Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 The bear has been spotted on Lake Road near Porter Center in Youngstown as recent as 9:30pm. Please stay aware and alert.
By Tony Farina The rock band SoleTurn, featuring the new and re-imagined hits they famously deliver, will be on stage Friday night at Angry Buffalo, 2753 Wehrle Dr., Williamsville, from 7 to 10 p.m., outside if weather permits, inside if not. In addition to their usual menu of crowd-pleasing new and old songs featuring their own special touch, vocal leader Vik Bhargava said SoleTurn will also play a few choice songs from the Oasis album that is currently the buzz in the music crowd everywhere as the famous English rock band has caught fire again. “They are a great group
Click the link below to subscribe to SPECIAL REPORTS from the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 By: Staff Reporter Patrick Proctor, former owner responsible for marketing and sales at Rainbow Air, Inc. in Niagara Falls, will become Niagara County SPCA’s Director of Business Development effective Dec. 14. The new position was created to bring the no-kill animal shelter into the future. With a proven history of genuine drive in marketing, sales, communication and international business, Proctor’s job will be to generate new donors, as well as bring in significant funding to align with the SPCA board of directors’ goals.
By Frank Parlato; Hundreds of people turned out in Niagara Falls last December to buy homes, buildings, or vacant lots at the city’s tax foreclosure auction. The city reportedly auctioned off more than 320 properties seized from owners who failed to pay property taxes. A reliable city hall source tell us the city realized about $1.5 million from the sale. Niagara Falls has one of the highest property tax rates in the USA, according to the Washington DC Tax Foundation and the NYS Governor’s website. The rate is measure by comparing property values against property taxes. Niagara Falls is also
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 By: Staff Reporter Niagara County residents headed to the polls in record numbers this year. Although that is primarily due to a presidential race, the additional voter turnout aided candidates in local races as well. Notably, Niagara County had a number of competitive races for District Attorney, County Court Judge, and Sheriff. Local attorney Brian Seaman squared off against attorney John Ceretto II for District Attorney. According to unofficial results, Brian Seaman emerged successful by a tally
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 -Niagara Falls Police responded to 17th and Pierce Avenue in the afternoon hours of Wednesday, January 15th, 2020, after reports of a robbery. According to police, a 49-year-old man was robbed of $69 dollars after giving $1 to a panhandler. -Niagara Falls Police responded to the area of 13th Street and Center Avenue in the afternoon hours of Wednesday, January 15th, 2020, after reports of shots fired. According to police, a moving vehicle was shot at twice.
by Matt Cole 9-time NHL All-Star, Olympic Gold Medalist, 2-time Stanley Cup winner, and future NHL Hall of Famer, Jaromir Jagr was placed on waivers Sunday by his current team the Calgary Flames After having amassed a staggering $135,000,000+ in earnings throughout his 24 years in the NHL, he is currently finishing out a $2 million, 1-year contract with the Flames. Why bother? With 33 games left in the Sabers’ 2017/18 season and sitting second from last in the NHL, why should Buffalo bother putting Jagr in the blue & gold? Well, let’s take a closer look at this… With less than
This commercial building at 1389 Niagara St. once housed shops on the first floor and nice little apartments upstairs. It has been derelict for years and is representative of the spinoff resulting from the opening of the Seneca Niagara Casino, almost directly across the street. While there are no “nice” blacks on Niagara Street across the street from the Seneca Niagara Casino property, the 1300 block looks particularly bleak. Plywood covered storefronts and broken upper windows are par for the course and, in many of these shells, the last of the copper plumbing was stolen years ago. Spinoff? We don’t need
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 By: Brendan McDonough Reporter for North Tonawanda More than 2 dozen kids gathered at the Imagine Community Gardens on Saturday, October 20th, not to dig in the dirt but to carve pumpkins. The event was all part of the 1st Annual Kids Pumpkin Day where more than sixty pumpkins were donated for people to carve into any crazy or creative design they choose. The event was open to both kids and adults. For many, it
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 When the Niagara Falls City Council meets this Thursday at 6:00pm at City Hall, spending $280,000.00 on a new statute will be on the agenda. The statue, funded by Greenway money, is of Frederick Douglass and the proposed location is in front of the Niagara Falls Police Station on Main Street. According to historical records, Frederick Douglass visited Niagara Falls on numerous occasions before and after the Civil War. He gave a speech at the First Congregational Church
BREAKING: New amendments to America’s immigration laws will take effect on May 1, 2023. Are you ready for the changes?
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 By: Tony Farina The fiscal crisis confronting the City of Niagara Falls has been in the making for years and Mayor Paul Dyster, who is now in his third term as the city’s chief elected official, must shoulder considerable blame for the mess along with other elected officials who went along for the ride. Dyster survived one gaming crisis that ended in 2013 with the infusion of $89 million in slot payments to the city that
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 By: Ken Hamilton Perennial candidate Candace Corsaro, whom after what she calls being cheated out of a spot by her party’s chairman in the Republican primary for the 2019 city council race, has decided to take upon a write-in run for a seat. It seems that the old Chinese curse of living in interesting times has certainly manifested itself in Niagara Falls. Corsaro’s efforts compounds the efforts of film director and community activist Ken Cosentino, also lodging
With the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping the globe, more companies and professionals than ever are opting to perform tasks and work remotely from the comfort of their own homes. Whether you are choosing to work from home voluntarily or if you are readjusting your current position to your home office, it is imperative to remain safe and secure whenever you are online at all times. With the rise of remote workers and the influx of data breaches, hacking attempts, and online thievery, familiarizing yourself with various cybersecurity tips is essential before you begin logging on to work each day. Use a
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 By: Ken Hamilton Crime won’t change until crime-area leadership changes. But in the meantime, business goes on as usual, and so does the crime. As tears streamed from his face, in sadness of Jesse Richardson’s untimely death, Legislator Owen T. Steed stood among the mourners in front of Richardson’s Fast Food Deli on Highland Avenue during Richardson’s well-attended December vigil. He was a good customer of Jesse’s. Little remembered is that long ago, back in the days
By Frank Parlato The Alexanders—Alon, Oren, and their older brother Tal—made their fortune brokering luxury real estate to celebrities and billionaires in New York, Miami, and L.A. They lived extravagantly — private jets, yachts, designer parties in the Hamptons and Tulum — and moved in elite social circles that included models, influencers, and nightlife promoters. On December 11, the Department of Justice obtained an indictment alleging an 11-year sex trafficking conspiracy—resulting in their arrest. Prosecutors claim the brothers lured dozens of women using drugs, glamour, and coercion into sex. The charges carry a mandatory minimum of 15 years, and all
A sweeping and transformational real estate transaction is possibly in the works as the Cuomo administration, through its Empire State Development agency, is poised to purchase numerous downtown Niagara Falls parcels from local developer and Native American entrepreneur “Smokin’” Joe Anderson, the Reporter has learned, despite all parties concerned refusing to comment directly on the matter. During the Buffalo installment of his “State of the state” speech on Jan. 9, 2017, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that he had decided to purchase “distressed lands adjacent to Niagara Falls State Park” for the purpose of subsequent redevelopment as part of his new
SZWEDO CALLS FOR CITIZEN PARTICIPATION Niagara Falls community leader James Szwedo is calling for citizens’ participation in a public hearing that could have a lasting impact on the city’s future. The hearing, scheduled for March 13th at 6 PM, at Niagara Falls City Hall, is expected to pit private landowner rights against a city administration that community leaders accuse of being egoistic and self-serving. The legally required hearing is over the City’s desire to force the sale of private land. The law mandates that the public has input, and it’s no secret that Mayor Robert Restaino hopes residents will stay
Ken Cosentino, the writer of this article, mentions an old, failed dream of Niagara Falls, AquaFalls. An ambitious, and ultimately fanciful, plan to build an underground aquarium called AquaFalls was revealed during the administration of former Mayor James Galie. New York Governor George Pataki came to Niagara Falls to laud the brilliant project. Ground was broken in 1999 amid much hoopla, but not much happened once the one-acre, 40-foot-deep hole had been excavated. Various alleged financiers came and went, and promises of work starting in “two more weeks” abounded. Yet the pit remained, providing a huge liability risk and an
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 The rain couldn’t dampen the spirits of people at the annual summer blast off party at the Payne Park Memorial Pool in North Tonawanda. “I think it is great for the city and it is also great for the kids,” said Michelle Menkena, North Tonawanda resident. “The kids just love it. They love coming here during the summer and being here at the park. There is so many great things for them to do.”
Click the link below to subscribe to SPECIAL REPORTS from the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 By: Staff Reporter Meet Blue! His family’s home burned down right before Christmas. They had been staying in a hotel and as a result Blue was staying at Creature Comforts Pet Resort. His family came to visit him a few times and were staying in touch with the pet hotel until a few weeks ago. They abandoned him. As a result, Creature Comforts will be fostering Blue until a new home can be found. He is 7-years-old, completely up to date on vaccines and
Carrie Cohen was a big-time prosecutor with corruption-fighting U. S. Attorney Preet Bharara in the Southern District of New York and before that, with the State Attorney General’s office. But she left it all behind a few months ago to return to possibly greener financial pastures in private practice with the New York firm of Morrison & Foerster where she once worked as an associate. Well, Cohen’s first high-profile defense case could hardly be called a win compared to her Shelly Silver days as she represented then-State Supreme Court Justice John Michalek last month as he pleaded guilty to two
Editor’s note: This individual received a full refund on Friday, March 17. ************************************************************************ A Niagara Falls man, finding himself enmeshed in a Kafkaesque bureaucratic nightmare at the hands of Niagara Falls City government, has reached out to the Reporter in an attempt to rectify a situation which never should have happened in the first place. Last week we received the following cry for help on our Facebook page: “I discovered I was being overcharged for city refuse fees. I’ve only ever had 1 garbage can, but I learned in January that I was being charged for 2. I contacted DPW
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 After Niagara Falls City Councilman Kenny Tompkins sent a letter to the NYS Comptroller’s Office asking them to review the City’s 2019 budget which includes $12.3 Million promised as an “advance” by Governor Cuomo. Below is a letter requested by Mayor Dyster’s office from the Governor’s office confirming that the money will be delivered to the City of Niagara Falls. The only question that remains is whether or not the legislature will approve of the
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 By: Tony Farina I wrote back in June of 2013 after the four-year gaming stalemate between the state and the Seneca Nation was settled that Mayor Paul Dyster played a smart hand in backing Gov. Andrew Cuomo during the bitter fight that saw Niagara Falls fall behind more than $60 million in casino revenue payments dating to 2009. Dyster had held firm against what appeared to be long odds for a favorable settlement, putting his
Please click the link below to subscribe to a FREE PDF version of each print edition of the Niagara Reporter http://eepurl.com/dnsYM9 By: Staff Reporter Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center will resume inpatient visitation on a limited basis beginning Monday. Visiting hours on most acute care units will be from 12 noon to 4 p.m. daily. Behavioral Health unit visiting hours will be from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. The suspension of all visitation at Schoellkopf Health Center will remain in effect. Patients will be allowed one visitor at time. All visitors will be screened and have their temperatures
The long-awaited state audit of Erie Community College (ECC) has now been released and it confirms much of what we have reported over the last several months about the management problems at the college that many have suggested have contributed to the institution’s current financial crisis that has resulted in the college relying heavily on tuition hikes to stay afloat. In what can only be characterized as a scathing audit report, State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli said “our auditors found a lax control environment in which significant decisions were made out of the view of the board, the public and
Niagara Falls NY – Carl Cain is running against Mayor Robert Restaino for mayor. Election is November 7. This is the second in a series of of interviews with Cain. Reporter How would you rate the condition of the roads in the city? Carl Cain Bad. And it’s unfortunate because I haven’t had anyone say they feel the roads in the city are good. And I ask people. And no one has said, “Hey, I love how our streets are.” Reporter Is there rocket science involved in keeping roads smooth? Do you have a clue how to fix a pothole?
For years, students of Keith Raniere have been required to sign confidentiality or nondisclosure agreements in order to obtain instruction in any of Mr. Raniere’s teaching organizations. Usually the students are not given a copy of the agreements they sign. The adding of collateral, [material which could be used to blackmail a student] is meant to further ensure there is no revealing of the teachings. Mr. Raniere and his organizations are supported by fees charged to students [and by contributions of his students]. If the teachings were revealed, it would disrupt the income stream
Justice Carter, an administrative judge in Western New York, hears arguments on the disqualification of DA John Flynn in Steve Pigeon’s case.