National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation, the natural gas utility subsidiary of National Fuel Gas Company, announced today that it will be making an investment in Buffalo’s East Side with the purchase of a commercial building at 736 East Delavan Avenue at the corner of East Delavan and Grider Street. National Fuel plans to develop the property, with renovations and modifications, into a satellite service center. The Buffalo Service Center will house customer service utility technicians as well as offer outreach services on a scheduled basis for customer assistance, recruitment events for hiring, and other customer-focused activities once the build-out is completed.

“In recent years, National Fuel has participated in numerous meetings and events in which local community members and elected officials have discussed the need for Western New York businesses and organizations to consider making much-needed investments in the City’s East Side,” said David P. Bauer, President and Chief Executive Officer at National Fuel Gas Company. “For more than two years, we have been looking for a real estate property location for the Buffalo Service Center that would be the right fit – one that accommodates the space needed yet is easily accessible for community members when we provide outreach and customer assistance events.  We believe the location at the corner of East Delavan and Grider checks all these boxes.”

National Fuel closed on the property purchase on May 7^th. Sarah M. Washington, Esq., a senior counsel at National Fuel, continues to spearhead the initiative for the East Side location. The Company’s closest operations service center is just over the city border in West Seneca at 365 Mineral Springs Road. A walk-in Customer Assistance Center is situated in the downtown core business district at 409 Main Street.

“Our initial plan is to have four full-time utility technicians as well as a supervisor,” said Donna L. DeCarolis, President of National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation. “While we already employ several hundred City of Buffalo residents, we hope this new work location will improve awareness of National Fuel as a choice employer and enable us to attract candidates from the surrounding community to make employment opportunities as accessible as possible.”

DeCarolis continued, “once the Buffalo Service Center opens in late 2025, and the Company begins offering outreach services and events for area residents, we can get more familiar with traffic patterns and when our customers are most likely to utilize the services.”

During the next few months, National Fuel will be working to renovate and revitalize the entire property inside and out. A garage will be built to house National Fuel service vehicles, fencing will be added along with meeting and conference rooms, and bathrooms will be configured.

Washington stated that community accessibility was a key priority for the Buffalo Service Center’s location. Public transportation is easily available as three nearby bus routes are offered including NFTA Bus #26, NFTA Bus #13, and NFTA Bus #19, and the Delavan-Canisius College Metro Rail Station is approximately 1.4 miles away.

With the acquisition of the property and the needed renovations, the Company’s investment in the Buffalo Service Center will be more than $3 million.