Why is Niagara Falls (NY) Poor?
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- čas přidán 3. 04. 2024
- I knew Niagara Falls’ Little Italy neighborhood wouldn't look great but I was surprised and disappointed to see how bleak and forlorn the place was. I originally intended to make this video for my parents, my brothers, and other relatives who haven't visited my family's old Italian neighborhood in Niagara Falls in decades, but ultimately decided to share it publicly. I bought into the hype in 2012 when the Niagara Culinary Institute opened. In fact, I even nominated and wrote about Niagara Falls as one of the 52 Places to Visit in The New York Times several years ago. People said it was going to transform the city and bring more tourists, and I wanted to believe it. But in retrospect, all that hype was unrealistic.
Tourism hasn't benefited the poor people of Niagara Falls, that is indisputable. Who is to blame? Why is there so much poverty in Niagara Falls? That's up for debate. Meanwhile, the next time I return to Niagara Falls, I’m going to make a video showing the (very few) wealthy pockets of the city, so you can see how the other half lives.
Here's the link to Eduardo's Airbnb
www.airbnb.com/rooms/24118733...
I was born in Niagara Falls and spent the first 44 years of my life in western NY, mostly in Niagara Falls, NY. The city is terrible as you saw. Niagara Falls is one of the worst cities, in one of the worst states to live. As and adult, I bought a house on Whirlpool St overlooking the gorge with my family in 2005. We sold that house in November 2023 and relocated to South Carolina. My wife was actually a city employee, and the things she seen, and dealt with at city hall while employed there is absurd. She suffered severe depression and anxiety due to her job. It was not the job itself, it was the people. Since leaving the city, she has done a total 180.
I don't know how much you know about the current Mayor Robert Restaino, but let me tell you about the people that run the city of Niagara Falls, NY. Mayor Restaino is a former city court judge for Niagara Falls. Former judge, because one day while he was on the bench, he put 46 people in jail because a cell phone rang during court, and no one would admit it was their phone. In 2007, the judicial committee booted Restaino off the bench, ruling he was unfit to be a judge. The committee wrote, “In an egregious and unprecedented abuse of judicial power, Judge Restaino committed 46 defendants into police custody in a bizarre, unsuccessful effort to discover the owner of a ringing cell phone in the courtroom." Yet the people of Niagara Falls voted for him to run the city.
There also is nothing in Niagara Falls to do. They have the Falls, a crappy casino, and an aquarium. Let's be honest, the aquarium is only still relevant as aside from the Falls, it's the only other family friendly attraction in the city. The only thing that gets built in Niagara Falls is hotels. Probably because the politicians are happy to collect bed tax from these businesses, and don't care about the quality of life of it's citizens. In the 44 I lived in the city, it did change, but changed in the wrong direction. So many projects that were promised, that never came to fruition.
Speaking of the citizens of Niagara Falls, I am not surprised many did not want to talk to you. The people are depressed and overall miserable because the quality of life in Niagara Falls is so low. Not all people are, but more are than not. The amount of drug addicts, people with mental health issues, and people living in poverty is insane. Driving down Whirlpool when we lived we had aggressive panhandlers right by the Whirlpool bridge. They would literally come right into the street, right up to your vehicle window shaking a dirty McDonalds cup at you when you stopped at the 4 way stop. I told my wife if she was ever driving and they were there to just go through the stop sign. I told her if the police puller her over, just tell them you were in fear of your life. The climate is awful as well. Gray, gloomy and cold. 7 months with the possibility winter weather (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Oct, Nov, Dec) - but can't rule out May and Sep either as there has been snow in those months, but it's not typical. Short summers.
The amount you pay in taxes is crazy. Any chance the city has to tax you, they do. The recently implemented a trash fee, that was in addition to your property and school taxes. With low median household incomes, this makes the poverty situation worse.
I have to say, I was actually nervous for you watching your video. I know the areas you were in, and they are bad. It is quite possible there are homeless people or drug addicts that live/use some of the abandoned houses you went up to. I don't blame your wife and kids for not wanting to get out of the car.
I lived in the from birth til 2022. Where I grew up in the north end, three blocks from the old North Jr HS, that area is a shithole now. My wife and I bought our house on 26th near Ferry. It was a nice neighborhood in the mid 80’s. Polish, Italian, German mixture of people and families. Then they either died or went into nursing home care and houses were sold to slumlords who threw a coat of paint on and in the place and then rented it out to whoever paid them rent. Those renters never cared about the home or the yard, they let it go to hell. More and more scumbags came into the street and more houses were abandoned and/or condemned. Drunks who were shitfaced most of their waking hours, drug dealers, drug users, this was a lot of the kind of people who lived around us. Not all, there were people who took pride in the homes and property, great pride.
We thought we’d stay in our house for many more years. But I got fed up. In the spring on one of the first nice days, it was like the animals at the zoo left their cages. Screaming neighbors fighting, drunks singing on the porch, police were there three times. That’s one night!
We couldn’t tell the difference between firecrackers and gunshots anymore. A young child got into his drugged up mother’s stash and OD’d. Two people passed out in a running car on the street, one who had OD’d.
One night, we decided that’s it, we’re selling the house. And we did, quickly. We moved to a nice area in Pendleton. Got the money and ran.
I don’t miss the Falls at all. And no one in City Hall cares to do anything about the blight and terrible conditions in the city. They get excited about a new Punjabi Hut going somewhere, or the giant checker boards on Old Falls St. Meantime, people leave in droves. There’s nothing there for tourists, no incentives for business’, and certainly no pride in living in that city.
What you stated in your post is all true and I agree with you. I just added my side alongside yours. Does it tear your insides to see what happened to our birthplace city as much as it has mine…?
@@jollygreen4639 Wow...what a horrible story. That sounds like a nightmare. Did you consider moving to a better neighborhood in The Falls or the better hoods aren't reasonable?
In my opinion, there only a few good areas in the city boundaries of Niagara Falls. But with the cost of houses, the taxes going up, the lack or delay of services by the city, and feeling like there’s no hope at least in my lifetime to see change and prosperity in the city.
And we moved into an apartment complex where it’s a nice area, quiet, country setting and no more gunshots. Last summer, in the evening, my wife and I were outside and I stopped suddenly, put my hand to my ear and said wait, listen…. She listens and says I don’t hear anything but crickets and birds singing…. I said EXACTLY!! lol. The most noise we hear is when the train goes by our place. That’s nothing, I find it soothing.
It’s terrible that I feel this way but it is what it is. And we don’t regret our decision, it’s what was best for us.
@@MadTravelerI lived in the deveaux area of the Falls before we left. On August 3rd 2023 there was a police shooting (police shot and killed man who fired at them). That happened about an 8 minute walk from our house. We put our house on the market in September. Even the “good” areas are very close to the bad areas.
Deveaux is nothing like it was when I was growing up. And slowly it is declining more and more. I don’t blame you for getting out.
As somebody who grew up in Niagara Falls, and what is still considered one of the better areas, 32nd and Jerauld. I spent a lot of time all over that city, as a kid. I'm 52 now, and it absolutely disgusts me to drive through what was once my "stomping ground". I moved to Las Vegas in the early 2000s, and moved back here to take care of my dad who lived in Lewiston. As far as I'm concerned, it's the only place in Niagara county. I'm going to share this video with my friends, who also grew up in these neighborhoods, so in case they forgot, they can see what they were fortunate enough to leave behind. Paul here, have been corrupt since long before I was born, and every single time the city tried to get something going, it just seems like money went into some politicians pocket, and they just squandered it. From nepotism, to just blatant disregard for caring about its people, and 20th St. becoming a Haven for sexual predators, and 19th St. off of Pine Avenue is like the hotspot for crime now. It's really sad, because years ago I used to work at a gas station on the corner of 19th and Walnut, and that was a good neighborhood. Pretty much all the way down to Main Street, I wouldn't even think about walking down there now, or riding a bike, or in some cases, even driving my car, there are drive-bys, all kinds of gang violence, all kinds of unSlightly shit. I brought a friend through Niagara Falls, who likes to come visit it every winter, and she never passed through the city. Always coming down either the parkway, and staying in the tourist like areas. She was literally depressed after the 5 mile ride from downtown to Hyde Park Blvd., and it's no wonder. But to be fair, on the Canadian side, before they started, ripping down all the postwar homes, if you go past the tourist areas in Niagara Falls Ontario, it's not much better. These are post industrial towns, that have had failure to launch since the 60s. it is crime riddled, and anybody that says it's on an upswing, obviously themselves, has not seen the bottom. When you move away from it, and you look at it from an outsiders point of view? There is absolutely nothing to be proud of, to say that I came from Niagara Falls, New York. But I do have my memories, and my parents had theirs when they were still alive. They were born at the same time as your dad, my dad grew up on 20th and independence Avenue in Niagara Falls. Still not too bad of an area, but rapidly declining it's not just politics, people make extremely poor choices in life nowadays for far too long, too many people have depended on the government. Yep, that same government that could give two shits about anybody else, but they want to tell you how to live.
The gas station on 19th and Walnut is the hub of drug deals, robberies, and shootings now. The house next to it on 19th is a crack house and is always getting raided, or cops there for OF’s and shootings. 19th from Whitney to past East Falls is referred to as The Combat Zone. I know someone who carries a licensed concealed gun when he goes to Fortunas.
In the states infinite wisdom, they have converted the two lane one way streets of Walnut and Ferry from 39th St to Main St/the main post office into a one lane road with cut in curb areas for street parking and, get ready for this, a BIKE LANE!! Yeah, I wouldn’t ride a bike on that, unless I’m packing heat and surrounded by bullet proof armor.
Because Niagara Falls is about nepotism and lining them pockets, not civility. This city has been plagued with feckless profiteers and absent oversight for decades. It makes for a beautiful welcome mat.
Even the school district is all nepotism
My Dad grew up on Memorial parkway just a few blocks from your Dad’s family. I do remember the neighborhood as it was in the late 60’s. It was a great Italian neighborhood. My dad had a bar on East Falls St. there were many bars and deli’s. Urban renewal came through and everything was demolished. Holy Trinity Catholic Church was closed and sold many years ago. It is privately owned now. Factories closed and jobs were scares so people moved away or passed away. The next generation left town as there wasn’t any jobs to keep them in the city any longer. I wish you had seen the City before the early 70’s, it was a flourishing one. As I used to drive down E. Falls St. I could imagine every business as I passed each block. I’m sure those are the memories locked in your dad’s memory. Best he never had to see it now. I’m sorry this was the story you had to take back to him.
Just read the article in the Gazette. My dad was born and raised in the Falls, as was I... I recently sold my house in LaSalle and am now a snowbird in Florida and Syracuse area. I am so sad about the Falls... since the "Urban Renewal" in the 70's. Main street actually makes me cry. Why on earth small boutiques and nice restaurants aren't on that strip is beyond me. Thanks for this video.
Niagara Falls definitely has gone downhill but he's showing the very worst of the areas. There are good neighborhoods and areas. The biggest problem the city has is crime and elected officials who aren't putting funds where they belong. Most of them live in the nicer areas
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The property is owned by NFR CORP. who has no intention on selling or developing anything. They own various properties in NF and have for over 30 years.
@@annamariacolao4493 so sad
My daughter recently purchased a house in the Little Italy neighborhood. I am helping her restore it and I will move there soon. I agree that local officials are a huge part of the problem. Apparently many trees in the area have been struck with disease and have died. When I inquired about their remediation program to address the issue, I was told it would be years before they did so and I had the impression they never intended to. In the interim, entire streets with rows of dead Halloween trees exist, not an appealing place to invest, buy a house and live.
Thanks for capturing and sharing Dave. I appreciated learning more about Niagara Falls having not yet had the chance to visit. I also enjoyed learning more about your family’s history. Blessings to your parents as well.
Thank you very much.
It's disappointing that you misled all people you interviewed. You said u were making a video for your dad. You didn't disclose this would be posted on CZcams and you are a vlogger.
You’re an idiot to insult this blogger.
My Trinidadian husband visited Niagara Falls for the first time last month (we live in Clearwater, FL) and seeing as I lived there from 1968-1987 and again in 1995-1997 and, if course, I've been back at least 25 times, I played the tour guide. His takeaway was "what do people do for work?" and he doesn't know how anyone could live there. He said it was depressing and he couldn't wait to leave.
I tried 😞
My Trinidadian husband feels the same way. Funny how they grew up in a country with one of the highest murder rates in the world, yet are terrified when they visit NF.
@@angeliqueh3523 I was going to comment something similar. When he was younger, his family had no indoor plumbing or electricity and every house in the neighborhood has the iron bars/fences around their properties yet he felt more comfortable there than Niagara Falls. When we were in Trinidad last year he told me not to wear any jewelry when we left his parent's house and I was never allowed to be unaccompanied (let's just say I stood out) but I was never scared. Maybe I just didn't realize how potentially dangerous it could be.
Thank you for posting the video it really brings it home My dad grew up in a '30s went to St Joseph's Church live down the street from dikamillos and work there then he moved to 15th Street about 10 houses down from holy Trinity Church that we all went to My dad worked for the city of Niagara falls helped build the rainbow bridge It was a great place to live in the '60s and '70s We had everything we needed in our neighborhood on 15th Street holy Trinity Church is a cultural landmark and is open for tours a few times a year around Christmas I went to holy Trinity Church and school It is such a shame and what happened to that great city after industry left there was no jobs I left for California in 1981 and stayed here I still have family live on the outskirts of Niagara falls I come home to visit about every 3 years that is a so depressing again thank you for making this video My family's name Saulino.
I imagine this CZcams video holds the record for the number of times the word "Italian" is used in one video.
How many times did he ask, "Are there any Italians left in the area"...😂
I have a lot to say within the confines of the video, however let's start off with 3:21. It's March, it's closed due to, if I had to make an educated guess, ice and potential weather concerns.
For the beginning segments of the video, the "Italian Neighborhoods" simply were sold off after individuals moved to investors from various locations in the globe, who either sat on the property, or rented it out for low cost with someone (somewhat) local doing property management for a charge. Typically, I've noticed, by the tourist area itself, most of the property (streets where neighborhood is included) is owned by individuals who have LLC's registered in NY but the owner of such LLC belongs in Florida.
4:52 There's a lot to be said here, regarding what to do for tourism within the city, however that's something for later in the video after I get to the gist.
5:15 - That's Oxy Chemical, known today as "Tourist Center - Parking Here - Informational Guide Center with VR Arcade on top", oh I mean "One Niagara Welcome Center", owned by 'Niagara County IDA', which is "Niagara County Industrial Development Agency", original home of the text that read, in paraphrasing since it's no longer available unless you go to WayBackMachine, 'Our poverty rates are high enough that our labor is highly affordable and citizens will be willing to work for any cost'.
5:40 - My family has been in the city since the 1800's. So I understand this grief, however you need to understand that the failure of the city is particularly due to the classic mob, corruption, and almost exclusively "Investment real-estate" boom about 40 - 50 years ago.
8:44 - This man is correct, almost exclusively corruption and poor decisions. The previous mayor focused solely on adding hotel's and ignoring the city, while the current mayor is (doing honestly who knows what most of the time) a quality job at least trying to adjust the inner downtown workings to be more feasible for those who work there. I'd argue, as much as I hate Ferry, it's better for those who walk downtown, and potentially a nice change over ignoring it entirely.
10:30 - Yes, so as I elaborated in the previous point, most of these houses are specifically "real-estate investment" properties. Almost exclusively all of them are owned by individuals who "hold onto them" for a long duration, and will only sell at an extreme dollar value (millions) wherein they received them for pennies on a dollar. Let's take a look at 10:34 Division & 8th Street. The house straight in front of you is owner occupied, and multi-family. However, to the right (right of your video, the lot) is owned by "1932 Main Street LLC". This was purchased in 2013 for $175 from the CIty of Niagara Falls to Nicholas Garone of Ridge, NY. Upon question, you should ask "Where did the City of Niagara Falls acquire this property", from a burned down property owned by an "Isom Cornell" (who owned numerous real-estate) for over 1 Million USD in 2009, along with numerous real-estate this individual owned. So that lot of land is currently in assessed tax value of $50 (Likely $80 with all taxes) a year.
This is one of numerous examples of "Why is the city so poor". It's because wealthier people bought out the city for investment and are "waiting to sell", of which eventually the city takes claim for large money, and then resells (hilariously) back to another investor who does nothing with it. The problem is false promises and false hope of horrible decisions by individuals who mean well, but simply misunderstand capitalism for "do-gooder".
10:48. The house you're speaking of. 723 Division. That's owned by "Niagara Village LLC", which is an LLC owned by "Blue Cardinal Capital" of Buffalo NY. That house use to belong to an old family friend of mine, John & Mae Minicucci , whom John was a lawyer. This was his office. In 2009 the house was purchased on auction by "Niagara North Inc" for $15,000. This owner is Richard Hastings of Youngstown, NY. Hastings, per 2017, has purchased hundreds of property in the city to "sit on". No, really, "sit on". He is an "investor", from Youngstown NY. The business, however, Niagara Village, is an Ontario Business, but his LLC is owned by him to purchase land at auction.
In 2019, Hastings sold this property specifically (with other properties at the same estimated purchase and selling costs) for $3,000,000 USD. To a Real-Estate Investment Firm, Blue Cardinal Capital.
Blue Cardinal Capital owns now 32 parcel's of property in downtown Niagara Falls, sold by investors who recently resold property to them for an extreme fee.
Seeing the trend?
This is a placement comment, as I'm not finished yet. If you see this before I'm finished with the 50-minute video, please wait until the end as I don't particularly want to be argumentative but specifically provide clarity as to what actually is wrong.
11:02 Your comment was "it would be pretty cheap". The answer is no, no it isn't. Almost all parcel's of land were designated as "real-estate property" by the previous Mayor, whom allowed this trend to continue and go unchecked, unregulated, and allows such a horrific thing to occur. Imagine, if you will, paying more than the $15,000 for a house that was never updated since the early 1900's. You have lead paint on the walls, you have just barely updated electrical from moving off knob-tube, and you have leaky copper plumbing. No insulation, single pane windows, and various structural problems with the house.
And that's what happens.
Consider for a moment for the real-estate investors who purchase houses on Niagara Ave over by the Casino. Although many of these sound like they "wouldn't be owned by anyone", they're owned by individuals out of state, some out of Country, many of whom own large quantities of properties down the entire area. There is an entire singular owner for numerous houses on 7th, for example. Of which, one such owner who isn't apart of this LLC lives in Pakistan and owns a singular small lot of land. Imagine, if you will, being a multi-millionaire and saying "I want to purchase investment property", and being sold a plot of land for a million dollars. Your question should be "Who is getting this million dollars". In the case of Hastings, it was coming from an individual living in Youngstown who obtained the profit. In the case of the City, it's typically owned by "NCIDA", or in particular, the Center for Economic Development. Which, may I remind everyone, isn't a Not-For-Profit.
12:09 Yes, there's a lot of money in AirBnB here. Although property taxes are unironically high, many houses sold at auction are for very cheap (very), of which allows the potential of fixing up the house for a budgetary cost, and charging an upmarked price for the stay during the holiday's or summer months. Especially if you're near the tourist center, or even off a road that is straight to it with a quality neighborhood, there is a lot of money in it.
The problem comes back to who does these, verses who doesn't.
14:26 Not to be political, the only reason I wasn't a fan of Dyster was due to his poor misguided. Although I'm sure loads of his ideas came from a good intention, and he wasn't corrupt directly, the problem that exists with his time was that he never tried anything "besides" hotels. In the most critical way, I can't directly blame Dyster, as most of it wasn't on him, but the council, and also NCIDA. Restiano hasn't done a lot yet. But I do believe he's at least trying to bring the inner city back up for the people that live there. You can't expect tourism if the people that live in the city don't even want to live in the city, you know?
15:49 One good thing about this video, or at least this individual, is that it's verifiable and his house has been in his family. Original owner, if you will.
16:16 By that area, they're selling for just around a million. Most houses in Niagara Falls are selling for significantly cheaper, but most of the downtown area is selling for an excess amount more than what it was purchased for (remember, "investment property" is the problem here, and this can be traced and shown with direct evidence).
16:48 Actually, Merletti Henry P MD passed away a few years ago.
17:04 Yes, I agree, it is sad. However the property you're looking at on Pine (across the street) was once owned, in the 1990's, by an individual of the name of Alan Golkin, whom either had the house gifted to, or sold to an individual in Youngstown NY. That individual sold this property in in 2002 for 1.6 Million to the City of Niagara Falls, who sold it to someone in 2019, who then flipped it in 2021 to "Castello Holdings LLC". Who then sold it to someone who lives in LaSalle of Niagara Falls (Up town), which this new owner utilizes it as an apartment real-estate, so it's not Owner Occupied but at the very least, the individual lives in the City. So I can't knock this one too much (I'd rather see this, verses what I typically see when I do this research). By comparison, the 'Merletti Henry P MD' building is owned by an individual who lives in Buffalo NY.
17:30 - That place is owned by "AJH Real Estate Properties LLC", which is a Buffalo owned Real-Estate Investment Firm who owns numerous capital buildings around the cities and rents them out. Before Merletti Henry P passed away, he owned this building. In 2017, it went up on Auction, of which first a Real-Estate investment firm purchased it for $65k. It was then sold for $165k to a Real-Estate Agent, whom is the owners of the property now. AJH Real Estate Properties LLC is a Buffalo owned LLC, but not a Niagara Falls owned.
17:33 Yes, people are still living there, but they're "renting". The assessed tax value is $43,000 for this house, which should tell you that they may pay just about $2,000 collectively in taxes. In estimation, rent "should be" a few hundred a month to also make profit, but you know that's not the case lol.
24:39 Let's talk about Visionary Realestate for a moment. That was originally De Franco Insurance. Visionary Realestate is owned by "Equity Trust Company" in Grand Island NY, which is actually "KC BUFFALO ENTERPRISES LLC".
27:39 A large reason why is because there's nothing for tourists to do. We have the Casino, then a large quantity of hotel's, and a mild look at the falls. A small part of that is NYS, but a larger part is the failure of NCIDA for investing in the actual city, instead of their wallets.
27:50 - I established (and can continue to) that almost all abandoned houses are due to Investment Reality. Unfortunately, it's not illegal own a house, sit on it, do nothing with it (or rent it out) and let it get destroyed over the years without proper maintenance. As it's not illegal to not sell the property unless offered a large quantity of money, despite the property owner not living in the residence (Ie not owner occupied).
28:27 - She's correct. I said earlier on in this long response that the appropriate solution for tourism first is to make a city that people want to live in. You do that by providing jobs people can take that pay well enough to live, and by providing activities for kids to do, places for people to go for leisure or activity, for all ages. Unfortunately, the Casino is the only thing applicably doing this, which is unironic since most of the city 'blames the casino' for the failure of NCIDA, the City Council, and the mayors. The only positive with Restiano is he's doing "something". Something for the city, is better than nothing for the city. Even if the planner is making Ferry one lane, or is trying to turn an abandoned lot into a park, it's significantly better than doing nothing at all, or worse: Selling property to investors for profit.
Still watching the video, I'm slowly responding via pausing. This sort of video I prefer, as it's more of an objective view on the city, and not seeing it from the inside.
Fun fact, at 31:28, 1428, that is owned by "Eleventh Street Properties LLC", which is owned by Corporation Service Company, of Delaware. According to Wiki, "It specializes in business formation, corporate domain management, and providing corporate tax software. CSC is the largest corporate domain registrar in the world.". The actual owner of this one, in specific, is Howard Milstein, whom owns "Niagara Falls Redevelopment". The current "public" representative for NFR is Roger Trevino of Lewiston, NY. He effectively, over the past 20 years, insinuates a "big project is happening", does nothing, and looks to acquire more property. He has acquired property from the Economic Development Center now since 2006, and although the city "could have" stopped NFR, they continue to falter.
For explanation, there is numerous LLC's that own almost each street downtown, and I don't mean "the street", I mean "own each property on the street". Some of these jump back to the same Corporation Service Company, others are owned by individuals living in Florida, others are owned by Real-Estate investors in Florida or NYC, and various others live across the US, Canada, and even over-sea's. This specified subsidiary is owned by specifically Emigrant Savings Bank/Milstein as "investment capital". The previous mayor effectively allowed him to continue buying property, Restiano has such stopped this, which is actually a positive. We can only hope that this stops, as a lot of the larger eyesores are owned by NFR, who effectively has single-handedly destroyed the cities look since they were founded.
For explanation -- 1428 was acquired in 2005 for 46k with a property assessed tax value of $7,000. Yes, $7,000. They pay less than a few hundred in taxes every year. To sit on a large vacant house.
Let's take a peak at the property next door to that house. They own each plot of land next to the house, along with the houses subsequently next to this. Each, may I remind everyone, is very minimal in price. The assessed tax value, again, is $6,000 for the plot of land. Which is only a couple hundred for taxes each year.
You listed 561 14th, however it appears 14th ends at the 300 block. You passed by 340 14th Street, which is owned again by "Eleventh Street Properties LLC", which is the comment you made "This place is...lived in".
The place you stopped at, 32:44, would be owned by "Eleventh Street Properties LLC" and is noted as a Religious place. Originally owned by "Niagara Falls Church of Christ". You are correct, it isn't it. You're at 359 14th Street.
1327 Niagara St is also owned by Eleventh Street Properties Inc.
Each house you walk past at 33:43 is owned by "Eleventh Street Properties LLC". Purchased around 2000 - 2008, most of these "rental" properties (originally not), were sold to investment firms who simply did nothing to them, couldn't rent them out in their condition, and let them sit vacant. They pay pennies on a dollar in taxes on hundreds of properties in the city, and this is only one singular "investment firm" example.
Where there is an "Eleventh Street Properties LLC", there is properties per each street, and no I'm not joking, each are different (entirely different) "investors" that the mayor at the time sold housing to.
Mind you, this started around the time Irene Elia became mayor, and then shortly after Anello.
But wait, you're going to say, "That doesn't happen now does it". The house you past by, at 34:00, 1317 Niagara, even though it's owned still by "Eleventh Street Properties LLC", it was originally owned privately by an individual who foreclosed on it. Eleventh Street Properties LLC (IE: Corporation Service Company of Delaware) purchased it at auction for $32,000. In 2015, 9 years ago. As you can see, it's vacant and continues to be so.
My mom, also born in 1932, took all 4 of us kids- me 11,brother 10, sister 9, brother 8 on a road trip vacay from Conn to Niagra Falls and back in 1969. We followed the blue hiways up with stops in Cooperstown and Finger Lakes. Stayed at Sheraton on Canadian side with rooftop pool and all the kitchey attractions. Did Maid of Mist, Tram over the River Rapids/whirlpools, Fort Niagra. On way home broke and could only afford 1 stop. We chose Gaslight Village in Lake George and stayed in cheap motel with a pool, of course. Ate at Hojos every night and complained that we had to order off kiddie menu. Since we were broke our last activity was to climb Mt Prospect all the way to the Fire Station at top where Ranger gave us certificates. Mom gave us many good family vacays and this was one of the best! Thanks Mom, see you in Heavan. (I hope 😮)
The U.S. versus Canada view difference is way overstated. From Canada you look at the face of the falls. From the U.S. you are at the top of the falls looking down. The Canadian view is more panoramic but the advantage of the U.S. side is that you can get much closer and feel the immense power of the falls. Walking around the perimeter of Goat Island is beautiful for the views of the intense rapids as well as the falls. Visit tiny Luna island which sits between the American falls and Bridal Veil falls and you can look over the edge straight down to the bottom of the falls. I have taken first time visitors to the falls who preferred the American view over the Canadian. Of course, you really should try to see the falls from both sides.
I grew up in Niagara Falls and moved away many years ago. I still have family there and visit regularly. It is heartbreaking to see the state of the city. Tom DiCamillo was right when he said it is due to a long list of bad decisions. A very long list. I hope he is right that the city has bottomed out. I’m not so sure. I CAN confirm that DiCamillos has fantastic bread along with lots of other baked goodies!
It seems like Niagara Falls Canada bet on tourism and won. The Americans bet on industry. Industry boomed for a while due to cheap hydroelectric power generated by the Niagara River, but the factories started to close. The American side was never quite able to pivot to a tourism economy. The good news is that there is enormous untapped potential there.
I remember when they put up those Little Italy signs. The Italian character of the area was starting to fade when those signs went up. They were kind of a sad attempt to try and preserve it.
I hear you. If you're visiting The Falls, you have to see it from both sides. But it seems most travelers prefer the Canadian side, even though they have much higher taxes.
I lived at 1521 LaSalle Ave from 1960 to 1980 but I don’t recall anyone with your last name When did they leave?
Hi Tom. Are you related to Annette or Mary?
My cousins
@@tomdemita4261 I went to school with Mary and I went to church with Annette 💕
My dad graduated from Bishop Duffy high school in 1950, went to Niagara University briefly before serving in the Korean war. He returned to the Falls after being in the army but he may have left prior to 1960 to find work in New York City, not sure.
I can't even imagine leaving here for Florida: too hot! No snow in winter? It'd be awful.
The DiCamillo's on 17th & Pine closed recently due to too many robberies, including employees heading to or from their cars.
Yeah, early on DiCamillo's had been in the Third Street block at the corner of Main Street. Third Street has been rehabilitated, with several nice apartment buildings, restaurants, a pizzeria, the _Gazette,_ pubs, and my favorite café, Power City Eatery, but several storefronts, an old bank, and old Niagara Mohawk Power Co. building are still vacant.
But the point is, there a lot of better areas to live where you'd still have snow.
@@alancarl7990 Burlington, Vermont? Rochester? Syracuse? Jamestown?
Excellent good sir and thanks.
I say the same thing every time I go back.
35:47 Saint Mary's is still up and running, but it's in Lewiston. Memorial Hospital is on 10th street in the Falls.
He may have been talking about the st Mary’s manor on 6th street that is closed
Ive lived here my entire life unfortunately. This is a city of dead souls, it has little to nothing to offer anybody. But if you are here, definitely go check out the NACC. They're likely to have some kind of art gallery or show currently going on. It's really a special place.
About 40 years I made the mistake of staying on the New York side then when I crossed over to Canada I realized the mistake😩😩😩😩
Your problem was you really didn’t know the area. 516 - 14th Street is now 516 - Tronolone Place. You were looking at the wrong street for where your father was born. Also the Como Restaurant was just sold and is reopening. In any case it is depressing to see Niagara Falls like that today.
Thanks for providing an outside perspective, maybe locals will wake up to these obvious problems.
as you said in the beginning: the canadian side was set up for tourism, whereas the American side was set up as a state park. It made it so it was preserved as a national monument, but it doesnt make profit for NY. That said, having been to the Canadian side many times in my life as a Ny-er, I find the tourist stuff there incredibly tacky and just as run-down looking if you stare at it for longer than 5 seconds. Restaurants charge $20 for a hamburger meal and the Ripley's museum on the main Canadian drag has seen FAR better days, for example. All in all, both sides of Niagara Falls are in dire need of a cash injection revamp to bring beauty and life back to the shambles it's become.
The price gouging happens on the US side too. There was a TGIFridays across from the casino (now closed) that had way higher prices than the one in Amherst. There also used to be a Denny's downtown (now closed) that was priced than the one on the Blvd.
39:44 Love Canal is not down there in the city, it's in the LaSalle area. It definitely caused health issues for many people though, you're correct.
The platform is always closed in winter. Quite a stretch to attempt to link it to Baltimore.
I have photos of us freezing our butts off on the platform from November 28, 2019! In any case, on a vlog I'm saying whatever pops into my mind. That platform should be kept open year round...unless you don't care about making tourists happy.
@@MadTraveler I've been in there in December before. There were maybe a dozen people in the entire park. Closing it for a few months doesnt affect as many tourists as you might think. They would lose more money on hiring security to watch over it in those months.
My family has had 2 great visits there on driving trips to & from my kid's college in Ohio. With that much potential and that much failure to achieve it, there's only one reason: corruption with deep, deep roots. That place should be a money mint... and probably is, but only for a few skeezy mobsters who don't GAF about anyone but themselves.
The whole city went down the tubes when I was younger we had the Italian fest on pine people gave a crap about their neighborhood it's not that way anymore unfortunately
Sad to see. We went on a similar tour tracing some of the Buffalo family roots. That Tourist Center building - good grief. I didn’t think it was possible for that thing to look worse than when I was there, yet, here we are. Can this city not find anyone to hire that has any design sense? So many, many possibilities with that site but they cheap out every time and so it remains a sh&thole. I hope you have found at least a few answers on your trip. Thanks for the video.
That building was not designed and built for that purpose. In the late 80’s, it was built as the office headquarters for Occidental Chemical. At that time, it was designed to be super energy efficient, with one point being self adjusting window lovers to save on daytime lighting and radiant heat from sunlight. Then it closed down and was vacant. The big parking lot was at one time dug out for an underground aquarium. That fell through and the hole had to be refilled. Then the building was put to use with what you see know.
Another grandiose failure of Niagara Falls.
Canada also made their side of the riverbank dirt ugly
Well they have Clifton Hill, which is tacky. But nowhere near the volume of abandoned homes.
If someone says they-25:52- don't do videos, you shouldn't turn around and share their part in your video. Pretty rude man
Most towns in upstate and Pennsylvania are in the same situation i think its also people dont take any pride in fixing their homes and its more of poor attitudes people have cause some of the jobs pay more then some jobs in New Jersey and New York and you can noticed that in how the Spain has its home all nice painted and pretty good shape.
Its gonna take young entrepreneur and young professionals people to bring all of this city and towns back to life and more community involvement because relying on politicians and authorities nothing is gonna change.
Make sure the right people are seeing your video
You were in the wrong area 500 block of 14th street is off of pine av. right around the corner from St. Joe's Church....also i'm italian my grandfather came from Calabria Italy in 1920 ..... and i live in the lasalle area of nf.......so we are still here
I grew up on 81st & Buffalo ave. So depressing to go back to visit. I rather get my ass kicked at Parris Island for 3 months, which I did, rather than shovel another side walk during the winter.
Cumo is gonna hopefully reopen this summer.
as someone's who's lived here my whole life, its actually really sh!tty here tbh. like why are you wasting your money coming here?
Hopefully you’re getting the help you need, or you will soon. Jen is a saint.
Niagara Falls country club is in Lewiston NY
I left Niagara Falls NY in 2005 for sunny Florida because I was sick and tired of being punished for living in NEW YORK STATE and especially Niagara Falls which are both typical democratic run chit holes
St. Joseph Church and Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church merged under the new name of Holy Family of Jesus, Mary & Joseph Parish in 2008.
You were on the wrong block, the 500 block is up a ways. You were on the 300 block
22:48 - I would have walked away from you too, to be fair. And not because you asked if it was safe, but because your questions were loaded and leaning towards prejudice. I'm from this area, and still live here, and was hoping to see something much different from what you shared. Racial populations change over time, not sure why there was a need to ask repeatedly if there are "still any Italians"...
agree, his questions came across as "news reporter with an agenda". I'd be wary too
Oh please. You may have missed that I pointed out in the video that the city is 66% white and only 4% foreign born. I'm walking around a place advertised as a "Little Italy" and my ancestors are Italian. I'm allowed to ask any questions I like and my inquiries aren't prejudiced. That's just you projecting your prejudice onto me. No sale.
You know i don't blame anyone who ignored or left you. There's a reason why the ethnic groups aren't trusting over there and part of that is just the way you put "what happened to all the Italians?" And part of that is the failed projects NF has been through.
You can ask history just fine, but the minute you put someone with a very different ethnic background on the spot for that is where a lot of people draw the line.
Reminder: I was walking around a neighborhood with a big iron LITTLE ITALY sign. Just saying.
I-Talians replaced with new migrants. C'Mon Man, trust in him.
Stay in Amherst and williamsville
yea im on the canada side does look like crap sorry
Hmm. I wonder how much is the fault of New York City liberals voting for democrats to only favour New York City and no where else. High taxes just like California.
Honestly, I have been to Canadian side many times and never the American, until recently. And the American side was still awesome! Definitely less people and more ways to walk around. Canada does have been stuff up the street for tourists. But US definitely has room for improvement if people are willing to invest. But yeah, probably crime and taxes stop business.
As I said in the video, there's plenty of blame to go around. As far as the politicians, Niagara Falls has had Democratic mayors for all but 6 of the last 60 years. NY legislators have promoted one boondoggle after another, wasting a lot of taxpayer money on revitalization projects that accomplished nothing. But as bad as things are, my friends in the Falls tell me things were even worse 5-10 years ago and they believe things are looking up. I'll be going back later this year and I'm going to look for more hopeful signs of a recovery. We'll see!
Thanks for the response and the great informative video. Look forward to your next one.
It was industry that made the falls. Their in other countries now.
I remember as a kid driving on Buffalo Ave with my parents. You could see the smelly cloud that hovered over the road by Hooker. Hooker, DuPont, Stauffer Chemical, Carborundum, and more were along that road. More potholes than you could count, standard joke was if your wife needed to be induced into labor, drive her down Buffalo Ave.
Now there’s hardly any industry along there. Those that are have downsized greatly. DuPont closed and tore down the Sodium part of the plant and now on that part of the property, they have cooling fans and whatever else is needed for that Bitcoin like crap.
I used to step out onto my porch when we had our house on 26th, and I could smell the Shredded Wheat from Nabisco and could hear the roar of the Falls. Then no more Nabisco aroma and you can’t hear the Falls because those cooling fans are louder and overtake it.
The biggest problem with the politicians of Niagara Falls is they are part time. And mayors, at least from what I remember since Lackey, were average joes, not very well experienced politicians. One was a retired school principle at my junior high school, another was a retired firefighter, annother a retired policeman, another an electrician, another ran a home beer making business, another was a former nun. Now it’s a former judge. Democrats, Republicans, whatever. And both the city and the state make it very hard to bring in new business and attractions. It’s been run over the years in an amateurish manner. It got away from them and it’s too out of control to save now, unfortunately.
There is really one reason niagara falls NY is the way it is. Just look around..
It’s not safe in Niagara Falls
If I recall correctly, it was ranked highest in the state in crime, and also dead last at the bottom in the state for its school district.
Truthfully, not joking, it is safe in Niagara Falls. It's just not safe to get in trouble in this city, which is the difference.
I disagree. Most of the city is not safe. Even LaSalle, even Deveaux, even Hyde Park either side.
Depends where you are in the Falls. LaSalle is still ok but walnut through 17-20 is the DMZ.
Did you say Niagara Falls never got rich because of the view. Dude please do some research. All the money from the state park goes back to Albany, NY. That's why not because of a view. Please do some research before you put out BS.
Stop saying the bad words in order to avoid adding the annoying beeps in users' ears. I'll NEVER watch your videos again!
Thank welfare
Yes, thank welfare! Without it, I'd be dead or at least homeless.
@@shallowgal462 get a job lol
@@shallowgal462 lazy bastard collecting tax dollars
I like Florida you get 6 months of welfare
Then when the 6 months are up you better have found a job or you’re SOL
Ah yes collecting tax dollars for being lazy
Get a job
I like Florida. You’re on welfare for 6 months which is plenty of time to get a job. If you don’t get a job you get nothinggggg. Waste of tax dollars
@@ZeroPlanB Ah, I'm so pleased (sarcasm!) to hear Florida kicks the elderly disabled unable to work off welfare after 6 months so they can just die. Sounds like Germany in the 1930s.
Drove too fast saw nothing.
Honestly, I have never viewed a video so skewed with negativity. More than salty language only makes it worse. No objectivity or inclusiveness. You simply missed too much of Niagara Falls in an attempt to shock viewers with your depiction of run down areas. Potential people to be interviewed ran from you sensing your less than stellar intentions. Sad broadcast. I won't be watching your stream again. Good luck.
Then tell us what he missed. Not tourist stuff, what he missed for and about the residents of Niagara Falls.
I didn't attempt to "shock" viewers. I attempted to find the homes where my father lived and I recorded the journey. If you watched to the end, I admitted that there are nice places in The Falls and acknowledged that I didn't visit any of them. I'll be making a follow up video that shows the nicer area of the Falls the next time I'm back. But my dad's old neighborhoods are a complete mess and I saw no reason to sugar coat that.
Sure, there are better areas. But even the “good” areas of the falls are close to the bad areas. I lived in deveaux area which is surrounded by “projects”. The police shooting when they shot and killed a man in August 2023 happened less than a 10 minute walk from my house. End of the day, if you live there, you still live in Niagara Falls and deal with the corrupt politicians and a terrible city. A lot of low income, drug users, and people with mental illness. You literally cannot drive anywhere in the city without seeing it. We drove by a woman that was physically fighting herself before while she was walking down the street . That’s either drugs or severe mental illness and it’s everywhere in the Falls.
39:44 Love Canal is not down there in the city, it's in the LaSalle area. It definitely caused health issues for many people though, you're correct.
If someone says they-25:52- don't do videos, you shouldn't turn around and share their part in your video. Pretty rude man
39:44 Love Canal is not down there in the city, it's in the LaSalle area. It definitely caused health issues for many people though, you're correct.
Love Canal, strictly to show a point of reference, is about 6.5 miles from the downtown area.
@@jollygreen4639 yes, thank you. I live down the street.
Just wanted to point that out to those who do not live in the WNY area.