Report: Buffalo Billion developer flouted state disclosure law

A key developer involved in the bidding process for the key project Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Buffalo Billion initiative failed to file disclosure forms while serving on the state’s economic development office’s board of directors, according to a report from a nonprofit watchdog group.

Paul Ciminelli, whose brother Louis Ciminelli owns LPCiminelli, the lead developer on the massive solar panel factory being built at the Riverbend site in Buffalo, only filed disclosure reports for two of the four years he served on the board of Empire State Development, and those disclosure forms, filed with the Joint Commission on Public Ethics, were missing significant information, according to the report from the Public Accountability Initiative.

Paul Ciminelli, whose Ciminelli Real Estate was involved in the bidding process for the Riverbend job while he was on the ESD board, did not list any contracts, investments or securities he was holding in the disclosure forms, despite being a major developer in the Buffalo area.

LPCiminelli has been mentioned in numerous reports as a key player in the federal probe into the disbursement of Buffalo Billion funds.

A spokesperson from Ciminelli Real Estate did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.