The building is named for George F. Rand Sr. (1864–1919), former president and chairman of the board of directors of
Marine Midland Bank, who was killed in a
plane crash near
Caterham in
Surrey, England. The Buffalo Broadcasting Company moved its stations WGR and WKBW to the building; the stations had moved out of the building by 1959. Today, the stations in the
Townsquare Media cluster (
WTSS,
WBLK,
WBUF, and
WYRK) broadcast from studios in the Rand Building and have their transmitting antennas located atop its beacon. Adjacent to the Rand Building is
10 Lafayette Square in
Lafayette Square. George F. Rand Jr. had a private dining room on the top floor of the building that he used for business lunches. A Zeppelin mooring post still in use on the Rand Building's roof. In December 2014, the building was sold by real estate developer David L. Sweet to
Paul J. Kolkmeyer, a developer and former CEO of
First Niagara Bank, for $3.89 million. Kolkmeyer's firm,
Amherst-based Priam Enterprises LLC, buys, manages and develops residential apartment buildings and student housing in Buffalo and the surrounding communities. In addition to purchasing the Rand Building, Kolkmeyer purchased the
Main Court Building at 438 Main St. (for $4.5 million), as well as the
Main Seneca Building, designed by
Green & Wicks, at 237 Main St., the Roblin Building at 241 Main St., (together for $2.56 million) and The Stanton Building, designed by
Richard A. Waite, at 251 Main St. (for $646,569). ==Timeline==