Sep. 10, 2009 (PR Newswire) --

BUFFALO, N.Y., Sept. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- First Niagara Financial Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: FNFG) will relocate its headquarters to the City of Buffalo this fall, while creating more than 300 new jobs in Erie and Niagara counties by this time next year and adding staff to the Town of Lockport facility where it has been based since 1997.

"We're pleased to help lead a public-private partnership that will bring jobs, investment and infrastructure improvements to the City of Buffalo, while helping us improve the diversity of our workforce and move our headquarters even closer to many commercial customers and leading professional services firms in the Buffalo Niagara region," President and CEO John R. Koelmel said.

The company will relocate its headquarters from First Niagara's Lockport Administrative Center to the Larkin at Exchange building, where the company already employs nearly 250 employees and houses its Western New York Regional Market Center. The company first leased 64,000 square feet in the 726 Exchange Street building in 2006, and it recently began expanding to 89,000 square feet on two additional floors of the 10-story office building. The bank also opened a full-service branch in the building's lobby in 2007 to serve the Larkin District and surrounding neighborhoods.

The area was a bustling manufacturing neighborhood in the early 20th Century, which Larkin Development Group began redeveloping earlier this decade with the conversion of the 600,000-square-foot landmark Larkin at Exchange building.

"Larkin Development has a bold and dramatic vision for a revitalized Larkin District, we're proud to be investing in the neighborhood, and we view today's announcement as the first of many steps we will take to help accelerate the realization of that vision," Koelmel added.

New York Governor David A. Paterson and Empire State Development also announced today that it earmarked a $1.3 million grant to support First Niagara's expansion in Erie and Niagara counties. Koelmel was joined in making today's announcement at the Larkin at Exchange Building by Empire State Development Chairman and CEO designate Dennis M. Mullen, Buffalo Mayor Byron W. Brown, Larkin Development Principal Howard Zemsky, and other community leaders.

The headquarters relocation is part of an overall strategic facilities plan to best accommodate First Niagara's growing business and workforce expansion, with this year's acquisition of 57 branches from National City Bank in Western Pennsylvania and the recently announced acquisition of Harleysville National Corporation with 83 branches in Eastern Pennsylvania.