Our Future is Our Waterfront
Buffalo News Sunday Viewpoints Cover 6/23/13
By Jay Burney
In the almost 200 years since the opening of the Erie Canal,
Buffalo has undergone many paroxysms of transition, development, and growth.
The opening of the canal on that auspicious October day in 1825 was a decisive
moment. It transformed a small settlement along Buffalo Creek into a
thundertown that in its golden age rivaled the wealthiest and most important
cities not only on the Great Lakes, but on the entire earth. The rhythms of
humanity have always been on display here. Cycles of boom and bust, war and
peace, power and poverty along one of the great international borders makes up
our cultural DNA.
It has always been the “big idea,” the precocious gift of
the human mind that has characterized our ability to survive and thrive, often
in the face of unimaginable adversity. Today is no different. We are a few
years into a substantial process that will characterize our regions resilience,
security, and thrivability for generations to come. This brings us inevitably
and unavoidably to our waterfront where our past and future intersect.
Our region is situated on one of the earth’s greatest
freshwater resources. Nearly 20%
of Earth’s fresh surface water is located in the Great Lakes. It is all at risk. Can we target
economic development that protects our water resources? Can cleanup and conservation be the
centerpiece of economic development or will they be sacrificed on the altar of
externalities? Can we find a sustainable pathway to a thriving future? Can we
lead?
Big thinkers foster big ideas. We have more than a few
helping us to chart our course. Recently Cameron Davis, the Obama
Administration’s EPA point person on Great Lakes issues was in Buffalo to
promote the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. The GLRI has delivered money locally to help clean up both
the Buffalo River and to remove damaging invasive species from the Times Beach
Nature Preserve on the downtown side of the Outer Harbor.
Davis says, “Investing in ecological restoration is an
investment in the economy and the future.”
Congressman Brian Higgins agrees. His leadership and vision
has fostered and shaped tools including the Greenway Commission and the Erie
Canal Harbor Development Corporation (ECHDC). They have helped to bring diverse elements of the community
together to work out our future. From this writers perspective the future is
resurgent.
Public or Private?
This summer the ongoing waterfront discussions continue to
focus on cleanups and development strategies. There is much at stake. The sharp
focus is on the outer harbor. Proposals, plans, and projects are jelling, and
decisions are being made.
Our historic legacy indicates that previous generations made
decisions with consequences that present generations are paying for. Look no further than the Buffalo
Lackawanna waterfronts to be aware that much of the lands and waters have been
heavily contaminated by the legacy of private industry. The bad news is that brownfield
remediation to preserve the health and quality of life for future generations
will cost taxpayers billions. Other threats to the Great Lakes, documented in a
recent Buffalo News series, are nearly overwhelming. Cumulative threats include
urban and agricultural runoff, raw sewerage, invasive species, habitat loss,
and climate change. If we are to have a future we must act now to clean our
region up and stop the insanity of pollution.
The big development questions contrast private use versus
public access. Should we allow private development that limits public access
and public scrutiny, or promote open space and public access? Can we feed a mixture of the seemingly
polar opposites? One way or another, taxpayers will bear the costs.
Many argue that privatization is an unrivaled economic
engine, represents the highest purpose and value for the waterfront and that a
rising tide lifts all boats.
Others argue that privatization is a transfer of public investment away
from the public trust, access, and use. In public hearing after public hearing
citizens are arguing for equal, public access, pointing out that not all people
have access to floatable boats.
The good news is that we are engaged. Governments are working on sustainable
solutions. They are making social,
economic, and environmental investments that are change makers. These agencies have partnered with the
private and pubic sectors, individuals, and public benefit organizations in
discussions and projects that are moving us forward.
Money
It is no secret, public investment attracts economic
development. On the outer harbor,
public investments decontaminate brownfields and prepare infrastructure for
development. Public money creates
tremendous value.
Higgins advocates for beaches, parks, public amenities, and
the restoration of ecological productivity. He says that we should focus urban
development in areas such as the inner harbor. “We don’t need to recreate a city on the outer harbor ‘ he
says. Better access
infrastructure is critical. He is working with the ECHDC to transform Ohio
Street into a tree-lined bike friendly Boulevard from downtown to the outer
harbor. “This will be our land bridge”, he told us. Construction will begin
later this year.
Many individuals and businesses that call the Buffalo
Waterfront home support the progress.
Captain Bill Zimmermann of Seven Seas Sailing School, established in
1970 says that the future of his business and the newly developing waterfront
is better than ever. He credits the work of Higgins and Tom Dee of ECHDC.
"They have brought the process to the people.” “Vision and money are creating a world class waterfront."
Struggles remain. Joan Bozer and Joanne Kahn are activists
promoting public access though the development of a new Olmsted Park on
portions of the outer harbor.
Bozer says that parkland and greenspace improves quality of life and the
value of adjacent properties. “Quality of life attracts people and
investments”, she told us. The
project was recently turned down for funding by the Niagara Greenway
Commission, which was intended to create a linear system of parks and trails
linking Lakes Erie and Ontario. The Commission was recently critiqued in a
report by UB Professor Sam MaGavern and the Partnership for the Public Good as
quickly spending down its money on projects that have no relation to parks and
trails. The Greenway Commission needs to improve.
A Water Based Economy?
Clean water is an increasingly rare resource. A majority of
humans will face severe shortages within a generation. Our strategically
located region makes us a major player and our relationship with the Great
Lakes will define our future.
Jill Jedlicka of the Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper advocates
for investment in a “blue economy”.
She points out that nearly 4 million jobs in NYS depend on the Great
Lakes, NYS sport fishing supports 12,000 jobs, has a $2.2 billion economic
impact, and recreational boating has a $600 million economic impact. We can improve those numbers with
coordinated efforts to promote clean water. Can we better link that to a recreational
economy that will draw tourists and investments by people that want to visit,
live, and work here?
Riverkeeper strategies include public and private
partnerships, healthy water, public access and open space, designing natural
systems into community redevelopment, and using the Niagara Greenway as a
catalyst for waterfront and economic revitalization.
Nature and
Environment
Times Beach Nature Preserve is located in downtown Buffalo
and next to the Coast Guard Station on Fuhrmann Blvd. It is a demonstration
project to remove invasive species and return ecological value with restored
native habitat. Both the Buffalo River and Times Beach have received GLRI
money. Lieutenant Colonel Owen J. Beaudoin, Commander of the Buffalo District
Corp’s of Engineers which is in charge of the project, says that Times Beach is
a jewel that supports many species of migrating birds that depend on the
Niagara River Corridor Globally Significant Important Bird Area (NRIBA). It is one of many restoration projects
that are helping to revitalize regional economy by focusing on conservation.
Big ideas continue to emerge. The U.S. operates 14 National
Marine Sanctuaries, 13 of which are ocean based and protect biodiversity. There
is only one in the Great Lakes, Thunder Bay in Lake Huron. Shipwrecks, history
and heritage are highlighted.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA)
which oversees the sanctuaries, the economic impact of the Thunder Bay
Sanctuary has been substantial. Accommodations, retail operations, marinas,
boat, kayak, and canoe liveries, and tour operators garnered over $100 million
in sales associated with the Sanctuary, including $39.1 million in personal
income for residents. Thousands of
jobs have been created. Buffalo’s waterfront would be perfect for a Marine
Sanctuary because we have a world-class biodiversity and nature. Educational and research institutions
can turn our area into the Woods Hole of the Great Lakes. Did we mention that
much of the history and heritage of North America can be interpreted along our
shorelines and beneath our waters? Spectacular natural attractions such as
Niagara Falls already draw tourists our region. The Erie Niagara Marine Sanctuary can be an economic
development tool that is inexpensive low hanging fruit for a region engaged
with defining its future.
This summer our region will continue to work toward a
resilient “blue economy” that will help to guarantee a thriving and sustainable
tomorrow. Thanks to a lot of
dedicated individuals and organizations, we have a real chance for a future
that works for all of us!
