A Buffalo News analysis found that the city is no worse off in the years since the Brown administration began in 2006. In categories such as population change, a mayor may have relatively little or no control, compared to categories like the size of the city budget and tax rates. But budgets, taxes and other things a mayor has direct control over can mold the perception of a city as a good or lousy place to live, thus impacting other categories that cities get rated in as voters assess how Brown has done over three terms.

Even though Amherst – at $9.871 billion – is worth more than Buffalo, the city’s assessed value increased 46.79 percent to $8.388 billion. That increase is beyond the rate of inflation. In fact, if the city had grown just by the rate of inflation, it would be valued at only $6.939 million now.

While growing in assessed value, Buffalo has not been growing in population. The city’s head count decreased 7.59 percent from 2005 to 2016. The U.S. population grew by 9.34 percent over the same time, while New York State grew by about 3.4 percent.