That thing from Tuesday

Coming to you from Elkton, Va. near Shenendoah National Park. Entrance fees are waived because of the federal shutdown. A grim-looking ranger, staffing the front gate, waved us through.

“No fees because of the federal shutdown,” she said.

“I hope you get paid soon,” I replied.

“So do I” she said, handing me a map. We drove off to the visitor center which was closed for winter.

This morning is not about that but about the local election completed Tuesday. I hesitated to endorse anyone because, despite having my own opinions, it is better to let people make up their own mind.

The winners for seats are Vincent Cauley, David Zajac and Bridgette Myles. In January, that seemingly gives the Democratic majority to Chairperson James Perry, Bridgette and Brian Archie.

I wrote "seemingly" because it is not the rubber stamp to Mayor Restaino wanted. If it were just up to Perry and Bridgette it might be so. Here’s the rub: Zajac in recent months, seemed to evolve into no longer being a yes man, voting against the Mayor on the dog shelter and again on Hyde Park Ice Pavilion.

Cauley seems to be his own man. In his previous, and short, term on the council, he sometimes but not always, raised good issues. He also sometimes seems to speak as if he forgot he wasn't in church or likes the sound of his own voice. I did not anticipate he would lead all vote getters. As the numbers become more apparent, I suspect it will show his commitment to the church community brought him success as well as the sincerity of his voice. If Cauley replaces Donta Myles as the consistent no to the yes of Perry and Bridgette, who will step in for Traci Bax, that gives us division.

Where it really matters is when or if the mayor tries to push Centennial Park forward. If the State dropped a $150 million pie from the sky, and Senator Schumer showed up with another $100 million, it still should not be an automatic yes because the feasibility study did not address siting or the cost of the Urbacon Data Center never being built. I wonder if the arena could be built on the lot at Third and Niagara just north of the Sheraton?

Furthermore, there is the reality of Mayor alienating the black community by standing against Beech Avenue Park, defunding summer programs at Packard Court and pulling funding from Community Missions for an outreach worker serving homeless youth. It wasn’t really that there weren’t homeless youth but that Donta Myles, a consistent voice for the people and against the Mayor, held the job.

By orchestrating the Democratic endorsement to 3 chosen candidates, he forced Myles to go write-in. In a way the plan failed because the Dems lost 2 of 3. Who knows how the outcome would have changed if they endorsed Myles but it wasn't a realistic option if the committee wanted to retain Restaino's support. The bond rating, Main Street rebirth and City Markey Renaissance are all things happening on his watch even if the police department is a mess and the $250 billion multi-purpose event center is a hopeless boondoggle.

Reality is Brian Archie is now the swing vote. He is affable, rational and willing to meet with the mayor and listen to other points of view. He also doesn’t have a price and his job, with the Create a Healthier Niagara Falls Collaborative, appears disconnected from funding Restaino can control. In light of what happened to Donta that is important.

So here’s where we are: We have an emboldened Zajac finding his voice, Cauley consistently voting no to things that he sees as serving the interests of the Mayor, not the community and Archie serving as the tiebreaker.

Two races for County Legislature ended the way I expected. Dante Richardson challenged Jeffrey Elder in the 4th District. Sean Mapp faced off with Sam Farrugia in the 6th District. Elder and Farrugia won with little difficulty. Elder had the strength of incumbency. Farrugia had the support of firefighters and the mayor.

Richardson and Mapp both seemed to focus on issues impacting Niagara Falls that would be easier to address from the city council than the legislative chambers in Lockport. Mapp didn't have a confident voice. Richardson came across as bombastic and confrontational, as transparent as a high school bully.

I hope they both stay around and make a difference. I don’t know how they campaigned in their districts but Richardson made a bunch of artificial intelligence generated campaign pieces supporting Tanya Barone, Cauley and Donta. It generated social media hits but did not sway enough voters.

Much seemed to focus on “treegate” raising a stink about $20,000 being spent on the removal of trees at the home of the mayor and other politically connected homeowners.

The thing that came mid-campaign that impressed me was Union President Tim Huether raising a stink over the garbage tax being fully extended when the city has a significant fund balance. The council voted unanimously to extend the user fee as is.
There was a partial explanation in the supporting materials published for Wednesday’s council meeting which I was not able to attend. The city is at the state comptroller’s recommended fund balance. Skimming $2 million to give the people a tax break seems like it could have been in reach. If you prefer I call it a “fee break” it’s OK. The tree issue is noise. The perceived neglect of the black community is not.

Ditto the reports of waste, fraud and abuse at the police department exposed in an email allegedly authored by Police Lt. Troy Earp and initially published by Richardson. As much as $20,000 on trees matters, excessive expenditures at police and fires rack up millions and are way, way more important because it does not speak to ARP funds. Wages come from the budget. So do pensions. 

Richardson said he was going to conduct regular meetings to coordinate public opinion and expose nonsense. I hope he does.

As for the role of the Niagara County Legislature, it is minimal.

The truth is our city uses more than our fair share of jail resources but not as much from county highways and the Sheriff. The issues upon which Mapp and Richardson seemed most focused were those surrounding Mayor Restaino, not the offices they failed to secure.

In the end, we get what we vote for.

Here are the results from the city council race.