Seneca Street: Repave project pushed to late next year! Sad but true
By: Cindyk
For all the posts I’ve made and pictures taken about the need of fixing Seneca Street’s poor infrastructure, Councilmember Kearns was informed by the Commissioner of Public Works that the repave project promised for this year (just like last year) has been pushed to late next year. As if Seneca Street in South Buffalo can survive another long and heavily-salted winter.
I, for one, am fed up with the promises made and those same promises broken year after year. I am sick of the LIES our politicians have been telling us over the past 10 year to get themselves, or others elected.
From the top-down, I’d like to take this time to personally thank Congressman Brian Higgins for ignoring the emails I’ve sent begging for his attention to the infrastructure frustration facing his elected area. We could flood Caz Park like it used to be, perhaps maybe the Congressman will see our area is just as important as the waterfront. 
But I doubt it very much!
I’d like to personally thank Assemblyman Mark J.F. Schroeder for being non-existent in his district, and for the outstanding lie told 4 years ago….. “The money’s in the bank, folks”.
I’d like to thank Legislator Tim Kennedy for making promises that the Erie County Legislature can’t (or refuses) to deliver on. “South Buffalo deserves something better”, huh? Exactly how much of Seneca Street in the City of Buffalo is in the County’s budget? Not one red cent.
I’d like to thank Mayor Byron W. Brown who came to South Buffalo last year and again this year with his entire City of Buffalo staff, and who allowed his Commissioner of Public Works to outright lie to the people in this community.
All of these people elected by our votes have let us down. They play politics over what’s right.
News flash fellas….. it’s called a voting booth, not an ASS-Kissing booth! If you can’t live up to the promises you make in your districts, it’s time for the hard-working taxpayers to swing their votes in another direction, since it’s more than obvious the Congressman, Assemblyman, Legislator, Mayor of Buffalo and Commissioner of Public Works can’t get the job done!
Time’s up boys! We have serious problems with the infrastructure in Buffalo and we need serious people in office will to address those issues and actually make an effort to solving said issues.
Who’s tired of the “heads-they win…. tails-you lose” political game?
What you need to do is find someone that is a Democrat to run against them in the next primary. Little late this year but next year Kennedy is up for reelection.
They tell you what you want to hear then either change their mind or outright lie and they need to be held accountable.
It is tough banging your head against the wall year after year. Get the neighborhood riled up and have them flood the offices with calls and emails.
Comment by Rus Thompson — September 6, 2008 @ 9:08 am
They can’t do the work on Seneca St. until next year, but they can start working on South Park now when that plan was just released? How does that make sense? Someone needs to speak up and tell the community how come these projects keep getting pushed off!
Comment by Chris — September 7, 2008 @ 7:28 pm
Chris, different neighborhood, the same lies. They are in a catch 22. Either they’ll break the same promises of South Park (as done with Seneca Street for the past 10 years) or they’ll deliver to South Park, raising serious questions why Seneca Street is ignored (thereafter the same promises).
Point is, it doesn’t make since. We have an Erie County Legislator handing out promises that the COB council hasn’t approved yet. Everything Legislator Kennedy said at the South Park press conference was what Assemblyman Schroeder was saying back when he was but a legislator himself about Seneca Street. And the only thing that changed was bigger potholes and more rust on the “quick fix” street lights. Do you think the voters of Orchard Park would stand for the same lies? Of course not, but these politicains will follow the money and repave a “not needed” section of a street that didn’t need to be repaved, Thank you NYSDOT for not getting your priorities straight!
Fact is, the one person who has the real say in the South District is Mickey Kearns, he, who is not included in the promises “coming to Buffalo” is not mentioned in all the political grandstanding. It’s no wonder….. since Mickey has stood alone as a leader for South Buffalo, the rest are making promises to fall back on the rep of the City of Buffalo. Thus a means to (possibly) phase Mickey out on their plans of just getting elected to collect a paycheck of which our tax dollars pay support.
How can Mickey approve a repave project (promise) to Seneca Street if the “playing of politics” from an Erie County Legislator can’t put a repave project into the City of Buffalo’s budget?
In the mean time, Seneca Street goes to hell in handbasket.
Comment by Cindyk — September 7, 2008 @ 10:10 pm
Cindy,
Once again, you have every right to be angry, but I still don’t think that these delays have anything to do with NYSDOT. Everything I’ve read indicates that this is a City of Buffalo project and the contract is to be let by the City’s DPW. I do not believe that NYSDOT has maintenance jurisdiction for Seneca Street inside the City of Buffalo. This is one of the potential downsides to living in an incorporated city.
For example, I grew up in Olean, and NYS Rt. 417 (State Street) is the primary east-west highway through town. While the City receives state (and sometimes federal) funds that are applied to the maintenance budget, maintenance responsibility remains with the City of Olean. East State Street in particular is badly deteriorated, but the city has insufficient budget to repair it. NYSDOT has maintenance responsibility for Rt. 417 in the Town of Allegany to the west and in the Town of Olean to the east, but not in the City. Just as you’ve seen with the resurfacing in West Seneca, over the years I witnessed a number of improvement projects on this road in the Town of Allegany while the City of Olean section remained substantially deteriorated. It’s a function of the state/municipal compact within the state charter, I presume.
Now, NYSDOT does get involved in some capital projects within incorporated municipal boundaries, but I’m not sure under what circumstances, but as a general rule it does not have jurisdiction over city streets, even though with state route numbers.
I strongly suspect something else is afoot with your particular situation, but that it does not arise with NYSDOT.
Comment by Dick — September 10, 2008 @ 7:47 am
Olean & Buffalo sound like a carbon copy of one another. However, we have had State reps making promises of federal funding for the repaving of Seneca Street. Thus, political grandstanding. We also have a legislaor of the County doing the same thing with the promise of new street lights with federal and state funding. The question is clear, if they haven’t the jurisdiction, should they be making the promises that the City of Buffalo can’t deliver on?
I do know that the NYSDOT can’t just waltz in a do a repave within the city limits.
Comment by Cindyk — September 10, 2008 @ 9:05 am