The view from Canada

(Editor’s note: The following was published by the Winnipeg Sun under the byline “Klein Media Service.” If I had to guess, they ripped off BTPM.)

The mayor of Niagara Falls, N.Y., has declared a state of emergency over crumbling roads and abandoned properties, and he says the city council is to blame for it.

Mayor Rob Restaino made the declaration on July 20, saying deteriorating infrastructure and vacant buildings had become serious enough to threaten public safety and health. The emergency order is now in its third week.

Restaino told Buffalo Toronto Public Media the problems themselves are nothing new. What forced his hand, he said, was council's failure to approve contracts before breaking for its August recess.

"It's really a function of them not voting to allow these contractors to come in and do additional services for residents, and we needed to do something," Restaino said. "The state executive law affords us the opportunity, in certain circumstances, to do it, and that's what precipitated it."

WHAT THE DECLARATION ALLOWS

Under New York's state executive law, a local emergency declaration lets city hall bypass the usual council approval process to get contracts moving. Restaino said that's exactly what the city needed, with grass mowing and paving contracts among the work held up.

The mayor said there was no particular strategy behind the timing of the announcement. He said staff spent the lead-up working through the legal steps required, including filing emergency orders, and wanted contracts, orders and communication with the lowest qualified bidders sorted out before going public. The county manager and the governor's office were both contacted during that process, and Restaino said a couple of council members were also notified.

LEGAL REQUIREMENTS AND NEXT STEPS

New York law requires any proclamation of a local state of emergency, along with related emergency orders, to be filed within 72 hours with the city clerk, county clerk, secretary of state and the state Office of Emergency Management. The orders also have to be published in newspapers and broadcast on radio and television as soon as possible.

Restaino said the declaration is good for 30 days and can be extended if needed. Grass-cutting work is already underway, he said, and city administration will decide whether to extend the order once they see how the work is progressing.