By Joyce Kryszak
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wbfo/local-wbfo-735323.mp3
Buffalo, NY – A county lawmaker and west side residents say the Ontario Street boat launch has been orphaned by the county and is now unusable.
The small boat launch is tucked away on Buffalo's west side. In past years it has been a valuable community resource, providing waterfront access and a summer hangout for residents.
But Legislator Maria Whyte said the launch and its quaint "snack shack" are now all but abandoned. She said that is except for the vandals and drug users who have taken up residence there, stealing pipes and fixtures and destroying the rest, leaving behind only human waste and debris.
The facility has stood mostly unprotected and maintained for about two years. Refuse litters the boat launch area and, not surprisingly, no vendors have been interested in operating the snack shack.
The launch has been cast aside during the growing debate over maintenance of city parks. Tensions are growing over inadequate funding for the county and city inter-municipal parks agreement. But Whyte said that is not even a viable excuse. She said the county purchased the property before the municipal agreement was signed.
She said the county legislature also authorized $300,000 of additional funding to help with maintenance of county parks. But she said Erie County Executive Chris Collins originally submitted a plan to use only half of that for parks outside the city. Whyte said, at the legislature's insistence, he sent over a revised plan late last week. But she said that was too late to save the boat launch.
She said the mayor's impact team has cleaned away some of the debris. And over the next week, Whyte said neighborhood activists will work to at least clean up the remainder of the mess.
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