CUT THE ROPE STRANGLING OUR CITY!

Excerpt from How Bureaucracy and Bickering Brought Down Niagara Falls:

     "This is a region, after all, in which a single county--Erie, which includes Buffalo--has 1,044 local governing entities. "You've got every Tom, Dick and Harry fire crew, registrar and town clerk," says one Canadian official. "If you're an investor coming into western New York, there are just too many jurisdictions, too many politicians to deal with, too many people who want their favor cashed in. And they don't talk to each other very much at all."     "Niagara Falls cannot resuscitate itself: It is too small, too poor, and too vulnerable to decisions made by its neighbors, the state, and the federal government. Yet its prospects have been hampered--at least until now--by the very establishments that ought to be helping it: its neighbors, the state, and the federal government. If it has one political fact working in its favor, it is this: Niagara Falls--the natural wonder, that is--will not go away, nor will all the people who want to come see water drop over a hill. If nothing else, Mayor Dyster argues, that should spur the state and the communities in the region to work together. Niagara Falls is like a big billboard you can't take down," he says. "People keep coming here in spite of the pollution and industrial decline. So you can put something up on the billboard or not--it's your choice--but the billboard is going to be there, and people are going to see it."

     Nothing is ever going to get accomplished until everyone put's aside their personal greed and desires for the better of the community of Niagara Falls. The oppostion centralized in Lewiston that opposes the removal of the Robert Moses Expressway seriously needs an enlightenment! The parkway is a “physical detriment” that has contributed to the decline of the cultural potential and economy of Niagara Falls according to BuffaloNiagara Riverkeeper. I guess the villagers opposed to it's removal haven't realized this and are concerned with the preservation of their beloved Artpark and commute times! In case you all didnt know but a revived Niagara Falls means a boosted interest in surrounding communities as well. Lewiston Village mayor Rich Soluri argues that it will cause financial hardship for business owners in his municipality while also arguing that it will causes excessive dependence on Rt 104 (Main St) that the roadway is not capable of supporting ... I'm sorry but thats a bunch a BS. Increased traffic on Main St which convientienly mirrors the pathway of the RMP can be prepared for and mitigated through various ways if necessary. If anything, for the people who arent only interested in getting to and from Lewiston Village, being able to travel along a roadway with convieniences such as coffee shops, grocery stores, banks, post offices, and a library may be more appealing than a limited access expressway suffocating the community from the beatiful god given graces of nature! COME ON! This debate should have been as lopsided as the Dallas Cowboy's Super Bowl XXVII thrashing of the Buffalo Bills.
     We need cooperation in this region not opposition! Mayor Dyster once stated "We can either be the Engine that pulls the whole county forward or, we can be the Anchor that holds the whole county back". Without cooperation with surrounding municipalies it is impossible to forge ahead in the revitilization of this once great region. Robert Moses Parkway preservationists are the kink in the track that needs repairing before the engine can regain its powerful momentum!

WE MUST CONTINUE TO SUPPORT

THE REMOVAL OF THE ROBERT MOSES PARKWAY!

RMP obstructing access to the famed attraction "Devil's Hole" ... this is only a small example of the barrier it creates and the stranglehold it has upon the city of Niagara Falls