Categories for Featured

Oct 18

2012

Man O’ Trouble

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The snail’s pace construction of a linear park up the spine of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus is a standing joke between the owner and patrons of Ulrich’s Tavern on Ellicott Street. “We have an over and under if it would get done before the 2016 Olympics,” said owner Jim Daley, whose tavern provides a front-row seat to the construction. It’s a simple enough project: The federal government earmarked $5.1 million of the $6.4 million project to landscape, resurface and otherwise improve about a half-mile stretch of Ellicott Street street through the medical campus. The idea was to improve traffic[...]

Posted 13 years ago

Oct 17

2012

Another politician who isn’t paying his taxes

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An elected official in the Town of Alden hasn’t paid his property taxes in more than five years and is in peril of losing his home to foreclosure. Carl E. Fix, highway superintendent for the town, and his wife, Ann, own a home and adjoining vacant lot on Broadway with an assessed value of $72,100. But the county, the town and the Alden Central School District haven’t received a dime in property taxes for either property since 2007. The couple now owes more than $33,000, according to county records. (Here is the payment history for the house and the vacant[...]

Posted 13 years ago

Oct 14

2012

Q&A: Underground press pioneer Paul Krehbiel

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Paul Krehbiel is one of the pioneers of Buffalo’s alternative media. As a student at the University at Buffalo in the late 1960s, he helped found New Age, one of the city’s first “underground” newspapers. The paper was founded at the height of the Vietnam War, a time when Krehbiel and his collaborators at New Age didn’t sign their stories for fear of retaliation. The threats and acts of vandalism against his property occurred anyway. Krehbiel moved from Buffalo in the late 1970s, working in Denver and then Los Angles, where he continues to live today following a career as[...]

Posted 13 years ago

Oct 11

2012

Godzilla of invasive species strikes local creek

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Local biologists said yesterday that one of the most invasive aquatic plants in North America has spread over portions of a 13.5-mile stretch of Tonawanda Creek, which could pose serious problems for native plants, animals and recreation. U.S. Fish and Wildlife biologist Michael Goehle first discovered the Hydrilla plant on Sept. 7 in North Tonawanda by the boat ramp on Sweeney Street. Since then, Goehle’s coworker, biologist Denise Clay, has been working with six other agencies to inspect 46 miles of waterways, including the Niagara River, to see how far the Hydrilla has spread.  Hydrilla, a native plant of Southeast Asia, grows[...]

Posted 13 years ago

Oct 10

2012

4 billion gallons of sewage goes where?

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Buffalo is one of the few Great Lakes cities that doesn’t have an EPA-approved long-term control plan that takes advantage of green technologies for its wastewater. And mayors across the nation—minus Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown and a bunch of others—were in the nation’s capital last week to discuss how the federal regulations will cost municipalities billions to improve their wastewater treatment systems. Mike DeGeorge, the mayor’s spokesman, did not return messages seeking comment. Buffalo Sewer Authority dumps 4 billion gallons of untreated wastewater into local waterways each year, typically after heavy rainstorms  overburden the system. Yes, that’s 4 BILLION GALLONS. According to EPA Regional Administrator[...]

Posted 13 years ago

Sep 28

2012

iPost hosting panel on investigative reporting

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The economic decline of mainstream news outlets has lead to major cost cutting at newspapers and television stations, limiting their capacity to produce investigative reporting that is vital to our democracy. Yet advances in technology and research provide reporters more tools than ever to produce and distribute their work. Against this backdrop, Investigative Post, a non-profit investigative reporting center serving Buffalo and Western New York, is hosting a speakers panel Oct. 23 at the Burchfield Penny Art Center to discuss the challenges and opportunities for investigative journalism in the 21st Century. The panel, “The State of Investigative Reporting,” features David[...]

Posted 13 years ago

Sep 22

2012

Interview: Chris Jacobs

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Chris Jacobs is that rare Republican who doesn’t hesitate to label himself a moderate or express his concern about his party’s shift to the far right. He took office as Erie County Clerk in January and is one of only two Republicans holding countywide office. (Sheriff Tim Howard is the other). Jacobs previously served 7 1/2 years on the Buffalo Board of Education. Other public service includes a stint as State Secretary of State under George Pataki during his last year as  governor. Jacobs is a developer by trade and his Avalon Development is active in the city. He earned[...]

Posted 13 years ago

Sep 16

2012

Interview: Watchdog researcher Kevin Connor

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Kevin Connor is a research provocateur and one of the leading intellects in Buffalo’s burgeoning activist community.  The Boston native and 2005 graduate of Harvard University moved to Buffalo five years ago. Since then, he has launched two watchdog research organizations, the Public Accountability Initiative and LittleSis. His work has garnered press attention, both locally and nationally, connecting dots among the powerful and authoring studies that have called out the false claims of developers and supposedly independent researchers. Investigative Post Editor Jim Heaney interviewed Connor Sept. 12. A 4 minute 43 second feature with interview highlights appears above. The full 21-minute interview[...]

Posted 13 years ago
Investigative Post