To the Editor:
Recently visited the Niagara area again after an absence of some two years. I stayed in North Tonawanda, but visited the Falls almost daily (indulging myself and losing more than my share at the casino), including a trip to Canada.
I offer what sadly seems to be a normal and continuing observation. The Tonawandas area is in a state of disrepair. The famous Oliver Street business area and bar tour is no longer, with most bars converted to apartment housing, many of which house an undesirable element that has caused an elevated crime rate, bringing even more problems to an overburdened police department and contributing to the decline of the area.
But the Tonawandas are in a pristine and thriving state compared to Niagara Falls, which can only be described as a war zone: the bombed-out look of the abandoned houses and boarded-up businesses, the shell-hole craters in the city streets, the ravaged look of the area, the seedy look of the few small businesses struggling to survive. I drove around Buffalo Avenue and Pine Avenue, hoping for some sign of improvement, without success.
Concerning my trip to Canada, the comment is positive. I observed a thriving, bustling economy, with tourists from around the world enjoying their stay. They are raking in the tourist dollars. It is surprising how many of those tourists are U.S. citizens who brave the Customs hassle and traverse the border to a better and more enjoyable vacation area.
Your newspaper seems to be the only instrument in the area not afraid to highlight the continuing saga of the Niagara Frontier economic disaster. You are the only ones pointing the finger at the crooked politicians who are interested only in more power and payoffs to their equally crooked backers and sponsors. You are the only ones pointing out the obscene taxes and political structure that discourage and even prevent outside investment.
It is hard for me to believe that the public is so apathetic that they allow this to continue. I personally thought about starting a business in my hometown area several times over the past 40 years, and each time a commonsense evaluation pointed out clearly that I was much better off doing business outside New York state.
I have one recommendation, one more task for your paper.
The national political scene, which is even more corrupt than anything New York can come up with, has been affected greatly by the Tea Party movement, which has been able to bring out concerned citizens and seems to be having some effect.
You need a Niagara Falls Tea Party movement of caring citizens who are not afraid to defy the local and state governments and who will campaign and do everything in their power to bring about needed change. I would give anything to see once again the thriving businesses and the Niagara Falls I so well remember.
Don Soos
Jacksonville, Fla.
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | August 17, 2010 |