Buffalo, NY (4408 Milestrip Rd)

Buffalo, NY (4408 Milestrip Rd), Store #516 is a Chuck E. Cheese's that opened in May 2000 with a Studio C Alpha . This location was previously one of the three former Discovery Zone locations in the Buffalo area. The store expanded between 2009-2011 and received the 2.0 remodel in 2022.

Stages

Buffalo opened with a Studio C Alpha stage, and showroom walls that donned the 'Studio Dining' signage. From 2004/2005 to (at the latest) 2012, the Chuck E. animatronic wore his 'Cool Chuck' outfit. This would later be replaced by the 'Avenger' outfit, which remained on the animatronic up until its removal. The blue screen, camera, and interactive console would remain active and functional until their removal in around 2013-2014. Throughout its years of operation, the animatronics would remain in great condition, with its curtains remaining functional until late Spring of 2017, where Chuck E. would begin to run into problems. The eyelid close movement would freeze completely, an issue that was never fixed. After this, air leaks became more common throughout the figure, mainly in its arm raise & head up movements. Its foot tap movement would be disabled around this time, as well. Despite this, the visual appeal and fluidity of the show did not falter until mid 2021, as more of the figure's movements began to deteriorate after a year and a half of no consistent maintenance & operation due to the store's temporary closure in 2020. From this point onwards, Chuck E.'s arm raise movements had mostly deteriorated, only his left forearm capable of raising. His nose movement frequently failed, functioning properly on some days, not functioning at all on others. Chuck E.s eyes would continue to run into problems, with his eyes left movement breaking several times throughout the show's final year of operation. In addition to this, the Studio C show system would also glitch and freeze constantly, leaving Chuck E. and the lighting elements of the show frozen in random, unnatural positions. No maintenance was performed on the show aside from the occasional re-attachment of Chuck E.'s eyelashes. Its final day of full operation was August 2, 2022, as the next day it would be dismantled and removed.
Stage Installed Removed
Studio C Alpha May 2000 August 2022
Dance Floor + Video Wall August 2022 Still in Use.

History

Pre-CEC

Milestrip Road's Discovery Zone would open its doors in January of 1994. This location would be the first of three that were established in the Buffalo area, with a second holding its grand opening only six months later on July 9, 1994. Milestrip Road's location would operate for 5 years before Discovery Zone's eventual bankruptcy in 1999, where shortly after being bought by CEC Entertainment, it would reopen as a Chuck E. Cheese's in May 2000.

Name confusion

The store's 'official' name is Hamburg, as it is located in the town of Hamburg, NY. Despite this, it is also known as Buffalo, as it is closer in proximity to the city of Buffalo than its former sister location, Amherst, NY (4994 Harlem Rd) . The village of Hamburg is within a short distance from another town by the name of Orchard Park, so close that this also causes some confusion as to the store's name.

Opening

The store would eventually open as a Chuck E. Cheese's on May 31st, 2000, taking over nearly 75% of the former Discovery Zone space, with the remaining portion being taken over by a kids clothing department store.

Late 2010s expansion/remodel

Between the years of 2009-2011, Buffalo received an expansion as well as the 2005 CEC 2000's Remodel Program remodel. After the store's former neighboring department store had closed, it later expanded into the space, the wall separating the two businesses being knocked down to make room for another 'new' gameroom. This expansion saw the installation of a wheelchair accessible ramp as well as a set of three stairs that lead into the new game area. Although the Skytubes remained during this remodel, they would later be removed in 2014 to be replaced with Chuck E. Cheese's Fun House, which would also be removed in 2020.

2.0 Remodel

Buffalo began their 2.0 remodel in July 2022. Its initial start date was back in December of the previous year; however, it was continuously pushed back (December>March>May>July). Instead of the standard 2.0 remodel, Buffalo was granted the 'signature store' title and was given the signature 2.0 remodel package. This included everything that a standard 2.0 would get, as well as the addition of a custom mural featuring the characters exploring Niagara Falls. With this remodel, Buffalo would see their showroom area and kiddie land area swap places, in favor of having the giant video wall visible from outside the building.

Games & Rides

'Old' Gameroom

'New' Gameroom

Kiddie Area

Coin Action Games

Animatronics

Animatronic Serial # Whereabouts
Chuck E. Cheese (32 Movement) 085 Unknown, removed from store August 3rd
Bird N/A Safe in private collection
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Studio C Alpha stage in 2021

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