Niagara Falls Mayor Paul Dyster said his city has shifted from planning for a better future to building one.
In his seventh State of the City message in a mayoral election year, the mayor says you can see the difference, with construction workers fighting their way through this brutal winter to build things, like hotels and restaurants for the future.
Dyster said over the next two-years, $300-million in projects will be completed. He says even in policing, the city is changing and taking advantage of outside grants to persuade bad people to change their ways.
"In addition to the crime analysis and intelligence gathering, the GIVE grant has a pro-active intervention component where top offenders are brought in by law enforcement and told what could happen to them if they continue with their violent behavior, like, for example, increased federal charges. They are then provided opportunities to meet with service providers to change their lifestyle."
Dyster said the city is also dealing with a cycle of slum landlords buying bad properties, taking in rent and not paying taxes and then buying them at tax auctions. The mayor says this year, some slum properties will be sold only to city residents who must agree to renovation plans and to live there.
