![]() In May of 2016, Congressman Brian Higgins spoke in favor of some sort of alteration to or removal of the Skyway, noting that Buffalo is not the same city it was when it was built in the mid-50s and calling for a full and formal Environmental Impact Statement of the Buffalo Skyway including an assessment of Skyway removal and alternatives. In 2013, Commissioner of the New York State Department of Transportation Joan McDonald directed her office to conduct a plausibility review of the route, though the results have yet to be published. ![]() Furthermore, maintenance of the bridge is likely to cost more than $50 million over the next two decades.Ĭitizens and civic organizations, including the Buffalo Common Council, New York State Assemblyman Michael Kearns, and CNU continue to call for the Skyway to come down and the replacement of urban sections of Route 5 through Buffalo with a surface boulevard. The agency's designs, which leave waterfront access highly restricted and promote auto-dependent land uses, set the stage for limited reinvestment on the waterfront. Currently the DOT rates the Skyway bridge as “fracture critical” while the Federal Highway Administration classifies the bridge as “functionally obsolete.” It also rebuilds and reconfigures an access road adjacent to the embanked freeway, resulting in a total of 8 lanes of roadway with a right-of-way width of 214 feet. NYSDOT's current plan leaves aside the fate of the Skyway Bridge, but its decision to retain the embanked Route 5 will necessitate that the Skyway Bridge be replaced by a similar, high-speed expressway facility. Proposed Waterfront Vision by Moule & Polyzoides. Route 5/Buffalo Skyway today Source: Paul Buckleyĭespite many resident pleas to remove the structure, the NYSDOT selected to retain the embanked Route 5 (and reinforce it with new ramps) instead of replacing it with a surface boulevard supporting an urban street-and-block network, even though a boulevard-only option was deemed viable in the project's Environmental Impact Statement. There is no pedestrian access between downtown and the Outer Harbor. A total of 41,500 vehicles per day travel along this blighted corridor. The highway's oddly configured exit ramps lead to a confusing series of one-way streets that further hinder access to the waterfront. Route 5 continues for another 2.6 miles as a limited-access expressway built on an embankment of slag. The form of the streets can seal the fate of vast amounts of land.īuilt in 1953, this 1.4-mile long, 110-foot tall limited-access bridge known locally as “The Skyway” begins at the Inner Harbor downtown, crosses the Buffalo River and touches down as Route 5 in the Outer Harbor. Good development is tied to good infrastructure. To achieve this vision, Buffalo needs to lay down the proper foundation. Whole neighborhoods and commercial districts could be built with strong connections to downtown and the city's existing neighborhoods. ![]() With more than half of the city's waterfront left vacant, the potential for revitalization is immense. Later that day, in another conversation with a male friend in New York City, Dennis again said she was planning suicide, authorities said.Buffalo is a waterfront city with a deep history along the shores of Lake Erie. Her boyfriend was in New York City the entire time, and is not considered a suspect in her disappearance, officials said. Erie County District Attorney John Flynn said Dennis had gotten into an argument with her boyfriend earlier that day that ended with him breaking up with her.ĭennis continued to attempt to contact him, even saying she was going to kill herself, according to Flynn. “It appears this poor girl took her own life,” Erie County District Attorney John Flynn said while recounting what were possibly her final hours.ĭennis, 19, was last seen leaving her dorm late at night on April 24. Nearly two weeks after the disappearance of Buffalo State College student Saniyya Dennis, officials announced Thursday they believe the Bronx teen might have taken her own life after a breakup. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.īUFFALO, N.Y. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated.
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