An Actual quote from another message board.

[WNYresident]

However to stay on topic, I would agree that the politicians in WNY are about as useless as tits on a boar hog. Where I now live (Tampa), it's not much different, but here we have a regional government for all of Hillsborough County sans Tampa proper. The death sentence for Buffalo was when they ran the 190 through Riverside and destroyed that part of the city back in the 50's. Buffalo has not had a waterfront since then.

[Night Owl]

And....????

[Boost Buffalo]

This scene is from before the thruway was built, somewhere close to the future Peace Bridge. The barge canal was filled to make way for the thruway.

http://buffalonian.com/photo/gallery7/1897bufcityh2oworks.gif

[300miles]

so... basically today we have a freeway cutting the city off from the waterfront.

and before that there were railroads and canals cutting the city off from the waterfront...

so in other words... the city was ALWAYS cutoff from the water? Of course it would have been better if they used the opportunity in the 1950's to build the 190 using a better design.... but are we placing too much blame on the 190?

[Boost Buffalo]

Originally posted by 300miles
so... basically today we have a freeway cutting the city off from the waterfront.

and before that there were railroads and canals cutting the city off from the waterfront...

so in other words... the city was ALWAYS cutoff from the water? Of course it would have been better if they used the opportunity in the 1950's to build the 190 using a better design....

yes, the canal cut through all the way to N. Tonawanda. It was something.

Notice the little girl in the picture, that looks about as close as she could safely get to the water. And notice the boats going up stream with full power on, the current there is wicked. Its a cool picture.

And the water intake that's shown is still there.

[moadib]

It would be nice if they downgraded the Niagara Expressway to a parkway like they are doing with the Scajaquada.

Connect the Westside, Black Rock & Riverside neighborhoods to the new Niagara Parkway.

Buffalo always had a canal and a railroad but that there was a lot of green space between the canals, rail roads and the neighborhoods...there had to be thats were all the industry was located.

While we dont have the barges or the railroads, the canal is now a great recreational vehicle and provides an anchor for the local community (if it was connected and integrated into the community).

[Boost Buffalo]

Originally posted by moadib

Buffalo always had a canal and a railroad but that there was a lot of green space between the canals, rail roads and the neighborhoods

Its truly a heart breaker, the fact that they converted the canal to an elevated interstate thruway. Its just amazingly insensitive.

[Curmudgeon]

not to be too negative, but the hill where the girl sits still exists. I highly doubt the waterfront at that particular location was anything but an industrial area with the train tracks and the horse-poop-laden towpath and the canal. Hardly a day at the beach.

That doesn't mean the 190 shouldn't be yanked, though....

[Boost Buffalo]

Originally posted by Curmudgeon
not to be too negative, but the hill where the girl sits still exists. I highly doubt the waterfront at that particular location was anything but an industrial area with the train tracks and the horse-poop-laden towpath and the canal. Hardly a day at the beach.

That doesn't mean the 190 shouldn't be yanked, though....

yeah, but could a little girl still get to that hill and enjoy the whole thing? The view of the lake and harbor from that hill must have been incredible.

And to her left would be Fort Porter.

ah, the simpler days...

[speaker]

Originally posted by Curmudgeon
not to be too negative, but the hill where the girl sits still exists. I highly doubt the waterfront at that particular location was anything but an industrial area with the train tracks and the horse-poop-laden towpath and the canal. Hardly a day at the beach.

That doesn't mean the 190 shouldn't be yanked, though....
That whole strip was nothing but industrial and not people friendly.
I agree, should be moved.--I'm all for the 190 being moved, although that wouldn't help the 198 cutting the park in two. It just didn't seem as important those days, I guess, to make the waterfront public, although we had the example on the other side of the river, the Canadian shoreline, Buffalo was still industrial mentality. We were the city where Torontonians visited for action.
The whole roadway system needs to be changed, but that, obviously, is way down the road.

[Boost Buffalo]

Originally posted by speaker
That whole strip was nothing but industrial and not people friendly.


but the industry here was all maritime business in those days. The tall ships and the streamers were a great sight for the public I bet.

Lots of big wooden yachts out there too, no doubt, with all the wealth here and the gorgeous water to splurge it on. And the slowpoke canal boats using real horsepower were easy to watch.

Now its concrete barriers and fencing that we look out at. To protect us from the vast multilane elevated roadways of speeding truckers and commuters. good grief

The elevated waterfront thruway and the skyway were just incredibly insensitive to Buffalo.

[citymouse]

If I am not mistaken that thing out in the water that slopes is an old water intake that still is there under the peace bridge. Those train tracks is the line to north tonowanda and the falls and the building is the old pumping station at the foot of massachutes that that water intake served.

[steven]

all of that is still there

[citymouse]

The pumpimg station too? I go by there all the time and I think there is one there, but a newer building. I'll have to look closer next time I go by.

[Boost Buffalo]

Is that water intake in the river still in operation? with the swift current in the river, maybe a pump wasnt even needed for that.

The Round Pumphouse just outside our harbor in the lake is still pumping. If you go near it and shut down your boat's engines, you can clearly hear the big water pump humming away. And thats an old pumphouse. Its piped into the antique Colonol Ward Pumping Station on Porter Ave. They're both gorgeous old buildings.

[steven]

Originally posted by citymouse
The pumpimg station too? I go by there all the time and I think there is one there, but a newer building. I'll have to look closer next time I go by.

Yep