Work is starting on Union Ship Canal Commons today, a new public green space located within the Buffalo Lakeside Commerce Park. Mayor Brown will be joined by New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation Regional Director Abby Snyder, Erie County Executive Chris Collins, and NYS Senator William Stachowski at 3 PM today.
The 22-acre Union Ship Canal Commons includes the canal and a 200′ buffer around it. The park is the signature feature of Buffalo Lakeside Commerce Park located east of Route 5 along the Buffalo/Lackawanna border. Development of the park will be an amenity for the area by providing residents, business park employees and visitors waterfront access and an environmentally friendly homage to the site’s industrial heritage.
The park will be available for passive recreation including picnicking, fishing, hiking, and sun bathing, and will include a multi-use trail that will provide connections to nearby trail networks. It will be constructed in phases, as funding allows, beginning with the environmental remediation of existing pollutants, revegetation and landscaping, and the construction of nearly two miles of multi-use trails. Restoration of the canal will promote the growth of native aquatic fauna and fish life. An ability to launch car-top watercraft will give non-motorized boaters a protected area to enjoy the water away from rough waters.
Much of the park property is located where the Hanna Furnace Corporation manufactured iron over several decades. Visitors will be able to celebrate these workers and their history through interpretive signage and historical icons and artifacts at the site.
Park development and site remediation is estimated to total $14 million. Roughly $8.5 million in initial phase funding has been secured. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation approved use of $6,030,000 from the Environmental Restoration Program and the New York State Department of Transportation allocated $1,400,000 from the Transportation Enhancement Program to aid in project costs. Erie County is contributing $995,000 in matching funds.
The City received $385,000 in Niagara River Greenway funding for additional site amenities such as interpretive signage, an industrial heritage-themed playground including icons and relics, an asphalt extension to the proposed car-top launch for non-motorized boats, an expanded promenade overlooking the canal, and other park enhancements.
Long-term improvements include an entertainment venue, a park building and promenade that will include restrooms, concessions, maintenance equipment storage, and a ‘hobby center.’ A park maintenance fund will be established through a fee assessed to property owners within the Buffalo Lakeside Commerce Park.
