Archive for May, 2016
Brown Gets Bum’s Rush Here As Owens Hangs On For More Cash
by Mike Hudson Inquiring minds want to know: What’s the big hurry to get City Controller Maria Brown out of office next week when Niagara Falls Mayor Paul Dyster is letting City Administrator Donna Owens hang around until July 8? Both women were canned by the mayor in the sameRead More
Without High Speed Rail Service What Good Is New Train Station?
by Mike Hudson Back in 2010, for Niagara Falls Mayor Paul Dyster, it was all about high speed rail. President Barack Obama had committed to funding the concept, with New York State alone to receive $151 million to promote the concept. Dyster used the publicity to justify spending $44 million onRead More
No Lease Between Amtrak, City May Mean Future Surprises for Train Station
by Mike Hudson & Frank Parlato Since no lease agreement exists between Amtrak and the city for space in the Whirlpool Street “Intermodal Transportation Center,” there is no guarantee that Amtrak will move into the $44 million facility at all, much less any sort of agreement as to how muchRead More
Enough Already, The Train Station Name’s Too Long
The Niagara Falls International Railway Station & Intermodal Transportation Center – a name which is, by the way, a mouthful of grammatically contorted & ponderously laughable exaggeratedly glorified windy pretentiousness and with its nine word name it is an example of name sprawl. Of the 51 railroad stations in AmericaRead More
Power is Corruption: Are Silver, Skelos and Cuomo Victims of the Progressive Government They Fought to Sustain?
by Jim Ostrowski This may come as a shock but I have a slightly different take on the corruption scandal that led to the indictment and conviction of former New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and former New York State Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos. I like to startRead More
It’s time to move the Albright-Knox and Buffalo Zoo to Niagara Falls
by Matt Ricchiazzi If we could ever put the interests of institutional advancement over the prissy sensibilities of cynics, we may be able to make something spectacular of the The Albright–Knox Art Gallery which barely earns 200,000 attendees annually at its Delaware Park location. To put that in perspective, theRead More
Despite Harm To Region, GI Tolls SNAFU May Face Slow Resolution
by Joseph Kissel Straight from the pockets of commuters and tourists, the Grand Island tolls bring in $18 million a year for the NYS Thruway Authority. And they also create pollution and rush-hour traffic jams virtually any time of the year but especially during the region’s critical tourist season. “It’sRead More
Although “Illegal,” Airbnb Hosts In City Not Imminently Facing Bed Taxes
by Joseph Kissel It’s certainly one of the nicest, best-maintained houses on 18th Street. Inside, the meticulously clean house has been thoroughly updated while retaining the original architectural details that make this middle-class Niagara Falls home unique. Part of what makes that home unique is the owner, an Airbnb “superhost”Read More
Unopposed, Palladino Wins Reelection As Laborers Local 91 Business Manager
by Mike Hudson Six years ago, Dick Palladino ran to become business manager of Laborers Local 91 here based on a single premise – to clean up the once troubled union, and rid it of the last vestiges of the corrupt element that once controlled it for as long asRead More
Community Memorial Day Parade Begins at 10 a. m. Saturday
by Tony Farina Thanks to the tireless efforts of Niagara Falls Councilmen Kenny Tompkins and Ezra Scott Jr., the Niagara Falls Memorial Day Parade will launch the holiday weekend on Saturday starting at 10 a.m. at City Market and continue down Pine Avenue, eventually concluding at the Niagara Falls VeteransRead More
Nanny State ‘Click It Or Ticket’ Campaign In Effect; ‘Godvernment’ Law Will Harass Motorists
by Frank Parlato Erie County Sheriff Timothy B. Howard, once again, is reminding motorists that the nanny state ‘Click It or Ticket’ revenue generator will be in effect between May 23 to June 5, just ahead of one of the busiest travel weekends of the year. The county sheriff’s departmentRead More
Dyster, Piccirillo Misspent Federal Funds On Isaiah 61; Still Call Program A Success
by Mike Hudson Results of an audit released this week by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development were sharply critical of the city’s much vaunted and insanely expensive relationship with the Isaiah 61 organization, backing up much of the Niagara Falls Reporter’s coverage of the situation during theRead More
Dyster Throws Baby Out With Bathwater; Fires Maria Brown As Well As Donna Owens
by Mike Hudson Last week, the Niagara Falls Reporter predicted that City Administrator Donna Owens was going to be given the axe by Mayor Paul Dyster. This week, Dyster showed up at City Hall, axe in hand and let her have it. He also announced that, if the council approves,Read More
Percy Leads Charge Against Taxpayers Renting Tourist Rooms In Private Homes
by Mike Hudson High-priced hotel rooms are what John Percy’s all about. The globe-trotting Percy, CEO of the Niagara Tourism and Convention Corp., typically spends your money — sent to him by Niagara Falls Mayor Paul Dyster — on five-star accommodations when he visits London, Delhi, Mumbai, Prague, Berlin, Geneva, MilanRead More
Arby’s Loaded Italian?
Arby’s has introduced a new sandwich dubbed The Loaded Italian. The subtle mafia implication aside, is this use of a peoplehood to describe food appropriate? Or is it a misappropriation of a culture motivated by commercial gain? Sure, reasonable minds can disagree. But substitute the word Italian with Jew, Black,Read More
Money Grab At Bridges Hurting WNY Says Grand Island Supervisor McMurray, Activist Thompson Toll Removal Effort Reignited, Regional Support Needed!
by Joseph Kissel Where’s the money going? That’s the question newly elected Grand Island Supervisor Nate McMurray wants to know regarding the tolls that have been collected at the bridges since 1929. “This is an old fight,” McMurray said. As such, the veteran warrior of the remove-the-tolls effort, Rus Thompson,Read More
Skaters, Neighbors Find Own Reasons For Thinking Skate Parks Just Uncool
by Mike Hudson HOLLYWOOD – How cool are skateparks? With a population of 3.9 million, Los Angeles, the birthplace of skateboarding, has just 13 citywide. And complaints from the neighbors combined with apathy and rejection on the part of the skaters themselves make it unlikely that more will open anytime soon.Read More
Niagara Falls Skatepark To Benefit Taxpayers Out West In California
by Mike Hudson HOLLYWOOD — It’s a nice little angle. And one that’s pulled in the rubes from hundreds of small towns all across America. Most recently it snagged Niagara Falls Mayor Paul Dyster and his Director of Community Development Seth Piccirillo. Tony “The Birdman” Hawk made his bones asRead More