Town of Niagara: Contentious mural approved, set to begin

By Timothy Chipp

Town of Niagara officials on Tuesday approved a 16-part license agreement to install a mural on the northwest side of the Niagara Storage building at 2590 Military Road.

The 25-year agreement lays out a number of stipulations to which both the town and Niagara Storage must adhere – topics such as ownership of the building, the mural’s copyright and responsibility for damage should anything unforeseen occur.

Niagara Storage will maintain ownership of the building, while the town will own the mural and be responsible for any damage repair, should the need arise.

To complete any such work, the town must provide 48 hours’ notice to gain the right to enter to begin any work, the agreement stipulates.

The approval was not unanimous, as Councilman Charles Teixeira cast the lone “No” vote on the matter to maintain his stance against using Niagara River Greenway Commission funds to work on private property.

He also voted “No” to apply for the Greenway money – a total of $108,000 – in a December vote, where he held firm to his stance.

His continued disagreement drew contention from Supervisor Sylvia Virtuoso during the Feb. 12 work session, where voices were raised by both parties.

Virtuoso was visibly upset as she defended the project adamantly as Teixeira questioned her and Town Attorney Michael Risman about the length of the agreement, the use of public money for enriching private property, and the ability of the paint to withstand 25 years on the building.

“In 1987, they put up seven murals on Pine Avenue, and they’re in perfect shape,” Virtuoso said after Teixeira’s questions during the work session. “We don’t even have to touch them. And there are two on Hyde Park Boulevard that are five years old and doing great.”

She said the painters will use special paint that is weather-resistant to prevent significant touch-ups.

Students from Niagara Wheatfield High School will help paint the mural, which can begin now that the agreement has been signed and formalized.

In other news, the board approved a request for bids to do masonry work on the town’s maintenance garage, which is getting a little long in the tooth and showing its age, according to several town officials.

At the work session, Town Board members questioned how work should proceed there, as driveways are crumbling and several issues inside the building have popped up.

They agreed to bring the town’s engineers in for a look to get recommendations for next steps.

Virtuoso said the inspection took place and there are some areas of the building that need attention.

It’s expected the town will seek to borrow the money to pay for any work at the garage through government bonds. A bond is set to retire that was used to fund repair work on the water tower behind Town Hall.

A time frame was not clear as to how long the work could take.