On the last Wednesday of 2021, NFTA staff and local leaders met outside Metro Rail’s Utica Station to rename the location in honor of the man who designed it. Black architect and Buffalo native and resident Robert T. Coles passed away in 2020, but he left many lasting landmarks around his hometown. Alumni Arena and Natatorium at the University at Buffalo, the Frank E. Merriweather Jr. Library on Jefferson Avenue, Metro Bus and Rail’s Operations Control Center, and of course, Utica Station.

Coles was a salient force in the architect community, engaging in projects across the country. Although he thought of himself as an architect first and Black pioneer second, he understood the influence he had on the next generation of Black creators, thinkers and dreamers. His work will not be forgotten. In fact, it is still used and appreciated by tens of thousands of people every day.