Lockport NY

(Images - Residences on Genessee St. Lockport NY.)

(Image - East Side Buffalo Burnout)

The city will require all new firefighters to become certified paramedics before they are hired, the Fire Board decided Thursday.

Accepting the recommendation of Fire Chief Thomas J. Passuite, the board asked the city Civil Service Commission to add the requirement to job specifications before the next examination for firefighter jobs is given in June.

“We’ll be opening that up to a statewide exam so we get the highest possible quality of candidates,” said Peter P. Robinson, who was re-elected president of the board Thursday. “We’re just trying to provide a better level of care for our citizens.”

Passuite said this is a first in Niagara County. Lockport firefighters must move into Niagara County within six months of being hired.

More than half of the city’s 51 firefighters already carry paramedic ratings. Passuite said candidates without that status will be allowed to take the civil service exam, but they must obtain paramedic certification before they can be hired.....

On another topic, the board formally asked the Common Council to buy a new pumper truck this year, a purchase Passuite said is urgently needed. The truck targeted for replacement is 22 years old.

Patrick Brady, vice president of the Lockport Professional Firefighters Association, presented the board a letter from the union calling for a new pumper. “It’s a safety issue for our guys. They aren’t comfortable driving [the old truck],” Brady said.

Mayor Michael W. Tucker said he would “have to understand the urgency” before he could support buying a new truck.

The chief also told the board he has dropped Niagara County Community College as the source for the Fire Department’s paramedic recertification training after 10 years. Superior Training Solutions, a business operated by city firefighter John Frederickson, is the new trainer.

(Image - Transit Rd and Robinson Rd. Town of Lockport)

The LUSJ and The Buffalo News are both reporting similar stories from last night's Joint Transit North Meeting. I also attended out of curiosity due to my love of urban areas and planning. Meeting lasted about 45 mins led by several Town of Lockport officials discussing the process so far and what they had implemented so far. town of Lockport Marc Smith led the discussion overall and it was great to see his enthusiasm over requiring better development. There is a website established at http://www.transitnorth.com/.

Drew Reilly, town planner for Lockport, also presented lively explanation of what the town was trying to accomplish. He started out by going back to his early planning days and working with the Village of Hamburg. To paraphrase he said Hamburg came to his office asking "Why does Orchard Park get all the good stuff and we get all the crap?" The answer was design guidelines. Developers will look for level playing fields where ever they build, even more so in a low-growth area since the volume is not necessarily there to attempt to build a pricier project than their competition. If company "x" is building cheap crap, then company "y" will want to build the same crap to have balanced competition. We can see it in our own lives where we hesitate to put so much money into our houses that we fear our return on investment because of the values of the houses around us are not keeping up.

Drew also mentioned the need for visual elements to supplement the "words" of the municipalities zoning/planning laws. Not only does it make it easier to communicate what the community desires but it saves the developer time by reducing any rework that would have been necessary by not knowing well what the planning board was looking for ahead of time. Here are the visual examples provided by the committee. Each topic has an example of what is desired and conversely what is unacceptable: Final Transit North Guidelines (PDF)

Although the city zoning code is not set up for some of this yet, the master plan from 1998 is. It is complete with verbal and visual descriptions of mixed-use up-to-the-street pedestrian-friendly parking-at-the-rear design wishes. Ulrich City Center is a (partial) example of this in action. Family Video is an example of it not in action by only following basic zoning regulations. It is important that the city update its zoning ordinances.

Mayor Tucker made mention at the end of the team work that has resulted and permeated to other areas, such as sharing business leads/inquiries etc. It's nice to see this happening. Going forward as teammates to a goal of overall growth will serve us better than competing against each other and developing to the lowest of standards.

The toughest part is yet to come in updating of ordinances and making sure those that are past meet the spirit of the plan (this one and the city master plan). Daniel Seaman, the town attorney, and Marc Smith both mentioned the process of adopting laws and then updating them as the learning curve grows and results (or lack thereof) start to be known. It's time time for the first legislative steps to be taken.

I'll wrap this up here to keep this "short" and go over certain aspects in different posts.

The Buffalo News is reporting delays in the grant that is allowing the Lockport Ice Arena and Sports Center to purchase the large empty Benderson owned building on Chestnut St. The $400k grant is delayed due to the filing of a wrong form but is expected to still come through even in light of the current economic/budget issues in Albany. The error looks to push back the opening of the facility to spring 2010 instead of fall of this year.

Ottaviano said Lockport Ice Arena filed a short version of a mandatory environmental-impact statement, but it turns out that a long-form version was
required. That hasn’t been completed yet, he said. Also sought by the Dormitory Authority are an appraisal of the building, a revised budget for the group, and proof that Benderson has extended the real estate contract to allow for the delay in funding. Ottaviano said a private-sector bridge loan has been lined up to pay Benderson even if the grant is further delayed.

Meanwhile, the Ice Arena board met Saturday with Marie Battaglia, a Buffalo
fundraising consultant, about strategy for a fund drive. Ottaviano said the group needs $3.9 million to install a 200-by-85-foot sheet of ice in the old store, along with a few bleachers and some other amenities.

Although area residents will be asked to donate, Ottaviano said, “The public aspect will not be in the forefront. The first objective will be to approach endowments and
foundations.”

(Image: Snow on Windshield - Clarence NY)

Well the LUSJ beat me to it ;). With the snow removal complaints pouring in over at the LUSJ after the late school closing on Wed. I wrote Mayor Tucker an e-mail about it and he replied to me late yesterday. Similar information was contained. I'll summarize both the article and the e-mail here as a City of Lockport snow removal FAQ.

1. City streets are plowed in this order: main streets - around schools - streets on hills, next are secondary streets and finally are the many side streets. If snow is falling continuously side streets are put off to hit the first priorities over again.
2. Crews of 20 to 25 men in five plow-wing vehicles and a dozen smaller trucks do the work. This is about half of the crew that used to be used a long time ago. I notice the Jeeps plowing around the grade school near me often.
3. City plows do not contract the road surface directly. Small 1/2" blades elevate the plows off the street to avoid man hole covers that are located on the street. A legacy-issue that is not easily resolved. Tighter streets, curbs etc also come into play for city snow clearing.
4. Salt is usually reserved for primary streets, intersections, bridges and hills. Sand may be used on secondary streets and most side streets are not treated (although their intersections are). The salt can take its toll on the city's older sewer system.
5. It takes around 6 hours to hit every street when no vehicles are on the road. This is claimed to be a few hours shorter than it used to take with the larger crews in the past.
6. There is an extra winter midnight weekday crew for routine street cleaning. On the weekends the police dept can decide if a streets supervisor needs to call in an overtime crew. Once the supervisor is alerted a crew can usually be put together in about an hour.
   

A bigger issue I think is sidewalk clearing in the AM when the children are walking to school. I know I have a few neighbors that put in the extra effort to walk their snow blower farther than their property. I personally shovel and salt before heading off to work in the AM.

As I've said over at LUSJ forums, the city speed limit is 30 mph. Travelling the speed limit I have no problems coming to a stop at intersections etc. There are no 45 or 55 mph arterials in the city were one needs to be concerned for drivers thinking they should still be driving at the higher speeds. Most people seem to drive way slower than needed as it is. The side streeets on hills though can be a little tricky the day of the snow though. Usually within 24 hours only the side streets are not showing pavement.

(Image F&M Building, Main St. Lockport NY)

Heather Peck responded to my e-mail. She supplied the following text in a word document:

Lockport Main Street, Inc.

Lockport Main Street, Inc. is a newly formed non-profit organization dedicated to promoting downtown Lockport, attracting new businesses to Lockport, and providing support to existing businesses in Lockport. Lockport has been included along with Albion and Lyons as one of three communities in western New York to be designated an official “Main Street Community” by the eastern Erie Canal Main Street Program, an organization affiliated with the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

The program will use a four-point approach which focuses on: Design, Promotion, Economic Restructuring and Organization. This approach, developed by the National Trust’s Main Street Center (NTMSC), “advocates a return to a sense of community, local empowerment, and the rebuilding of traditional commercial districts based on their unique assets: distinctive architecture, a pedestrian friendly environment, personal service and local ownership.” The NTMSC will provide technical assistance and training to communities designated as Main Street communities by the Western Erie Canal Main Street Program.

Newly appointed Lockport Main Street, Inc. Program Manager Heather Peck and a board of 11 community and business leaders have high hopes for the program, which has had great success in revitalizing downtowns in communities around the country. Visit http://www.mainstreet.org/
to view national success stories and for more information.

Lockport Main Street, Inc. is currently looking for volunteers to join our four volunteer teams which are based on the National Trust’s Main Street Center’s four-point approach. They are:
Design Team – Focuses on: design education and technical assistance, financial assistance and incentives, and public improvements planning and regulation review.
Organization Team – Focuses on: communications and membership, volunteer and leadership development, and fundraising.
Promotion Team – Focuses on: downtown image enhancement and marketing, retail events assistance, and special events development.
Economic Restructuring Team – Focuses on: data development for downtown business and markets, business retention and recruitment strategies, and property development.

If you are interested in joining one of our teams, please contact Heather Peck by email at: heatherbpeck@yahoo.com. We hope to hear from you!

The city’s new downtown promotional effort is trying to build from humble beginnings.

Heather Peck, the program manager, is working at a spare table in the City Hall accounting office while a search goes on for permanent office space.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which in September inducted Lockport into its Main Street Program, urges all communities to place the program office in the business district, not in City Hall.

“This isn’t really a government program. It’s a community program,” Ruth L. Earl, vice chairwoman of the Lockport Main Street Inc. board, said Friday....

Following the guidelines laid down by the National Trust, the 11-member board is working on finding volunteers for four teams, specializing in organization, design, promotions and economic restructuring.