President Gary Olson addresses the
Amherst Chamber of Commerce.
President Gary Olson addressed the Amherst Chamber of Commerce in a May 8 meeting in which officials from the town’s three colleges—Daemen, the University at Buffalo, and SUNY Erie Community College—joined town Supervisor Brian Kulpa in describing their respective visions of the town’s future.
Olson noted that Daemen had made a concerted effort over the last several years to strengthen relations between the college and the town, signing a comprehensive memorandum of agreement outlining cooperation between the two entities; creating an annual festival, Daemen Day in Amherst; and forming multiple partnerships with the Amherst Police and Snyder Fire departments.
“The growth in the town of Amherst mirrors the robust growth and development on Daemen’s campus,” Olson told the crowd. “The college has an annual economic impact on the local economy of nearly $130 million.”
He pointed to Daemen’s recent purchase and renovation of the YMCA; the opening up of a whole new section of campus that includes Alumni House, Honors House, and a new parking lot; and the completion of a campus beautification project that included the planting of over 150 trees and the construction of the now-iconic stone wall that graces the college’s periphery.
Supervisor Kulpa told the audience that part of his vision for Amherst is to connect the Daemen and SUNY Erie campuses with a dedicated trolley that would make regular trips between the two colleges with multiple stops along the way.