Niagara Reporter-
Goldman Sachs Bails Out Hamister, Cuomo, Dyster
Gov. Andrew Cuomo came to Niagara Falls on Tuesday to officially break ground on the long-awaited Hamister hotel project in downtown Niagara Falls and he used the occasion to praise his state development team led locally by Howard Zemsky and Sam Hoyt and paint a rosy picture of the success of his Buffalo Billion program throughout the area with no mention of the federal investigation currently underway. While he did concede it was a very complicated process to get the now-$35-million Hamister project started, crediting the Buffalo-based developer for sticking with it, Cuomo offered no apologies for the very long
Everything Desantis Said Concerning Radioactive Waste Dump Was Wrong
It turns out that nearly everything City Planner Tom DeSantis told the mainstream media last week in connection with a radioactive waste dump on North Avenue was incorrect, and Tuesday he was back peddling in the Niagara Gazette after an investigation by that paper found that the reporting on the subject in this newspaper was correct. DeSantis initially told the Gazette and other media outlets that the radioactive waste, dug up at the site of the Whirlpool Street train station and dumped on North Avenue by city contractors, had been there only two months, that signs warning of its
Scrutiny Of Alleged Niagara Falls Bid Rigging Needed
As the sultry summer weather settles in, investigations into alleged corrupt activities of the Cuomo administration are also heating up. Independent probes by both Manhattan-based U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara and New York State Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman, delving deeply into the state’s putrescent pay-to-play political culture, have already revealed possible widespread incidents of bribery, conflict of interest, official misconduct, influence peddling and lobbying violations. In addition, allegations of bid rigging have been made with respect to two construction projects located at opposite ends of New York State, one a college dormitory outside Albany that was summarily canceled after Schneiderman
It’s in the Stars: Your Weekly Horoscope: July 14- July 20
Aries: (March 21 – April 19): You may start complaining about second hand smoke the minute you shed the extra 200 pounds. Inform judge before sentencing that anger management classes piss you off royally. AM: Put Ex-lax in the custard doughnuts. Your boss loves these as much as you do. Taurus: (April 20 – May 20): Mars/Taurus 3°35’59 Starvation becomes a health hazard for you. Learn to play the harmonica. It will annoy others. “Headlice!” is a word that will have new meaning for you. Financial institution adds “fees” to your accounts. Wed. AM: Brush your tongue. Gemini: (May 21
Around and About: Schneiderman- Pigeon Political Feud Colors Indictment
Despite Big State Spending, Start-Up NY Falling Miles Short on Jobs Almost lost in the unbelievable feeding frenzy over the indictment last week of political operative Steve Pigeon was the news that Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s highly-touted job-creation program Start-Up NY has created more tax-free zones than jobs. Empire State Development, the governor’s chief economic development agency, released the disappointing numbers last Friday at the start of the holiday weekend apparently hoping they would fly under the radar, and that’s exactly what happened. The news that Start-Up NY has only created 408 new jobs in its first two years–despite millions of
Director Comey Said What?
The Right Side J. Gary DiLaura You have got to be kidding me! First let me say this, FBI Director Comey is human, puts his pants on one leg at a time and makes mistakes ( boy does he), the same as you and me. This was absolutely a BONE HEAD decision by Director Comey. First of all it was not his decision. It is the Grand Jury’s decision as there was plenty of Probable Cause to believe Hillary violated numerous Sections of Title 18 some of which DO NOT Require Criminal Intent! I heard several former FBI Assistant Directors
It’s in the Stars: Your Weekly Horoscope: July 6 – July 13
Aries: (March 21 – April 19): Your heart was a frozen block of ice, scarred by the skate blades of broken relationships, until new lover comes along and like a beautiful Zamboni floods your heart with warmth, scrapes away the ugly slushy bits, and dumps them in the empty parking lot of his soul. Fire is a hazard you won’t want to ignore this week. Insure everything for 125% of original cost. Taurus: (April 20 – May 20): You will meet a 39-year-old tax attorney and sufferer of severe lactophobia, the tragic result of having been abandoned in an empty
Cement Maker Lafarge Reportedly Paid Taxes to ISIS
French cement maker Lafarge, which has several Western New York locations including Buffalo and Niagara Falls, entered into deals with armed groups in Syria, including the Islamic State, to protect its business interests in the country, according to the French daily newspaper Le Monde. According to Le Monde in a story published earlier this month, Lafarge paid taxes to the Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) in 2013-2014 to continue its cement operations in Syria. Lafarge, identified as the world’s largest building materials company, supplies construction materials including cement, aggregates and concrete for residential, commercial, and public works properties. The Le
It’s in the Stars: Your Weekly Horoscope: June 30 – July 6
Aries: (March 21 – April 19): You have a way with the opposite sex that is at first endearing, then gradually engenders caution and finally outright rejection, like potato salad at a summer picnic. Losing weight will make you look slimmer. Tues. AM: Make appointment with plastic surgeon. Taurus: (April 20 – May 20): The patterns of our lives, like the weave of an oriental rug, the tans and reds, the thin silken threads, the thick woolen yarns, the cross weaves or the double hooks, and, yes, even the berber loops that are really out of style these days, sure
NBC News Story Bringing Niagara Falls to Millions Ignored by State Parks, NTCC, Dyster
On the occasions that Niagara Falls is featured on Good Morning America or Entertainment Tonight, profiled in People magazine or plugged on a travel website like TripAdvisor, the collective public relations apparatus of the city, State Parks and the Niagara Tourism and Convention Corporation (NTCC) usually takes notice. Whether it’s a Wallenda walk, an episode of “The Office”, visit by some royal or other celebrity to the falls or yet another meaningless tourism award for Maid of the Mist and its twenty-minute boat ride – the media coverage is invariably deemed desirable and momentous, and guaranteed to be touted by
No Sign Yet of Major Groundbreaking Ceremony for Hamister Hotel
It all seems so long ago that the state and the administration of Niagara Falls Mayor Paul Dyster announced with great fanfare that the Hamister Group based in Buffalo had been selected for a $25.3 million downtown development project at 310 Rainbow Blvd. that would include an upscale hotel, apartment and retail complex just minutes from the world wonder. “I think this is just the beginning for downtown Niagara Falls,” said Dyster in February of 2012 shortly after Hamister was awarded the rights to develop the prime parcel over six other bidders in a process that was held mostly
It’s in the Stars: Your Weekly Horoscope: June 23-29
Aries: (March 21 – April 19): Well . . .” begins your mother as she attempts to answer your question, amid fuzzy memories of a balmy night in Cuba, several empty bottles of pineapple rum lying around the bed she had shared with the Captain accompanied by the worst headache she could remember, “I wouldn’t use the word ‘accident.”…. Mon. Am: Start taking non-drowsy antihistamines and change your name to Brian. Taurus: (April 20 – May 20): Your personality is like chocolate – not the smoky, tangy, exquisitely rich and full-bodied type, but the over-sweet, tooth-cracking, factory-processed, made-with-vegetable-oil kind that