MAYOR RESTAINO FIDDLES WHILE ROME IS BURNING
As 2024 dwindles down we find ourselves staring into the abyss that is Niagara Falls politics. On a grand scale, I have hope that 2025 will rank better than all four years of Joe Biden’s disastrous presidency. Speaking of disastrous administrations; we still have three more years of Mayor Robert Restaino’s unhinged antics, lies and unchecked wanton spending. Here’s a look back on some of this year’s most notable local issues and where Mayor Restaino stands with each one.
The first major local issue is the ongoing health related state of emergency at the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. According to DEC records provided to Public Health Watch, WBFO and Inside Climate News, this chemical plant has been polluting the air around it with a carcinogen that causes bladder cancer, at levels of over one thousand percent the amount considered safe by the DEC.
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. chemical plant in Niagara Falls, NY.
This has been a constant problem for at least 15 years, but only recently it has taken the spotlight with the 2024 release of the book “The Cancer Factory” by investigative journalist Jim Morris. Published by Beacon Press publishing, the book explores the Goodyear chemical plant in Niagara Falls and takes a deep dive into the personal stories of employees who were diagnosed with bladder cancer.
The author of “The Cancer Factory”, Jim Morris is also the editor-in-chief and executive director of Public Health Watch, a non-profit news organization based in Texas. This past September, Public Health Watch, along with local journalist Joe Genco, WBFO and Inside Climate News; released a news story about this ongoing health crisis.
That collaborative news story includes the following quote from Steven Wodka, a retired lawyer who, for more than 30 years represented 29 Goodyear workers with bladder cancer in litigation against the chemical suppliers. Regarding Niagara Falls, Wodka testified, “It was incumbent on the state and the company to inform the people downwind that this was going on… To my knowledge, that hasn’t happened. I’m greatly concerned that the people who live around the plant have no idea what they are potentially being exposed to.”
The article also states that “The DEC spokesman did not respond when asked if the community had been notified of Goodyear’s emissions” and that “The ZIP code that includes the Goodyear plant and nearby neighborhoods also has a slightly higher-than-average rate of residents who already identify as having disabilities.” The DEC records also suggest that people who live near the Goodyear plant are at risk due of getting bladder cancer.
Where does Mayor Restaino stand with this issue? Nowhere. He has not said anything publicly about this issue. The community has not been informed properly or even informally. Aside from Genco’s story, there has not been any information released by local news and no announcements have been made by the Mayor’s office. Curious that this information hasn’t even been shared on the Mayor’s favorite informative 311 tool which is intended for exactly these kinds of issues/threats. Why isn’t the city using the 311 emergency text messaging system to inform residents of the poison in their air?
I have received mailers during times when our tap water is harder than usual, and this seems a bit more urgent than that.
THE GREAT RAT INFESTATION OF 2024
After listening to residents talk for hours about the rat invasion, Mayor Restaino went to work on his greatest achievement to date. Two months after meeting with the residents and hearing their cries for help, Mayor Restaino offered them a coupon for $10 off the shipping costs of a $99 three month supply of rat poison.
Meanwhile, not even one mile from ground zero of the Goodyear plant spewing cancerous carcinogens into the air, hundreds of residents are battling armies of enormous rats inside and outside of their homes and properties. These poor residents have been victimized by the lack of response and empathy to the issue from the Restaino administration. They’ve begged and demanded that the city and county act swiftly to solve the rat invasion. After weeks of deliberation, Mayor Restaino announced that he worked out a great deal with a rat poison company; taxpayers who order a three month subscription of poison for $99 are eligible for a $10 off shipping costs with Mayor Restaino’s limited time coupon offer that will expire on December 31st. This is not a joke, that is actually what happened and that is where Mayor Restaino stands on the rat crisis.
MAYOR RESTAINO TREATS OUR TAX DOLLARS LIKE IT’S HIS MONEY
Members from several local organizations, including: the Niagara Falls School District, Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center, Niagara Falls Transit Authority, and the Underground Railroad Museum; have complained that the city has been withholding funding from the $7.6 million which the city received several months ago. The city will receive another $7.6 million share from New York State’s swindled pot of Seneca casino cash. Mayor Restaino has been withholding these funds for reasons unknown, though sources say he hopes to somehow weigh the capital against a bond for his Centennial Park and event center legacy project. One source told the Reporter that Mayor Restaino asked a state official if he is obligated to distribute the funds to these entities by law or not.
Mayor Restaino is directly responsible for all of the problems that the aforementioned entities who are not receiving funding will inevitably have to face. (All of these city issues and they don’t even begin to address the financial challenges the city is facing as its own developer on the North End). This could mean jobs being cut, budget crises, further erosion of infrastructure; and so many other logistical and financial problems. Pretty soon the lack of funding will be felt by all of these organizations from the top down, and productivity will absolutely be effected. Where does Mayor Restaino stand on this issue? He’s creating it and 100% to blame if and when these events come to pass.
Mayor Restaino has a history of ignoring the experts and their warnings about his reckless spending and ill-conceived plans for development.
AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN: THE NEW “BUFFALO BILLIONS” OF NIAGARA FALLS?
In other news, Mayor Restaino blunders ahead with his $4.5 million Hyde Park dog shelter. Many commentators have speculated about the Mayor’s business relationship with the Pit Chic Kelli Swagel, who has received a sweetheart contract from the city of over $20,000 each month for sheltering services. Critics have pointed out that there was no RFP for this contract and there have been many public accusations made against Swagel’s character from those who seem to know her. Local activists have recently alleged fraud and other crimes connected to the sheltering contract. The new dog shelter will be paid for by American Rescue Plan funds.
Mayor Restaino is at it again blowing millions of dollars on a dog shelter.
The way Mayor Restaino’s administration is handling the American Rescue Plan funds echoes the Buffalo Billions scandal. For example, City Corporation Counsel Tom DeBoy told City Councilman Donta Myles in an email that there are no more American Rescue Plan funds available. But Myles believes that there may be as much as $25 million remaining in the funds, which he believes Mayor Restaino is holding onto for (currently) unannounced legacy projects. Myles doesn’t just base his calculations on what has been spent of the ARP funds, but also on the actions he’s witnessed from the administration when it comes to spending said funds. Several times this year, Restaino’s administration and his council cronies have “magically” reallocated or effortlessly shifted millions of dollars to other projects. Questioning this process leads to Myles being spoken down to by DeBoy; who typically remarks that Myles doesn’t understand Robert’s Rules of Order or how the city charter operates, and that Myles doesn’t conduct proper research.
MAYOR RESTAINO EXPOSED TRYING TO GASLIGHT BEECH AVENUE ACTIVISTS
City Councilman Donta Myles has joined forces with retired career combat veteran Arlene Doss in championing the Beech Avenue Project. Doss told the Reporter that this fight is not about getting the city to build a park for the Highland community, but about “bringing the park we had back.” The District Four community includes elders and disabled people, and there is no longer a place where people can gather outdoors. The city has indeed promised a park and a recreation center on Beech Avenue, but Mayor Restaino decided to railroad the project while failing to save face publicly. He learned that he gaslit the wrong Master Sergeant when Arlene Doss publicly exposed Mayor Restaino’s web of lies and his history of gaslighting.
Councilman Donta Myles and many others have constantly accused Mayor Restaino of being racist against Black People in how he has chosen to interact with residents from the city’s Fourth District. It is true that many other parks in the city are being upgraded while Beech Avenue is being completely ignored by the Restaino administration. Activists such as Doss and Myles are given the runaround whenever they approach the difficult questions, such as: What happened to the millions of dollars that Mayor Restaino previously included in the projected city budget? Mayor Restaino’s stance on this situation is that he never promised any sort of spending for a project at Beech Avenue…
RESTAINO’S MAIN STREET PLANS ECHO LACKEY’S URBAN RENEWAL
Robert Restaino may not know how to ride a horse but he sure pulls off a convincing E. Dent Lackey.
In a move reminiscent of Mayor E. Dent Lackey’s tragic urban renewal plan, the City of Niagara Falls, NY has purchased the bank note for 38 properties on Main Street under Mayor Restaino’s direction. Most locals do not view Robert Restaino in a positive light because we’ve all seen him lie and suppress the truth. Pretty much the only people who “support” him are local unions who are paid to give their support, and his close circle of Good Ol’ Boy friends. The majority of us have zero faith in Mayor Restaino’s ability to turn our city into a corporate developer. Anybody can spend tax dollars. Our city should be welcoming in new businesses backed by real capital with turnkey plans. Instead, Mayor Restaino has made our city bad for business as free enterprise is breaking down. Kevin O’Leary from NBC’s hit show “Shark Tank” publicly confessed on CNN that he had to pull his plans for a data center he hoped to build in Niagara Falls, saying that New York is “uninvestable.” He said that the state and local officials put up road blocks – which is exactly the bad reputation Mayor Restaino has given our city.
2024 was a difficult year for many of us. The streets of Niagara Falls are more overrun with homelessness and poverty than ever before. At the helm of the city is a man whose actions have proven that he just does not care what the people of our community want or need. What Mayor Restaino cares about is proving to everyone that he is somebody special, but he failed as a judge and he’s failing as a mayor. People who seek public office and completely turn their backs on their constituents are either mentally ill or driven by ulterior motives, and in my opinion Robert Restaino is both.
When will people wake up and realize that something must be done about our petty tyrant Mayor and his negligence for the welfare of our people? What will it take? Rat bites? Bladder cancer? Lay-offs? More violent crimes? More bad national publicity? Higher taxes and more debt? Let’s face it, Mayor Restaino is no more a public servant than he is a ballerina; and at what point will his continuous violations of his oath of office become impeachable?