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There may be a new day dawning on Main Street in Niagara Falls but there are a ton of moving parts.
The city is taking possession of parcels including 38 owned by Blue Cardinal Development and the Rapids Theater, most recently owned by John Hutchins, a formerly successful businessman who saved it from ruin but is currently facing felony charges for defrauding the federal government.
The theater foyer was the scene of a press conference Tuesday afternoon with journalists and those with political and community interest jammed into the frigid space for a cooperative gathering of hopeful people.
The event kicked off with Mayor Robert Restaino.
“Welcome to the world premier of Ice Princess,” he said before giving immediate credit to Bank on Buffalo and Niagara’s Choice Federal Credit Union for both agreeing to a short sale which allowed the city to acquire the theatre. Bank on Buffalo agreed to accept a loss on the Blue Cardinal properties.
Niagara’s Choice CEO Dan Keleher, speaking inside the theatre after the press conference, said a parallel exists in Binghamton, where a University/City partnership revitalized a formerly derelict part of downtown.
“In 2016 we made a business decision (to give a loan to Hutchins)” Keleher said. “In 2024 we made a community decision (to allow the city to acquire the Rapids.)
The properties will be held by the city’s Urban Renewal Agency. Redevelopment will be coordinated by a committee including several stakeholders, including the Niagara Orleans Land Improvement Corporation, Niagara County IDA, USA Niagara and Empire State Development and Niagara University.
$10 million in a state funds from a downtown redevelopment initiative has been allocated but not spent.
Niagara University has taken title to the Church of Christ on Cleveland Avenue but has done nothing with it.
NU is working with the city to redevelop the Jenss Building into student housing.
The only significant development along the Main Street corridor in the last 20 years has been the efforts of the Niagara Heritage Area to paint messages of hope on the boarded up buildings and to decorate the windows in the Jenss Buildings with portraits by Polly King.
The King portraits, and the murals by the train station, have become a must-see inclusion on driving tours of Niagara Falls, as significant as a visit to DiCamillo’s Bakery on Linwood Avenue. DiCamillo’s was previously announced as a recipient of DRI funds for an expansion.
“Two years ago we began the conversation,” Restaino said. “How do we recapture these properties and take control? We saw the writing on the wall with Blue Cardinal and the Rapids. If all goes well, renovations on some of the buildings will begin in the spring.”
Restaino said the city should close on the Theatre in December and the Blue Cardinal properties sometime in January.
Sen. Minority Leader Rob Ortt followed Restaino to the podium.
“I am not for the government taking over things,” he said, “but for many years of my life, the private sector has failed the City of Niagara Falls. No one has any intention to hold these properties for any longer than is absolutely necessary.”
Assemblyman Angelo Morinello lauded the Restaino administration for using $1l8 million in casino funds on development, not to shore up shaky city finances.
“I have been to a lot of announcements and nothing ever happens,” Morinello said.
After the press conference, NORLIC’s Matthew Chavez opened the theatre for visitors to have a look around. A Niagara’s Choice rep handed out flashlights so the crowd could look around the cold, barren space.
Everything in the theatre not tied down was gone, including sound equipment, speakers, lighting, even a Coldplay poster from the lobby. If Hutchins weren’t already facing so much legal trouble he is likely to go to jail for a long time, the missing items would certainly result in police investigating a case of grand larceny on behalf of the bankruptcy court.
