New York State’s minimum wage went up on Jan. 1 for workers in Niagara County as part of the $15 minimum wage phase-in. On December 31, workers outside of New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County saw the minimum wage increase by $1 per hour, from $13.20 to $14.20.Read More

The Niagara County Department of Health (NCDOH) is holding a FREE rabies clinic at the City of North Tonawanda Public Works Department, 758 Erie Avenue, on: Saturday December 10, 2022 from 9:00 AM to 12:00 Noon All appointments are by reservation only. Please go to www.niagaracounty.com/health and click on theRead More

Most everybody can tell a maple from an oak, but would you know an American Hornbeam if you walked into one? The Western New York Land Conservancy, the organization restoring the Stella Niagara preserve as well as spearheading the $2.1 million Niagara Gorge ecological diversity project, will be sponsoring a WinterRead More

Niagara Falls, NY – Niagara Falls Young Republicans, a new group for people 18-40 who believe in Republican principles of limited government, free enterprise and individual responsibility, is starting a local chapter. Their first meeting will be a pizza party to be held on Tuesday, January 30th, at 5:30 pmRead More

Legislature rewards itself with raises after election By Joe Kissel Single-party governance — which is never in the best interests of the people — is part of why Niagara Falls currently finds itself between a rock and a hard place. With the election of libertarian and registered Republican Chris VoccioRead More

By Joseph Kissel Other than Town of Lockport Supervisor Mark Crocker, all the speakers at Tuesday’s public hearing on the county’s proposed budget shot down the idea of raises for legislators. Mr. Crocker and legislators in favor of the 28 percent raise said it was time after 18 years ofRead More

Having held the position for barely a year, Jeanne Leccese abruptly and unexpectedly resigned as Executive Director of the Niagara River Greenway last month, leaving unanswered questions. Namely, why did she leave the high-paying, prestigious position at the public benefit corporation for a staff job at a lowly non-profit? ButRead More

When it comes to Niagara Falls, it’s like the Wild West around here. That’s because New York State completely and willfully ignores the law when it comes to just about anything to do with the 80% of Niagara Falls waterfront that it owns and operates. The Cuomo administration blatantly violatedRead More

If you asked the average person whether their elected representative to the County Legislature deserved a raise, you can be almost certain the answer would be a resounding, ‘No!’  Even if the county is fiscally solvent, most people do not appreciate giving raises to politicians with their hard-earned tax dollars. Read More

If Niagara County Democratic Party Chairman Nick Forster entered Tuesday night hoping for redemption, he found none. Despite being given the political equivalent of kryptonite with the fall from grace of former State Senator George D. Maziarz, the bombastic Democratic boss has failed to convert the county from its currentRead More

The speed limit on Mapleton Road in front of the sprawling Starpoint Central School campus in the town of Pendleton has been lowered to 40 mph, and some have questioned the reasonableness of the adjustment. Previously 45 mph on the long, straight stretch of road, with no intersections in theRead More

Is local government stalling, wearing down citizen opposition? The debate over a new, high-density housing subdivision proposed for the town of Lewiston seems to be winding down, as only a handful of citizens attending the Lewiston Town Board meeting Monday evening voiced opposition to the new construction. For the thirdRead More

Even stinkier than the skunk invasion written about just weeks ago on these pages, a smelly landfill rivals only the city’s own Buffalo Avenue Wastewater Treatment Plant in terms of the putrid, nauseating stench that now blankets much of the city, particularly during the summer tourist season. Complaints about theRead More

Sources say that the New York State Attorney General’s prosecution of George Maziarz may wind up in a dismissal. The reason: No crimes were committed. The trial was supposed to commence in September. It has been adjourned. Sources familiar with the case said that expected testimony of prosecution witnesses unraveledRead More

Kaleida Health’s plan to enhance and upgrade its Niagara County hospital location continues to progress. Today, the health system broke ground on its $7.8 million emergency department renovation. The project is the focal point of “DeGraff 2020,” Kaleida Health’s plan for the future state of the North Tonawanda hospital. “TheRead More

Take a wild guess. Which was the only municipality in Niagara County to opt out of a money saving, state health care consolidation and the lion’s share of a $15.8 million state grant to bring current costs for municipal employees health benefits back in line? If you guessed the cityRead More

Niagara Jet Adventures, the Youngstown firm that sought to challenge Lewiston’s Whirlpool Jetboat Tours, Hornblower Niagara Falls and even Jimmy Glynn’s incomprehensibly still-in-business Maid of the Mist franchise, has hit some extraordinarily rough water For starters, Christopher Bohnenkamp, founder of Niagara Jet Adventures, was sentenced last month to five yearsRead More

For the first time in the ten year history of the Niagara River Greenway, not a single proposal was submitted for review this bimonthly project period. The September 19 meeting was strictly a formality, with no presentations taking place. Funded through the 2007 relicensing agreement with the New York PowerRead More

Opposition to a proposed new housing development in the Town of Niagara is gaining momentum, as more information becomes available to residents of the Colonial Drive and Miller Road neighborhoods which will adjoin the subdivision, should it be built. The local office of Yonkers, NY-based Double C Realty Inc. hasRead More

To: Gretchen Leffler, Colleen Larkin, Renae Kimble, Nick Forster and Dan O’Callaghan, Niagara Falls is being waterboarded. In general parlance, waterboarding is a form of water torture in which water is poured over a cloth covering the face and breathing passages of an immobilized captive, causing the individual to experience theRead More