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DYSTER ANSWERS THE BELL, AND NEW INFORMATION HINTS AT MORE PROBLEMS

By Tony Farina

I’m pleased to hear that Mayor Paul Dyster is moving to get to the bottom of the apparent conflict-of-interest matter involving the city’s paid Underground Railroad promoter, Kevin Cottrell.

Cottrell pockets a public salary of $74,800, paid by the city and state, to promote Underground Railroad sites, but his agreement with the city precludes him from making money on the private side by selling tours through his own company, Motherland Connextions, to the same sites he is promoting on the public’s dime.
 
The Niagara Reporter found Cottrell in what appears to be blatant violation of his agreement as an operative for the paper was able to secure a quote for the Underground Railroad tour from Motherland Connextions and Cottrell himself.  By agreement, Cottrell can’t have it both ways and Mayor Dyster along with other city and state officials are going are looking into the matter as a result of the Niagara Reporter’s expose.

 But there are even more disturbing developments involving the Underground Railroad Heritage Commission that have surfaced even as we prepared to go to press.  The Commission has failed to file the required financial reporting for its receipt of $350,000 from the city back in July of 2010, according to City Controller Maria Brown. 

  We learned of the check in a FOIL of city records, and the controller has confirmed that while she has received the required financial reports from the school district, the hospital, the NTCC, and the county, she said “I never received one for the Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Commission.” Under state law, the Commission is required to file a report detailing receipt of the money and expenses, and the first report was due on April 1, 2011, with a second report due a year later.  “They are now two years late,” said the controller. 

 While Mayor Dyster has taken a good deal of criticism in the past from the Niagara Reporter, it is certainly worth noting that he now appears ready to act when something questionable is uncovered, and he acknowledges such in his comments to Publisher Frank Parlato in this week’s follow up to the Cottrell story.  This new information will certainly challenge the mayor to find out why the detailed financial reports were not filed with government officials as required by state financial law in addition to the apparent blatant conflict of interest.

 

 

Niagara Falls Reporter www.niagarafallsreporter.com May 22, 2012