Staff Reports
Town of Niagara Supervisor Steve Richards made it clear Thursday that the music doesn’t have to stop altogether, it just has to be played in moderation.
“The funding is drying up,” Richards said at the board’s work session, speaking in response to criticism the town is cutting back on the number of concerts scheduled this year.
Due to funding restraints, town officials have decided to reduce the number of free outdoor concerts from five last year to no more than three this year. In addition, the staging equipment will be downgraded.
“Sometimes we can’t have the Cadillac, we’ve got to go with the Chevy,” Richards said.
The cuts have attracted concern from members of the town’s Recreation Committee, according to Recreation Director Lee Wallace.
But Richards insisted the anger is being misplaced — he’s coming under scrutiny for a problem he did not create, and an issue he alone cannot address.
Instead, he suggested committee members and town residents aim their discontent at Assemblywoman Francine DelMonte, D-Lewiston, who lobbied for state legislation that took away Niagara County’s share of casino money and gave it back to the City of Niagara Falls. Richards said the town received $10,000 from the county’s share last year for the town’s annual Electric Lights Parade — money that won’t be coming this year.
“Go to Pine Avenue and to Francine DelMonte’s office for answers,” Richards said.
He also complained the town has not received any federal stimulus funding, despite the more than $260 million that’s been allocated for Niagara and Erie counties.
“We got nothing,” he said.
As a result, Richards indicated officials had to analyze recreation offerings across the board, while adding the town lost $38,000 in operation costs from concerts and other recreation activities last year.
Richards additionally noted a projected budget deficit also has forced the town to leave unfilled the vacancies of five full-time positions, including one police officer.
“If we cut a police officer, you know there’s a serious problem with funding,” Richards said, directing his comments at Wallace and another member of the Recreation Committee in attendance Thursday. “Should we have more concerts when we did not fill a police position? Think about that.”
Giving the board a rough outline of what the committee can do to increase the amount of money it has to work with — cut back on concerts, raise prices and look for outside funding — Richards closed the discussion on a sliver of optimism: “Let’s have three good concerts, rather than five with two bad ones.”
