Niagara Reporter-
Clever Jamestown Exploits Lucy Legacy, Clueless Niagara Falls Ignores Tesla
Niagara Falls could learn a lesson or two from the city of Jamestown, NY, located a little more than an hour’s drive south of here, when it comes to not only honoring but capitalizing economically on the memory of its most famous residents. In 1996, Jamestown officially opened the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Museum & Center for Comedy at, ironically, its 3rd Street tourism district. Lucille Ball was born in Jamestown in 1911 and lived there until the age of three. Later, her family moved to the small town of Celoron, on the outskirts of Jamestown, where she spent most of
Buffalo Waterfront Renewal proceeds apace with Front Park road removal, Niagara Falls lags, cedes waterfront benefits to State
While Buffalo enjoys a massive renaissance of waterfront reclamation and renewal, Niagara Falls has been left behind. This is because, from the Grand Island bridge to the Falls and north to the Power Project, miles upon miles of Niagara Falls waterfront are owned and operated by State Parks and NYPA, which ultimately answer to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state legislature. The recent upgrading of the south Scenic Parkway (nee Robert Moses) and traffic circle hugging the Niagara River, the enhancement of parking, dining and gift shop facilities in Niagara Falls State Park and the ongoing theft of hydropower from
Slight Niagara Falls Crime decrease attributable to demographics, state trends
Last week we reported statistics obtained from the the 2015 FBI annual report “Crime in the United States”, which officially ranked Niagara Falls as being the most violent city in New York State. Of course, this was not good news for a city that wishes to present itself to the world as a famous tourist destination, or at least the state park adjacent to it as a famous tourist destination. To summarize, there were a total of 555 violent crimes reported for Niagara Falls for all of 2015. Based on a population of 48,989, that means that if you are
Matteo Anello Happy Suit Finally Settled
“I’m happy it is settled, it has been quite a stretch,” said Matteo Anello on Wednesday, the day after the Niagara Falls City Council voted unanimously to settle his federal free-speech lawsuit dating back nine years for $156,414.25 with $40,469 going to Anello and the rest to his attorneys in the case. “While I’m happy it is done, I feel badly for the citizens who had to pay to defend the city,” said the brother of then-Mayor Vince Anello who sued three councilmen after he was removed from a council meeting on Oct. 22, 2007, after refusing to stop his
Amtrak Vague on Train Station Deal
While Mayor Paul Dyster’s proposed 2017 budget includes a $172,000 payment from Amtrak as a tenant at the currently empty $43 million train station, there is still no agreement on a lease although in a statement to the Niagara Falls Reporter on Wednesday, Amtrak said work on an agreement is continuing. Now that sounds kind of familiar, something that the mayor and his top planner have been saying for some time although there is still no sign that an agreement is imminent. We put in a call to the mayor on Wednesday, but he didn’t respond, perhaps because he had
Frank Dux Speaks to the Reporter on Self Defense, 2nd Amendment, Niagara Falls
The other day we sat down with Frank Dux (pronounced “dukes”), legendary martial artist and fight choreographer who is visiting Western New York to explore film opportunities here, among other business ventures. Dux established his own school of Ninjitsu in 1975, called Dux Ryu Ninjutsu. An article about his exploits that appeared in Black Belt magazine in 1980 was the eventual inspiration for the 1988 classic film “Bloodsport” starring Jean-Claude Van Damme as Frank Dux. Dux fight-choreographed the film. Donald Trump told the New Yorker magazine in 1997, that Bloodsport was his all-time favorite film. Dux, who holds 16 World
Owner Still Grieves Over Ordeal in Dog’s Dying Days
Perhaps the great Will Rogers said it best: “If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.” All of us who know and love dogs understand what the great man was saying because I’m sure most of us feel exactly the same way about our best friend. And that’s exactly why there is much pain in the heart of a 68-year-old Niagara Falls man these days who is still grieving over the loss of his best friend last summer in a tale almost too painful to relate. But he wants his
FBI ranks Niagara Falls as most Dangerous City in New York State
The 2015 report “Crime in the United States”, published annually by the FBI, has officially ranked the city of Niagara Falls as being the most violent city in New York State. There were a total of 555 violent crimes reported for Niagara Falls for all of 2015. Based on a population of 48,989, that means that if you are a resident of the city of Niagara Falls, there was more than one chance in 100 that you were robbed, raped, murdered or assaulted last year. It also imparted to the city the ignominious distinction of having the highest per capita
$585,000 Commemorative Sculpture Another Example of Public Art
We think that this Art Alley/public art initiative has a great deal of potential, especially when Mayor Paul Dyster’s breathtaking Boundary Waters Commemorative sculpture gets its grand dedication at the center of the Rainbow Boulevard traffic circle, just down Third Street a few blocks. Not that the classic stainless steel artistic magnum opus is breathtaking – but its $585,000 price tag sure is. Of course, Dyster refused another work of public art when he said “no thanks” to the Tesla sculpture that the Niagara Falls City Council, the Niagara County Legislature and the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area board all
Third Street’s “Art Alley” opens to Admiration, Acclaim, Assault
“This will be a perfect backdrop for tourists, as well as wedding parties,” said Seth Piccirillo, Director of Niagara Falls Community Development, “We want people to come in here and take pictures.” We decided to take Mr. Piccirillo up on his kind suggestion and, as you can see on these pages, we snapped some photos of the “public art” masterpieces now gracing an alley off Third Street in the city’s tourism district. And as far as wedding pictures, who wouldn’t want to pose with their beautiful bride and her attendants in front of any one of these fine urban streetscape
Maziarz May Not Be Out of the Woods Just Yet, as Probe Heats Up
Is former State Senator George Maziarz out of the woods nearly two years after he left office under the cloud of a federal investigation? While Maziarz left office denying he was being chased out, it appears the investigation into Maziarz’s campaign account is now in the hands of the State Attorney General’s office, and the probe is heating up. When Maziarz announced in July, 2014 that he would not seek re-election in the 62nd District after 19 years, he said it had nothing to do with reports that federal investigators had expanded their probe into his campaign account. The once-powerful
Partisan gerrymandering maintains Incumbents, Subverts will of New York State voters
Democracy is on life-support in this country, especially in New York State, and here’s why. Spending by super PACs, and in New York through the so-called LLC loophole, is an enormously corrupting influence on the integrity of our political system. Unlimited money flowing into campaigns, necessitating that public officials expend more time and effort fundraising than they do actually governing, is problematic, considering the pay-for-play strings attached to those contributions that mainstream politicians collectively acknowledge but individually deny. Second, cross-endorsement resulted in the virtual appointment of two local State Supreme Court candidates last year. The party bosses gathered