C&S project wins New York State Upstate Chapter of the American Planning Association Award
C&S is proud to announce that our recent planning project, The Riverline Study, received a Best Practice award from the New York State Upstate Chapter of the American Planning Association on October 9, 2025. This award emphasizes results and demonstrates how innovative and state-of-the-art planning methods and practices help to create communities of lasting value.
About the project
The Riverline, a proposed 1.5-mile elevated nature trail and greenway, recently received design and environmental approval. Stretching from Downtown Buffalo’s Canalside to the Buffalo River, the trail will transform 40 acres of former DL&W rail corridor into a vibrant public space connecting the Old First Ward, Perry, and Valley neighborhoods.
Led by the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA), the project builds on years of community planning and is part of the national High Line Network. In early 2024, NFTA engaged a consultant team headed by C&S to complete preliminary design and environmental review. Later that year, the newly formed nonprofit Friends of The Riverline took over advocacy and fundraising efforts from the Western New York Land Conservancy.
The Riverline Study includes a fully engineered design that meets ADA and environmental standards, along with three supporting reports addressing social, cultural, and visual impacts. These efforts reflect extensive community input and mark a major step toward realizing Buffalo’s next great public space.