City of Buffalo asks a federal court to annul Interior's restricted-fee decision on 5 Miami Street
City of BuffaloPlaintiff, in its complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York
The city's federal complaint asks the court to annul the Interior Department's 2023 decision placing 5 Miami Street in restricted-fee status, which it calls arbitrary, capricious and facially defective, and to declare the site under the city's regulatory jurisdiction.
Responding to
The Seneca Nation's acquisition of 5 Miami Street does not qualify for restricted-fee status under the Seneca Nation Settlement Act because the land was not bought with the Act's settlement money.
“The City of Buffalo brings this action under the Administrative Procedure Act to annul an arbitrary, capricious, and facially defective decision by the Department of the Interior”
Original text
Official statement
Where this statement fits
Buffalo sues to halt the Seneca Nation's gas station on Miami Street; the Nation says the land is sovereign and outside city control
The City of Buffalo sued in New York State Supreme Court on October 7, 2026, to halt construction of a Seneca Nation fuel station and convenience store at 5 Miami Street in the Old First Ward. On October 8 it asked a federal court to vacate the Interior Department's 2023 decision placing the 3.8-acre site in restricted-fee status. The city says the land was not bought with Seneca Nation Settlement Act money and remains subject to city zoning, permits and environmental review. Seneca Nation President J. Conrad Seneca says the site is sovereign Seneca land and that construction will continue.
Source and context
Original text
About this source
The city's 19-page complaint under the Administrative Procedure Act against the Interior Department, Secretary Doug Burgum, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs William Kirkland and the United States, asking the court to vacate the department's February 14, 2023, decision placing 5 Miami Street in restricted-fee status.
Official statement
About this source
City of Buffalo press release announcing its federal lawsuit challenging the Interior Department's 2023 restricted-fee decision on 5 Miami Street, with a statement from Corporation Counsel Rosa Alina Pizzi.
Before the quotation
The city filed the complaint a day after its state-court suit. Corporation Counsel Rosa Alina Pizzi said the federal filing addresses a separate legal question from that suit.
After the quotation
The complaint says the department decided at the Seneca Nation's request, about six weeks after the Nation applied in December 2022, and that in September 2026 the Nation revealed it planned to build a truck stop on the site without local or state approval.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is the Seneca Nation's construction of a fuel station at 5 Miami Street on land it holds in restricted fee, without the city permits and reviews Buffalo says are required. The city's complaint attacks the federal decision on which the Nation bases its claim that the site is outside city control, and asks the court to declare the site under city jurisdiction.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- U.S. Department of the Interior, Seneca Nation of Indians
More from this case
Read the full caseJ. Conrad Seneca says the city acknowledged the site's restricted-fee status in writing in 2023
“Our nearly four-acre site is sovereign land and was placed in Restricted Fee status by the Department of Interior three years ago, something that the City acknowledged in writing in 2023. Despite meeting with Sean Ryan and other City officials in person in early September to open dialogue between our governments, the City instead chose to fight the Nation over our sovereign rights on our land. I have made it clear that the proposed Seneca One Stop project will move forward and that the Seneca Nation will always fight to defend our sovereignty, our treaties, and our rights to create economic opportunity on our lands in the way we best see fit for the benefit of our people.”Read statement
Seneca Nation President J. Conrad Seneca says the Nation will defend its sovereignty and keep building at the site
“While Sean Ryan continues his act, we will continue developing our land for the benefit of our people and creating local jobs, just as we have done with our other developments on our other sovereign lands within the city of Buffalo.”Read statement
Mayor Sean Ryan says any entity building in Buffalo must account for its impact on the community
“We have a responsibility to protect those investments and the people who live, work, and spend time here. It is incumbent on us to make sure that any entity developing a project in Buffalo understands the impact it will have on the surrounding community and does its part to be a good neighbor.”Read statement
Share or embed this statement
The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- City of Buffalo asks a federal court to annul Interior's restricted-fee decision on 5 Miami Street
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/6424-the-city-s-federal-complaint-asks-the-court
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "City of Buffalo asks a federal court to annul Interior's restricted-fee decision on 5 Miami Street". First published: 2026-10-21. Last updated: 2026-10-21. https://disputeindex.com/events/6424-the-city-s-federal-complaint-asks-the-court