The Buffalo Niagara Partnership -- that shadowy cabal of middle-aged white men based in Erie County whose primary mission in recent years has been the co-opting of the Niagara USA Chamber, the county Industrial Development Agency and the fledgling Niagara Tourism and Convention Corp. -- struck last week on two fronts here.
The action began when Niagara USA Chamber kingpin Bobby Newman went after the Canal Development Task Force, a group of local volunteers interested in canal promotion. After stating that the group constituted a committee of the Chamber, Newman publicly disowned them after 20 task force members refused to pay $200 apiece in Chamber dues.
That's right, he asked them into his rarefied circle and then expelled them when he realized he couldn't shake them down for $4,000. His extortionate demand typifies the approach the Buffalo interests have taken in their dealings here in Niagara County.
The same ham-handedness was evident in an attempt to replace county Industrial Development Board Chairwoman Shirley Hamilton with Buffalo Niagara Partnership flunky Kevin Schuler of Newfane. The well-orchestrated takeover attempt began with a front page "expose" in the Niagara Gazette alleging inefficiency in the IDA, and ended when a motion by Legislator Malcolm Needler to fire Hamilton and hire Schuler failed.
The Gazette is published by Buffalo Niagara Partnership patsy Steve Braver.
It was the second time that legislators with close ties to the Buffalo interests have attempted to hijack the IDA. Late last year, Newman himself was put forth as a candidate to fill a vacant seat on the board, a plot that was nipped in the bud when Legislator Renae Kimble pointed out that, as an Erie County resident, Newman's appointment would be illegal under state law.
The Buffalo Niagara Partnership is seeking to derail the IDA's proposal to re-open the Niagara Falls International Airport. Newman's family owns NOCO Energy, which stands to lose millions of dollars in jet fuel sales at the Buffalo airport should our airport become a going concern.
Hamilton has been central in the IDA's airport effort and, as such, has become a target of the Buffalo interests. Late in the week she stepped down as chairwoman, and schools Superintendent Carmen Granto and Delphi Harrison Supervisor Charles Jones were elected to jointly chair the IDA for the coming year.
Let's hope they show as much dedication to the interests of Niagara County as did Hamilton.
Also winning friends and influencing people this week was Niagara Falls Fire Chief William Correa, whose attempt to hire an assistant fire chief from outside the ranks of his own department created an election-year firestorm that isn't likely to go away before November.
"I don't think it's fair to ask a firefighter to meet the criteria of the deputy chief," he told the Buffalo News. "By the very classification of firefighter, they don't have the command level experience which every municipality asks for."
Correa, who gave the address of the Red Carpet Inn on Niagara Falls Boulevard as his residence when taking the firefighter eligibility test in March, 1986, had very little "command level experience" when he was appointed chief by Mayor Irene Elia in 2000.
But perhaps the mayor was more interested in his other talents. Correa co-hosts the mayor's "Inside City Hall" public access cable show here, a role that not only doesn't require command level experience, but calls upon him to be something of a bootlick. In this capacity, he replaced the city's affable Corporation Counsel Ron Anton, who apparently didn't have the stomach to serve the mayor a half-hour's worth of saccharine-sweet softballs week after week.
Finally, a reminder to all you Reporter faithful concerning Elia's appearance on Tom Christy's "Legislative Journal Live" program this Thursday, March 27, at 7 p.m. on LCTV, Channel 22 on your Adelphia cable network.
The best part is that you can call in live and ask her anything you want, in sharp contrast to the sedate and scripted show she does with Correa.
The odds are running 2-1 that she won't show up but, if she does, Christy's show will likely beat NBC's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" and even the ever-popular "Wheel of Fortune" in its time slot here.
Lou Paonessa and the good folks at Adelphia should be applauded for providing the venue that allows a train wreck like this to occur.
While I'm at it, I might just as well plug our own David Staba's appearance on "Adelphia Crossroads" on cable Channel 13 at 6:30 p.m. this evening, March 25. He's become a semi-regular guest on the show, in addition to writing on politics and sports for the Reporter and covering the Lackawanna Six and James Charles Kopp cases for The New York Times.
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | March 25 2003 |