Uniland Development Corp. is no longer working with Blue Cardinal Capital on its project at the Elmwood Avenue and Hertel Avenue intersection, although officials said the pair plan to collaborate again in the future.
The developer and private real estate investment firm had teamed up in 2016 on a plan to redevelop the northwest and southwest corners of the intersection, where Uniland has now acquired 20 acres of property from the Deni family. The effort had been focused around a mixed-use project anchored largely by retail tenants, but also including office, industrial and residential space.
Blue Cardinal was supposed to serve as a financing partner, raising additional cash from investors to support the project's cost. But Uniland has now concluded it "does not need a capital partner," so Blue Cardinal suspended its fundraising and is "no longer part of that project," said Uniland spokeswoman Jill Pawlik.
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"As is typical in large-scale developments, the financial scope of the Hertel-Elmwood project is evolving," Pawlik said. "As the size and financial scope of the project are finalized, the parties will determine whether the fundraising will be resumed."
Uniland has been working with the principals of Blue Cardinal for more than a decade, and the firms announced their strategic partnership in December 2015. Pawlik said Uniland remains a "longtime supporter of Blue Cardinal and its efforts to grow an independent private source of capital" for commercial real estate projects in Western New York, and plans "continue to seek other transactions together."
Uniland acquired the North Buffalo land in a pair of purchases last October and last month, totaling $7.12 million. The properties include vacant commercial and industrial land, warehouses, a single-family residential parcel, a collision shop, and other buildings, some of which have since been demolished.
The developer has not revealed details of its plans, which officials said are still in flux while they talk with potential tenants. But they're seeking a large retail tenant – such as a drugstore, grocery store or entertainment venue – to anchor the main intersection and drive the rest of the redevelopment around it.
Pawlik said Uniland held a "successful design workshop and community meeting" last month, led by landscape architect Joy Kuebler, and is now "having discussions with prospective anchor tenants and working on different design concepts for the sites."
