-up or a motivational quote for the day? Roger is your hype man and always has some type of quote to lift you up on those days you might be feeling down.

He loves his job. He loves the people of Buffalo. He wants to see this city get back to its glory days, and as the Facilities Manager, he’s the first impression someone has of the Seneca One Community when they arrive. He’s like a public relations representative for the community of Buffalo.

“As a Buffalonian, it’s amazing to see the transformation of downtown Buffalo,” Orozco said. “From Canalside, Larkinville, Seneca One, all the family-owned pubs, and restaurants, we have a lot of hidden gems in our city. Buffalo is one of the countries best kept secrets.”

So, when you arrive at Seneca One for your next tour, event or just to check out the future of Buffalo, look for Roger and ask him about the building. You will understand just how much this city means to him.

Seneca One Deep Dive: Nicholas Kosinski + Odoo

Posted on

For this week’s Deep Dive, we caught up with Nicholas Kosinski, Director of US East Odoo, a Belgium CRM software company that has is growing quickly in downtown Buffalo!

We hope you enjoy it!

If you’ve taken a drive down the 33 or on the 190 recently to the beautiful city of Buffalo, you might have seen a very unique billboard that you made you do a double-take.

“Sorry SAP,” in giant white letters complemented by a rich shade of purple, has everyone wondering what is going on?

Nicholas Kosinski of Odoo has joined us to tell you about the company’s journey through the small- and medium-sized businesses market, what they are doing and why you should apologize to SAP.

Seneca One: When considering moving to Buffalo, what attracted you to Seneca One, and how has Douglas and Seneca One helped Odoo grow?

Nicholas Kosinski: There are a few things. Firstly, the people here. The DD team has shown an overwhelming amount of support and enthusiasm for Odoo as a company and the mission that we’re on here in Buffalo.

Secondly, Douglas himself. His genuineness, his character, his work ethic, and his ability to get the job done has inspired me on a personal level since the day I met him. As much as he may be supporting me, I try to do everything that I can to support him in return. We’re neighbors, after all – and you know what they say about neighbors in this city!

SO: What has it been like watching Buffalo transform here at Seneca One?

NK: That’s a very difficult question to answer: it’s like asking me to describe what it feels like to watch David beat Goliath – how do you feel when the underdog finally starts to succeed? Ecstatic, maybe?

SO: We see the “Sorry SAP” signs on the 33 and the 190. What do they mean, and Why should the city of Buffalo keep an eye out for Odoo?

NK: SAP is Odoo’s biggest competitor, and we’re simply apologizing for eating up the SMB market and leaving them with very few if any leftovers! Like the story I mentioned above, in this case, SAP is Goliath, and Odoo is David – and we’re feeling ecstatic up here on the 26th floor!

SO:  What is next for Odoo?

NK: Hire, hire and hire some more!

We are happy to have Odoo here at Seneca One and hope you think of them the next time you see a “Sorry SAP” sign.

Seneca One Deep Dive: Kristen Zimmerman + Serendipity Labs

Posted on

Welcome to this week’s Seneca One Deep Dive! The team at Seneca One identifies exciting up-and-coming people, projects, and companies to dive into and share with our audiences. This week we’re setting sail with Kristen Zimmerman, General Manager of Serendipity Labs.

Embedded in the DNA of the Seneca One community, high up on the 29th floor, is an oasis filled with businesses striving to grow and thrive at the brand new tech hub in downtown Buffalo.

On any given day, when you arrive on the floor, you see many faces. You see different people walking with a purpose, ready to attack the day with enthusiasm and poise.

But one thing that stands out among other things is a smiling face that greets you and is ready, willing, and able to do everything she can to make your stay at Seneca One the best it can be.

Kristen Zimmerman is the General Manager of Serendipity Labs, a coworking and flexible office space that is home to many startups, and small to medium-sized businesses here at Seneca One, and since February, Zimmerman has watched Seneca One transform and come alive with a new hustle and bustle.

“I was living in NYC and when I heard about the exciting things going on in Buffalo and Seneca One,” Zimmerman said. “I knew I wanted to be a part of it. The opportunity to run a coworking and flexible office space became an option and I knew there was no better way to move back and be involved in the community than this.”

Serendipity Labs was founded in 2011 with the idea to create professional workspaces with the flexibility businesses need today, all supported by on-site hospitality teams. They have 30-plus locations nationwide and on March 1, the coworking shared space found a nice spot on the 29th floor of Buffalo’s tallest skyscraper.

With all of the talk of large tech companies here at Seneca One, the flexible space is gaining traction and becoming popular among smaller businesses. It allows them the opportunity to grow as the once sleeping giant continues to ignite a Buffalo renaissance.

“Meeting new people and creating an environment where members find it enjoyable to come into work,” Zimmerman said. “The building may be known as a tech hub but it truly is an option for all companies small or large.”

Serendipity Labs offers monthly and daily access to Private Offices and a customizable suite for 1-50 employees, hybrid work styles with coworking plans, and Worktopia™  memberships for access across their network. They also offer Meeting Rooms, board rooms for up to 12, and collaboration space for up to 40 attendees in every location.

So, the next time you’re at Seneca One for a tour, a cocktail at our lobby bar, or just popping in to say “Hello”, ask for Kristen. She is always happy to talk about Serendipity Labs. Just be sure to greet the true Buffalonian with a “Go Bills!”

Live Downtown! Why your next move should be to the apartments at SO

Posted on

Seneca One is a Community, Not a Complex.

New With A View

Seneca One boasts 115 stellar new apartment units—from studios to three bedrooms—completed in 2018.  While the building has history, the apartments are fresh. Units feature all of the top of the line amenities you want in luxury living, stainless steel appliances, in-home washer and dryer, and more. 

Everything you’d need is inside, and you also have a great view of everything there is to offer outside through massive windows! Apartments have views of iconic downtown spots like Canalside, Pearl Street, Lake Erie, Seneca One Plaza, and Sahlen Field!

People with Passion

Everyone who lives and works at Seneca One is committed to downtown Buffalo’s resurgence. Current tenants were drawn to the building because it is a one of a kind option in a city they love. With shared spaces from the fitness center to outdoor seating areas, you can turn your neighbors into connections and lifelong friends. 

Plus, some of Buffalo’s most exciting companies call Seneca One home. Hang out in the lobby and you can network with Buffalonians from companies like Odoo, 43North, M&T Bank, Lighthouse Technology Services, Douglas Development, and more! 

Douglas Development Cares

The Douglas Vision and the entire Douglas Development team are dedicated to building a community at Seneca One, not just filling apartments. The team is working to create an inclusive environment with a  melting pot of tenants. 

Plus, Douglas Development gives back to the community! In November, they partnered with M&T Bank to give away 500 turkeys to Western New York families in need a few days before Thanksgiving. 

“Like our partners at M&T Bank, Douglas Development and the team at Seneca One are committed to giving back to the community, and with the difficulties this year has brought, helping our neighbors is more important than ever,” Douglas Jemal, principal of Douglas Development, told Channel 7 news in regards to the giveaway. 

Events for Everyone

While the pandemic has slowed down our chances to gather lately, Seneca One is ready to host nonstop events for networking and socializing when it’s safe to get together. There are events to suit everyone. Residential Happy Hours? Check. Professional Mixers? You got it! Comedy nights? Get ready to bring out your inner Jerry Seinfeld. When the Bills make it to the Super Bowl? Seneca One will be hosting the watch party. 

For residents only, one of the most fun and unique events at Seneca One is the Seneca One Space Club! Join Western New York’s most exclusive group of amateur astronomers as they star gaze from the roof of Seneca One!

Live, Work, Play!

When that highly anticipated snow storm hits, you won’t even have to leave the building! Seneca One is set with everything you need to live, work, and play downtown. 

Have a furry friend to bring along? Units are pet friendly, and a dog park is coming soon! Like to keep things moving? There is a 24-hour state of the art fitness studio (and Seneca One is dedicated to fit and healthy living). 

Plus the building has onsite food and drink, with more to come! Stop by the Food Hall for a quick lunch, or grab a post-workout protein shake from The Blend. 

Interested in starting your next adventure downtown at Seneca One? Check out this site for more info, and then send a note to residential manager Samantha Soltis, ssoltis@douglasdev.com.

Talkin’ Tech with Nick Kosinski of Odoo

Posted on

Talkin’ Tech is a series where the Douglas Development team chat with some of the movers and shakers of Buffalo’s tech and start-up scene to get their insight into how the city has evolved and is continuing to evolve in those spaces. 

Check out our chat with Nick Kosinski, Director of East Coast operations at Odoo. 

Describe Odoo in 1-2 sentences: 

Odoo is an integrated suite of business management applications. 

What do you do for Odoo?

I oversee Odoo’s East Coast operations, so that includes everything from Sales, Professional Services, Support, Technical, etc. 

How did you end up in (or back in) Buffalo? 

I started at Odoo in 2015 in New York City. I was selling for Odoo there, and I got pretty involved and interested in the technical side of the product and branched out. While selling, I continued to learn more and more, and I got involved in some of the different areas of the business. That passion and underlying interest has allowed me to seek out an opportunity to grow with the company  and ultimately establish an East Coast office. 

We have an office of about 550 in Belgium today, and 250 in San Francisco. When establishing an East Coast office, the company wasn’t interested in having it in New York City, primarily due to saturation of the market. In New York City, there are thousands of technology companies we would have had to compete with from an employment standpoint, a compensation standpoint, relevance standpoint. We saw that there were some more interesting tier two cities that possessed the resources we would need to be successful, such as student population, general cost of doing business, culture, geographical location. For those reasons, we decided to go against the grain, think outside the New York City box, and we found Buffalo and moved into Seneca One. I jumped on the opportunity to come back here. 

After growing up in Buffalo, moving away, and then coming back here, what has surprised you the most about the tech/start-up scene in Buffalo?

I think it’s both surprising and unsurprising. Everyone kind of has an idea of Buffalo being a city of good neighbors, a city that has a lot of camaraderie. Buffalo is full of people that see themselves as a community. A sort of underdog mentality blankets all of that. I knew that growing up here, of course. When I worked in tech in New York for some time it was very much a competitive space. When I came back here to Buffalo, it was kind of the opposite of that. It was an environment where the person standing next to you, the one standing behind you, the one in front of you, are all interested in seeing you grow, and you are interested in seeing them grow. I think that mentality is rooted in the theory that a rising tide lifts all boats. I think that is the most compelling and interesting facet of the tech scene here in Buffalo. It’s amazing to see how people work together and to see how people know that they need to come together to make a shift as a community. People work towards a common objective. They collaborate. They cooperate. It’s not just surprising, but it really reminds me to be proud of where I am from and to work that much harder to make a shift happen. 

Obviously it is a unique year, and we are starting to see a lot of companies rethink their operations. How do you think COVID has impacted how companies will choose where to be located and set-up their offices?

Obviously COVID is a nightmare, and we all look forward to the day when it’s behind us. When it comes to long-term impacts, a lot of people are looking through the lens of the individual employee, like this is an opportunity for employees to work remotely, to never go into an office again, to work from the beach. While that is obviously true and the right move for some companies, it definitely won’t be the case for most. Big companies like Google, Amazon, Facebook are buying up commercial real estate and betting against the idea of remote-only moving forward. 

Looking through the lens of the employer and the ability to scale a team and deliver services remotely provides a different perspective. I think that the long-term impact will be that companies no longer need to be in cities like New York, Seattle, or San Francisco in order to deliver quality services across the continent or even the globe. For that reason, they will look elsewhere for their offices and headquarters I suspect. Obviously there are other factors, like access to resources, that need to be considered, but companies will definitely be looking for ways to save where they can. The simple reason that remote-only work isn’t here to stay is that the collaborative impact of being in the office, especially in the tech space where oftentimes the products are complex and there are steep learning curves, cannot be optimized with work-from-home. Remote work can create huge costs of both money and time for companies trying to rapidly create a culture, scale up operations, and more. We don’t yet have the technology to fully replicate in-office collaboration for remote work, in my opinion. 

What’s the best thing about working in Seneca One? 

We’ve been in Seneca One since early September. The best thing is the collaboration, being able to buzz down the elevator and see familiar faces who work at different companies like M&T Bank and 43North. Being able to see people, chat with them, exchange ideas with them, learn from them, and having them be able to learn things from us has a tremendous impact on the evolution of what we’re trying to create both here at Seneca One and in the Buffalo community more broadly. 

What Greg Baker, Sean Heidinger, Sam Soltis, and the Douglas Development team are doing is really working. It’s really a long-term plan. It’s incredible to watch them show up day in and day out to realize this great Seneca One vision . It’s an incredible project and everyone is really involved in the community. It’s more than just a building.  

Is Odoo currently hiring?

Odoo is absolutely hiring. We are hiring for Account Executives at the moment. If you are someone who is interested in technology and helping businesses operate more efficiently, then by all means reach out. 

What Buffalo food did you miss the most when you were living in New York City?

LaNova pizza with blue cheese, specifically from the one on Main. With charred pepperonis for sure. 

10 Activities for an Awesome Lunch Break at Seneca One

Posted on

There’s lots to see and do in downtown Buffalo these days, so why not take some time on your lunch break to get out and explore the neighborhoods surrounding Seneca One! Take a look at our top 10 fun ideas to try out that are just a short walk from us.

  1. Meet your daily step goal with a walk around the historic Buffalo & Erie County Naval & Military Park.
  2. Enjoy the beautiful waterfront views and rent a kayak at Canalside.
  3. Meet up with some friends and have lunch at 716, Liberty Hound, or Pearl Street.
  4. Take a walk down Main Street and peek in the shops and restaurants. Ride the Metro back.
  5. Explore Buffalo’s public art murals, and make sure to stop at 461 and 465 Washington St.
  6. Grab take out from E-Cafe at the Glenny and have a picnic at Dart Lawn at Canalside.
  7. Celebrate your inner child at the new Explore & More Children’s Museum.
  8. You can never have too much Buffalo gear. Pick up some new Buffalo gear at the Sabres’ store or at the BFLO store.
  9. Dive into a good book at the Buffalo Central Library.
  10. Grab a Reddy Bikeshare, located in front of Sahlen’s Field at 275 Washington St, and take a bike ride along the water

This is just a snapshot of the exciting amenities nearby Seneca One. What are some of your favorite things to downtown?