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City Shaper: Jeffrey Danahy with Danahy Real Estate

This week's City Shaper is transforming homes and apartment buildings in Buffalo.

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Each Monday, we introduce you to a Buffalo City Shaper — someone who is having a positive impact on our community.

This week, 2 On Your Side's Kelly Dudzik shows us how one man's passion for fixer uppers turned into a thriving business.

"Since we opened up all the walls, it just let us have a seamless transition from room to room with the wood," explained Jeffrey Danahy as he showed us one of his renovated homes.

Jeffrey Danahy grew up in North Buffalo then moved to the West Side where he's busy transforming homes in need of some TLC.

"So, all there was was a little door right here, and our architect gave us the ability to open the whole span up. There's some serious lumber up there holding up the rest of the house," he said.

The house he showed us is on Chenango Street in Buffalo. Danahy says it had no running water when he bought it. The radiators were in rough shape, too. He opened up the downstairs, added a half-bath, and had custom spindles made to replace ones that had been damaged along the staircase.

Danahy also reconfigured the upstairs taking the 4th bedroom and converting it into a full bathroom. He added an upstairs laundry room, too.

Danahy bought his first double about ten years ago.

"Slowly, we've organically grown this business. Basically, two buildings a year, and we are able to go in, find these diamonds in the ruff, renovate them, and then get them rented," says Danahy.

In 2015, he bought an old tavern on Amherst Street across from Wegmans and converted it into apartments and the office for Danahy Real Estate and his property management company.

"We feel like this neighborhood is well positioned for some serious growth, and we're happy to be a part of it,” he says.

But most of his time is spent away from his office out in the neighborhoods where his teams are busy rehabbing homes.

"Lately, the ones we've been getting are truly in rough shape and often are uninhabitable at the time. Whether there's no water, no heat, or it's just not, nobody can live there. Those are the opportunities that we're really looking for right now," said Danahy.

Danahy says he's excited about Buffalo's resurgence and the friendly competition among the city's developers.

"We work together more than we work against each other. If I were to pick up the phone to any number of developers we'd be happy to have lunch, and talk, and figure out a way to work with each other as opposed to work against each other," Danahy said.

He also enjoys getting people into their new homes.

"What's it like when you give somebody the keys?" asked 2 On Your Side’s Kelly Dudzik.

"It's the best feeling. It's second to none other than having my family. It's been a phenomenal experience," he says.

Danahy says they want to continue growing at the pace they're growing at so they can take on projects and see them through from start to finish.

If you'd like to nominate a Buffalo City Shaper, just email Kelly.

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