Lewiston Town Board tackles work improvements

By Terry Duffy

Editor-in-Chief

Improvement needs at town parks, properties and roadways were among the discussion items at Monday’s Lewiston Town Board session.

Supervisor Steve Broderick reported on two sealed bids received for the planned restroom project at Lewiston’s new Riverfront Park on Lower River Road. Included was one bid at $365,000 from Walter S. Johnson Building of Niagara Falls, and a second for $374,000 received from Sicoli Construction, also of Niagara Falls.

Planned for the outfall building adjacent to the roadside entrance, the new facilities would serve visitors to the town’s newest recreational offering. Other future attractions in planning for the park include kayaking and fishing.

Broderick said he’s received several inquiries about the restrooms: “That’s (been) one of our biggest questions. Will we have a bathroom down there? We got to get the park opened first; this is the next step.”

Town Board members approved the Walter S. Johnson bid of $365,000 soon after without comment.

Funding for the project is expected to come from previously set Niagara River Greenway money.

For Kiwanis Park, Town Board members approved spending just over $5,800 on two change orders for fence improvements. The work covers a new install on the southern-most softball field, and a fence correction on the northern-most softball field.

“We approved last year (for) Fox Fence to install a new fence,” Broderick said. The original work order was for $14,458.95.

Broderick said town highway crews removed nearby trees at the park and found the existing fence on the northern field had been placed too far out.

“To really fix the fence properly, the right field (fence) is way too far back,” he said. “We’re going to pull in right field to match left field and straighten it out. Then for the southern field, they’re going to pull it in so there’s more space usable to the public outside the fence. So, instead of a 4-foot fence, we increased it to a 5-foot fence.”

Following some limited discussion, board members went on to approve change orders for $2,058.04 and $3,786.36, respectively, for the fence work. Funding for the project will come from the town’s H-97 account. Work is expected to begin in coming weeks.

Next, the town approved for $5,800 in spending to retain Mussachio Architects of Buffalo to conduct a thorough review of the Lewiston Public Library on South Eighth Street. Board members heard from library officials earlier this year regarding roof leaks that have been plaguing the building, which was constructed in the early 2000s.

“This is a proposal for Mussachio Architects to come down and go over the building with a fine-tooth comb and come up with a solution. This is basically just to analyze the entire building, the roof, the ductwork,” Broderick said. The review would “give us an idea of what we’re looking at cost-wise.”

Board members approved the expenditure. Funding will come from the town’s Power Authority energy fund account.

In other news:

•Highway Superintendent Michael Weiss updated the board on the town’s growing paving needs for 2026.

“We’re gearing up for paving,” he said. “We finally got our totals in what we’re looking at between micro-paving, crack patching and milling and paving. We’re looking at a total of $1,106,247.26. So, this puts us at $300,247 over. I’m asking for the board to approve the extra money so we can get everything done better.”

“This is a real aggressive approach to the season, taking care of a lot of problem roads,” Broderick said.

Board members approved for the added spending. Funding will come from the town’s H-97 account.

•The Town Board approved for engineer Robert Lannon to pursue a $50,000 state grant to conduct cybersecurity reviews and monitoring for the Lewiston wastewater treatment plant. Lannon said the grant money requires $0 in matching funds. If approved, engineering consultants GHD would oversee the work.