Town of Niagara to hold public hearing on tearing down building

New police officer hired

By Benjamin Joe

Due diligence is being attended to in the Town of Niagara where the legal steps to demolish a structure, at 2920 Birch Ave., have been put in motion.

A public hearing is scheduled for Nov. 18 and will include Town Attorney Michael Risman asking building inspection personnel questions regarding communications with Wieslaw Walawender, the owner of the building. A representative of the Building Department will also report Walawender’s responses to said communications, including any promises of repair, as well as any and all violations the structure has accrued in the several years it has stood vacant.

Supervisor Sylvia Virtuoso said before the Town Board’s regular business meeting that one of Walawender’s buildings has already been demolished, and he has several other properties in the Town of Niagara that will also be scrutinized in the near future.

She also said Walawender may or may not attend, but the hearing will go on regardless.

In other news

•Officials praised the work done by the Town of Niagara Highway Department, headed by Highway Superintendent Richard Sirianni, at its Tuesday night meeting.

The Town of Niagara Town Hall’s parking lot was repaired in-house by the department and saved the town a sizable amount of funds.

“Our parking lot was in need of total repaving and had drainage problems,” Virtuoso said. “There was so much work that needed to be put into this parking lot, and we kept getting quotes which we could never afford. These highway guys took it and they did an excellent job, and we can’t thank them enough for how much they saved the town, and the great work that they did.”

The Highway Department employees included James Scalzo, Wally Blake, Brian Lambert, James Kilbride, Blake Wheaton, Steve Perri, Jeremy Tierney, Shane Hovland and David Wierley, as well as Dave Cailtlain who was on loan from the Town of Lewiston. Members of the Water Department also aided in the job.

•Anthony Miller was hired to the Town of Niagara Police Department, pending completion of phase two of the police academy training.

Virtuoso asked Miller, who was at the meeting with his parents, Dawn and Marc Miller, to stand so he could be seen. She said, “Congratulations and best of luck with everything”

“Thank you very much,” he said. “I appreciate you guys.”

During the Town Board’s comments, Deputy Supervisor Marc Carpenter thanked Miller.

“I just wanted to say to Mr. Miller that I appreciate the fact that you’re young and eager to start at the police department,” he said.

•A public hearing for the 2026 Town of Niagara budget will take place at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 21 at Town Hall.