By Mark Scott
Buffalo, NY – 2003 was a busy year for the Erie County Public Works Department. County officials say spending on capital road and building projects in the county last year topped $100 million.
The Public Works Department presented a detailed report on its 2003 projects in a full-color booklet with dozens of photographs of various road and bridge improvement, with an accompanying CD-ROM.
2003 saw the completion of a new juvenile detention center and a command center for emergency services. This year, says Public Works Commissioner Maria Lehman, the priorities are the new public safety building and County Hall renovations downtown. It's scheduled for completion this September at a cost of $33 million.
"We have a tight deadline with the public safety campus and the lab to make sure it stays accredited," Lehman said. "We're also keeping a close eye on the courthouse project, because of its complexity. We're dealing with the County Legislature, the county clerk, the district attorney and the judges and how they move through the process.
"That's a complicated project that requires a lot of time."
Public Works spending in the coming year is expected to reach $60 million. County Executive Joel Giambra said funds the county received from the tobacco settlement have been key to financing the improvements.
"We made a commitment of $50 million from our tobacco settlement, which we're only allowed to use for capital projects," Giambra said. "There is still a lot of money left that we're figuring out how to spend in the most prudent way."
Lehman said the last two winters have been particularly harsh on area roadways. She says the constant freeze and thaw cycle has cost the equivalent of three to five years of wear and tear on roads.