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May 29

2018

Scajaquada project gets $600,000 boost

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Crews are in the homestretch of a seven year project to restore the stretch of Scajaquada Creek that flows through Forest Lawn Cemetery. That work got a boost Tuesday with an announcement that the state, with the support of Senator Chris Jacobs and Assembly Member Sean Ryan, has committed $600,000 to restore nearly four acres of wetlands in the cemetery adjacent to the S curves on Delaware Avenue. Work on the entire $6.8 million project is scheduled to wrap up by the end of the year, provided the final $700,000 in necessary funding is secured. The work will modestly help[...]

Posted 8 years ago

May 23

2018

Heaney talks rich retiree benefits on ‘Pressroom

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Susan Arbetter quizzes Investigative Post Editor Jim Heaney on The Capitol Pressroom about a recent iPost story on gold-plated health insurance benefits provided by the Buffalo school district. Heaney also touched on the recent guilty plea involving the awarding of the contract to develop the SolarCity factory.  

Posted 8 years ago

May 23

2018

Decline in cross border traffic “very significant”

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It might not seem like it if you’re stuck waiting to cross the border to or from Canada this summer, but over the past two decades, the number of people making the trip has plummeted.  Car traffic at the Peace Bridge, which connects Buffalo and Fort Erie, dropped 40 percent between 2000 and 2017. Ron Rienas, general manager of the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority, which oversees the Peace Bridge, called the decline “very significant,” adding, “it’s very unusual to have that degree of decline on a transportation network.” It’s not just the Peace Bridge. The Rainbow, Whirlpool[...]

Posted 8 years ago

May 18

2018

Ciminelli executive pleas in corruption case

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One of three LPCiminelli executives indicted on corruption charges related to the Buffalo Billion program pleaded guilty to felony charges Friday. Kevin Schuler, a company vice president deeply involved in its political operations, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. A bribery charge was dismissed. Schuler made his plea before U.S. District Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan. Under the plea, as reported by The Buffalo News, Schuler agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. He faces up to three years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines. Two other company officials, President Louis Ciminelli and Michael Laipple, are[...]

Posted 8 years ago

May 17

2018

Rare, costly benefit for Buffalo school retirees

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Most retired employees of the Buffalo school district receive a benefit not enjoyed by their counterparts in suburban school districts – lifetime health insurance. And not just any old health insurance, but about the best money can buy. This coverage, provided to an average of about 4,200 retirees, including teachers and administrators, doesn’t come cheap. The bill for the budget year that is winding down is a projected $66 million. That’s more than the $64 million the district is spending on health insurance for active employees. One parent leader criticized the spending in light of the district’s subpar graduation rate.[...]

Posted 8 years ago

May 10

2018

Heaney talks Pegula fracking on ‘Pressroom

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Susan Arbetter of The Capitol Pressroom interviews Investigative Post Editor Jim Heaney on his recent story about the repeated regulatory violations of JKLM Energy, a hydrofracking company in Pennsylvania founded by Buffalo Bills and Sabres owner Terry Pegula.  

Posted 8 years ago

May 8

2018

Pegula back fracking – and violating regulations

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COUDERSPORT – Terry Pegula cashed in when he sold the bulk of his hydrofracking business in 2010 for $4.7 billion. He used a chunk of the change to buy Buffalo’s two major league teams, and made it clear when he purchased the Sabres that he was in it for the sports, not the money. “If I want to make some money, I’ll go drill another well,” he quipped at a press conference. Pegula is, in fact, drilling other wells. He started another fracking company – JKLM Energy, drawing on the first letters of his children’s names – and has been[...]

Posted 8 years ago

May 1

2018

Safety practices ignored in Lehner’s drowning

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If training practices elsewhere are any indicator, the Buffalo Police Department had no business sending Officer Craig Lehner into the rapid currents of the Niagara River last October. Depending on the agency, trainees for swift water diving elsewhere typically start out in water moving somewhere between 1 and 4 knots, or under 5 miles per hour. But the Niagara River on the day Lehner trained – and drowned – was moving at a much faster clip – between 8 and 12 knots, or up to nearly 14 miles per hour. Records obtained from the U.S. Coast Guard show that some divers[...]

Posted 8 years ago
Investigative Post