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Elon Musk is causing havoc in Washington — but that doesn’t justify using the tools of government to single out his company, Tesla, for attack. Just as Donald Trump was wrong to turn the White House into a Tesla showroom, an icky and transparent attempt to boost the fortunes of the world’s richest man, opponents of Trump and Musk are wrong to put Tesla in the crosshairs in retaliation for the duo’s fire-bombing of the federal bureaucracy.

We know Musk is Tesla CEO, making him and the company synonymous in many people’s eyes. It’s not that simple, however. He owns 12.8% of the publicly traded company. The lion’s share of shares owned by institutional investors, and by ordinary Americans.

And while Musk is Tesla’s richest and most visible employee, more than 100,000 people work for the company, including 22,000 in California; about 7,000 in Nevada; about 12,000 in Texas; and about 1,500 in Western New York. On those salaries and benefits, men and women support their families and enrich their communities.

As for the 2 million or so Americans who drive Tesla vehicles, many bought their cars because they believe in weaning the transportation sector off fossil fuels, or just because they just thought they were cool. How many ride around in Teslas to express solidarity with Musk and Trump? Who the heck knows.

And it shouldn’t really matter, either. In a civil society, it should be considered beyond the pale to spraypaint or dent a car to take it out on the CEO of the company that made that car. And it should be considered unacceptable for politicians to blindside a company for punishment because of its CEO’s political proclivities.

Which brings us to the case of the Tesla factory in South Buffalo. The factory is there thanks to a 2014 deal with the state of New York, brokered as part of then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Buffalo Billion initiative. The Buffalo Billion was riddled with corruption; it is a significant stain on Cuomo’s legacy.

But the factory remains, as do its employees. It’s smaller than it was supposed to be, and plenty about it is a cautionary tale for how not to do economic development — but the moment calls for cool, analytical heads.

Last year, putting such heads to work, Gov. Hochul’s administration began renegotiating the state’s arrangement with Tesla; in January, the administration reached an agreement to extend the company’s lease on South Buffalo’s sprawling “gigafactory” for another five years. The draft deal would still have to get approved by the board of the state’s economic development authority, includes promises of higher rent payments and other alterations.

Nevertheless, Musk foes in the Assembly are calling for the state to yank its agreement entirely. City comptroller candidate Justin Brannan, who commends city pension funds’ divestment from fossil fuels, now wants to divest from Tesla stock as well. Really?

We can enthusiastically get behind calls by state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Assemblyman Micah Lasher to audit the Tesla deal rigorously — provided that similar scrutiny is applied to the wide range of companies that make agreements with the state.

Don’t get taken for a ride by Tesla, or by any company. Do play fair. Donald Trump uses government as a weapon against firms he considers political enemies. That’s a model to reject, not emulate.

Orchard Park, NY – The Buffalo Bills and team owner Terry Pegula welcomed New York State Governor Kathy Hochul, National Football League commissioner Roger Goodell, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, and other dignitaries to Western New York today to celebrate the "Topping Out" of new Highmark Stadium, scheduled to open in 2026.

A Topping Out ceremony is a customary way to celebrate a significant milestone during the construction of a new building.

Workers placed the last piece of structural steel atop the 156-foot-high stadium structure as part of the ceremony. The final beam was accented with an American flag, the New York State flag, and an evergreen tree, signifying good luck and prosperity for future building occupants. Before this morning's ceremony, hundreds of partners, employees, and stakeholders signed the final beam.

A joint venture of Gilbane Building Company and Turner Construction Company provides construction management of more than 1,200 trade persons onsite daily, which will continue to climb into the summer.

Construction at the site of New Highmark Stadium began with a ceremonial groundbreaking on Monday, June 5, 2023. The largest construction project in the history of Western New York is now over 50 percent complete (based on the volume of work in place). All precast stadia (seating bowl) are complete, and workers will begin seat installation later this spring.

Today's milestone comes just twenty months after the groundbreaking of the new 60,000-plus-seat facility, designed by the Bills in conjunction with Legends and the architectural firm Populous.

"I know how much the Bills mean to this community. It's part of the spirit, it's part of the identity. I really believe this is going to secure the franchise here for decades," said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

Bills owner Terry Pegula recognized the construction site workers who have been on-site since the groundbreaking and helped keep the stadium construction on schedule.

"Today is not about Terry Pegula, Kathy Hochul, Mark Poloncarz, or Roger Goodell. "Today is about you hard workers; men and women. Electricians, carpenters, operating engineers, painters, teamsters, ironworkers. The list goes on and on," Pegula said.

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The construction team has put in place more than 19,000 individual pieces of steel weighing nearly 24,000 tons.

The scope of work necessitated the participation of 16 fabrication companies, with 60% of the steel produced in New York State and almost all made in the United States.

The project has included the removal of 630,000 cubic yards of dirt and installing 18,000 cubic yards of foundation concrete, over 1.5 million square feet of concrete floors, and miles of piping among other materials.

*As many as 1,500 workers will be on the site at the peak of construction- including people working on masonry, electrical, and plumbing. Workers have already contributed over 1.0 million craft hours to construction, which is expected to double by completion. *

"We're incredibly proud to reach this major milestone in the construction of the new Highmark Stadium. This achievement is testament to the hard work of our skilled trade partners who have worked over 1.8 million hours to date building this state-of-the-art facility. Thanks to the incredible collaboration with the Buffalo Bills, the Gilbane | Turner team, Populous, Legends, and the support of the State of New York and Erie County, this stadium will serve as a proud beacon for the region and showcase the very best in professional sports venues." - John LaRow, Principal-in-Charge, Gilbane | Turner, the construction manager for the new stadium

"This milestone marks more than the structural progress of a stadium—it reflects the spirit and strength of the Buffalo community. We are deeply grateful to the Buffalo Bills, our dedicated staff and trade partners, and the thousands of union tradespeople—so many of whom call this region home—whose skill and commitment are bringing this landmark project to life. It is profoundly meaningful that members of the community are helping to build a venue that will serve as a source of pride and celebration for generations to come." - Joe Byrne, Program Director for Gilbane | Turner, the construction manager for the new stadium.

"Today marks a major milestone for the future home of the Buffalo Bills and one of the largest construction projects ever built in Western New York. This world- class stadium would not be possible without our skilled union workers and partners, and I look forward to cheering along with them at the first Bills game being played here in the 2026 season." – New York State Governor Kathy Hochul

Advocates for migrants here in WNY say that they've received credible reports that families with children are being held in detention cells at border crossings, sometimes as long as two weeks.

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Advocates for migrants here in Western New York say that they've received credible reports that families with children are being held in detention cells at border crossings, sometimes as long as two weeks.

The story was first reported by the Investigative Post.

“This hasn't happened before, this is a new policy," Sherri Darrow, PhD., board president of Justice for Migrant Families, said. "It seems tied to the current administration."

“It doesn't seem like the norm, and it doesn't seem like the way to treat people," said Dr. Myron Glick, founder and CEO of Jericho Road Community Health Center, which oversees a shelter for asylum seekers.

“Detaining people at the border, detaining families at the border, having it happen so chaotically and with a lot of fear, that is new," Darrow said. “The facilities where people are being held, of course, were not really set up for any kind of long-term detention that is more than a few days or even just overnight. So thinking about families and Families with young children being detained for up to 2 weeks is alarming."

Dr. Glick said immigrants, especially asylum seekers, are worried.

“Folks are afraid...People who are in power are referring to them as illegal aliens, and there’s a sense that they’re trying to make them look like criminals," Glick said.

Both Dr. Glick and Darrow said there needs to be a more humane way to treat migrants, especially children.

“We should be embracing newcomers," Dr. Glick said. "I'm not saying we shouldn't secure borders. We should figure out a sane immigration policy. But once they're here, we should be treating them well. Not like criminals.”

Darrow said she hopes people put themselves in the shoes of these families.

“I ask people to just think about what it would be like if it was their family who was being detained for seeking to build a good life for their families." Darrow said.

Governor Kathy Hochul's office released the following statement about the report:

“Governor Hochul has been clear from the beginning: she believes violent criminals and gang members should be deported, but does not support any attacks on children and families."

Copyright 2025 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Losing Mister Sizzle’s on Connecticut Street was a big blow to Buffalo. After resolving partnership problems, two out of three of the original owners – Casey Casas (CEO) and Chris Casas (Director of Culinary) have announced that they will be making a bigger and better return to their beloved West Side location. While they have retained the naming rights of Mister Sizzle’s, Casey and Chris have opted to make a name change. The restaurant will be named after their son, who is experiencing serious medical issues. They wanted Augie’s name and personality to be a significant part of the rebranding, because he is such an inspiration behind everything that they do.

While much of the original Mister Sizzle’s staff will be returning to Augie’s, there are many changes on the horizon. A long time mentor of Chris’s, Brian Windschitl, has come onboard as COO of the business. Brian has been navigating the world of restaurants for years, and will be a significant hands-on contributor to the new operation. Jill Hutnyan (from Toutant) – is being onboarded as bar manager.

Chef Adrian Bylewski will remain as head chef, and has been working with Chris to design a new menu that will retain many of the cherished heavy hitters, while introducing a number of new creations, including hot dogs and a kids’ menu. There will be new salads, new sauces, and vegan bacon as well.

“We’ve had such a strong following of families,” Casey told me. “Chris and Adrian really dug deep with the menu – it’s the best menu that we’ve ever had. Many of the items will be familiar, with some name changes. We can’t wait to introduce all of this to our loyal customers who have helped to encourage us to stay strong as we have navigated all of this. We can’t wait to be back in the neighborhood. And we are so excited about our new Hamburg location (1 Buffalo St, Hamburg, NY 14075) that opens today!”

As for the Connecticut Street location, the team is waiting for the State Liquor Authority to grant its liquor licence. The plan is to open for take-out in three weeks, and open as a full fledge restaurant as soon as they are granted their liquor licence.

www.getaugies.com

The new Major League Baseball season is here, and there are a couple of Buffalo, New York natives that you can follow all season long.

Currently, there are six active players in the baseball system from Buffalo, with two of them in the Majors.

This season, you can follow Jonah Heim, who plays catcher for the Texas Rangers. Heim went to Amherst High School and was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 4th round of the 2013 MLB draft.

While still in the minors, Heim was traded to Tampa Bay in 2016 and then traded to Oakland in 2017. He would make his Major League Baseball debut on August 25th, 2020. Heim was traded to Texas in February 2021. He would go on to win a World Series with Texas in 2023.

That year, he was also named an MLB all-star and won the American League Gold Glove Award for catching.

You can also follow Jesse Winker. Born in Niagara Falls, Winker moved to Orlando with his family when he was seven years old. He was selected in the 1st round of the 2012 MLB draft by the Cincinnati Reds.

He was with the Reds for years before he was traded to Seattle in 2022. Later that year, he was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers. He signed a minor league contract with Washington in 2024 but ended up playing 101 games with Washington before he was traded to the New York Mets in July.

He re-signed a one-year deal with New York and is on the opening day roster. The Mets are on the road in Houston to kick off the season.

Baseball in Upstate New York: Legends, Graves, and Historic Sites

Baseball is big in Upstate New York in the summer. Very big. For fans of baseball legends, sports trivia, and exploring historic sites, we present this list of 14 interesting suggestions. On this list you will find many directions to the Upstate New York graves of some of the games most outstanding players, you will see some fascinating baseball trivia, and we list a couple of local historic baseball fields that have been entertaining baseball fans since 1906! All for fun, so here you go sports road-trippers. Get started!

Gallery Credit: Chuck D'Imperio