By Mark Scheer
Niagara Gazette
NIAGARA FALLS —
The One Niagara building is under new management.
Local attorney Paul Grenga and a group of investors that includes former Lewiston Mayor Richard Soluri and several other prominent local officials have purchased 50 percent ownership and management rights to the downtown tourism center from long-time owner and operator Frank Parlato Jr.
Grenga said the group completed the purchase of Parlato's controlling interest in the property, a company known as Whitestar Development Corp., on Tuesday.
"Few people could have accomplished what Frank Parlato did," Grenga said. "We're looking forward to continue the development in cooperation with the City of Niagara Falls."
Tony Farina, president of One Niagara, LLC, confirmed the purchase and identified the remaining partners in the new Whitestar management team as Niagara Falls School District attorney James Roscetti, local realtor Mike Hooper, Cataract Tours operator Frank D'Agostino, local businessman and restaurateur Dan Cipoliti, Niagara Sports Entertainment President Steve Carrella and former city fire chief Rich Horn, whom Farina said will be in charge of building operations and operational safety.
Farina said the new team looks forward to turning the building into one of the premiere tourist destinations in Niagara Falls and that the timing was right for the move, both for Parlato the seller and for Grenga and his partners who bought him out. Neither Grenga nor Farina would disclose the price of the sale, noting that it was a transaction between two private parties. As for Parlato himself, Farina said he may make a statement to the media in a few days, but for now is dealing with the fact that he is no longer involved in a project he believed in very strongly.
"It's an exciting event," said Farina, who will stay on as president of the tourism center located at 360 Rainbow Boulevard South. "It's also sad in a way. I don't know what else to say other than Frank has poured his lifeblood into the place and he hasn't always been treated well for the effort."
Parlato's tenure as building manager has had its share of successes and controversies. He is credited with erasing the image of the building as the site of one of the most disappointing development deals in a city that has a long history of them. After assuming operational control of the site, Parlato set about filling in a gaping hole next to the building that was left behind by the developers of the failed AquaFalls underground aquarium.
In recent years, Parlato has been the subject of lawsuits brought by members of Incredible Investments, LTD, a group of investors who hold the remaining 50 percent ownership of the building. Under the terms of its agreement with Whitestar, the company holds no management rights to the property. In a lawsuit filed earlier this year, Incredible Investments asked a state supreme court justice to replace Parlato with a court-appointed receiver, arguing such a move was necessary to prevent the property from being sold to the highest bidder as part of an upcoming in-rem foreclosure auction. Supreme Court Justice Frank Caruso denied the request, but did require Parlato to post a $500,000 bond on the property to ensure that it had some financial backing that would protect it from being auctioned off. The property is currently behind by roughly $1.57 million in city and county real estate taxes. Parlato was in the process of challenging the city's assessment of the property when he sold his stake in the building.
Parlato's management stint also has been marked by a rocky relationship with Mayor Paul Dyster, City Planner Tom DeSantis and other members of the city's planning department. Parlato consistently denied the city's requests that he make various improvements to the One Niagara property, including changes in the condition of the parking lot and the landscaping surrounding the building. When the city denied his bid to open the building's ninth floor observation deck, Parlato secured an injunction from Supreme Court Justice Richard Kloch that allowed him to continue operations on the top floor while issues with city planners were resolved. The dispute over site plan approvals needed to secure an occupancy permit for the building continue today.
Farina said Grenga and the new management group are committed to resolving the outstanding issues with the city. He noted that Kloch is expected to issue a ruling soon, ordering both parties to sit down to discuss the situation with a court-appointed mediator. Farina said the new management group plans to comply with the judge's directive.
"We want to try to satisfy everything," Farina said. "We want to try to move forward. We want to try to reach agreement."
Dyster said he had not seen anything in writing from Grenga or Farina confirming the transaction, but expressed hope new managers would understand the city's position moving forward.
"I think our expectations are the same," Dyster said. "Whoever owns the property, our expectations for the building are the same in terms of abiding by the law. We hope the new owners are going to be responsible owners."
The changes in management will not impact hours of operation at One Niagara, according to Farina.
"We're here to serve the people and the public and the tourists who come to see the Cataract City," Farina said.
