On Thursday, October 1st, we set the record straight, and showed what it means when we say solidarity & sovereignty.
President Seneca invited local media to a press event held at Tewksbury Lodge in the Old First Ward, across the street from the future Seneca Nation One Stop gas station. The press event was an opportunity to respond to the misinformation, malinformation, and outright untruths surrounding the project, and more importantly, the calculated approach on part of Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan to stop our progress from happening.
The new One Stop will not be a truck stop and has been mindfully designed by our developers and the neighborhood stakeholders; we see it as a benefit to the entire area. It is being developed on restricted fee status land, OUR land, which allows us to use the site as we choose. The City of Buffalo and Mayor Sean Ryan have been aware of this project, and have been unresponsive to our requests for communication before and after our meeting in early September.
The Mayor has been silent, but yesterday, we were loud.
In response, we rallied at Seneca Circle (formerly Niagara Square) to bring more exposure to our mistreatment and lack of real accountability from City Hall. We strive to be good partners, good neighbors, and when that intention is met with hostility, we make it clear that as Senecas, we will always show up and call out disrespect.
“For me, it comes down to our land and the Nation’s ability to do what it wants with its land,” President Seneca said. “It’s about our sovereignty. It’s about our treaties. It’s about doing things on our land that’s best for our people. It’s not about building a gas station.”
Watch the October 1, 2026 press event:
