Latest
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Albany has a $9 billion surplus and a SNAP bill on the way. It should not hand that bill to Erie County taxpayers
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The Empire Center finds Buffalo spends more on educator pay per student than any other Big Five district. That number belongs in the school closure debate
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Man-Aung Sushi’s second shop brings $6 rolls and poke bowls to Main Street across from Canisius
Top Stories
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Trump says the U.S. has won the Iran war and will decide when it ends, as Tehran denies talks and keeps Hormuz closed
President Trump says the U.S. has won the Iran war and the only question is when to end it. Rubio says economic…
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Dorothy Myo, a fluent Saulteaux speaker, becomes Canada’s Indigenous languages commissioner as the office’s finances are under review
Dorothy Myo, a former head of the Saskatchewan Indian Cultural Centre, takes over the Office of the Commissioner of Indigenous Languages on…
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Hotel Niagara’s restoration has carried six price tags, from $42 million to $66.6 million. The county tax-break file still says $44 million
Since 2018, the Hotel Niagara restoration has been put at $42 million, $44 million, $56 million, $58.8 million and $66.6 million. The…
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Erie County’s permanently disabled veterans will owe no county tax on their homes, and Buffalo State plans a veterans center on Elmwood
County Executive Mark Poloncarz signed a law giving veterans with permanent, total service-connected disabilities a full exemption from county property taxes on…
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Twelve senators ask Congress to drop a Gillibrand-backed U.S.-Israel defense technology initiative from the final defense bill
A provision Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand co-wrote would create a U.S.-Israel defense technology initiative at the Pentagon. It is in both chambers’ defense bills, and 12 senators led by Chris Van Hollen want it dropped. Here is what the text says, how WNY’s members voted and who decides.
Latest Headlines
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Orchard Park adopts a 2027 budget with a 5.9% tax levy increase after cutting $414,929
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Depew’s first female police officer helped run a statewide training conference for about 200 women in law enforcement
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Buffalo is paving over its brick streets one block at a time. On Eden Street, a landmark bid has stopped the asphalt for now
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New York won’t reopen the Love Canal neighborhood investigation. The family that found waste in its backyard is still waiting on tests
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New York’s $9 billion surplus goes to reserves and debt, while a SNAP cost Erie County puts at up to $50 million a year sits outside the state plan
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Schumer says he is confident of becoming majority leader as Sanders and Slotkin call for change and Gillibrand defends him
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On Veterans Day, Buffalo’s 1949 VA hospital has no replacement planned. Secretary Collins says a new one costs too much
Deeper Analysis
Deeper Analysis
Erie County early vote passes 80,000, already above the 2022 nine-day total
Erie County voters have already cast more early ballots in seven days than they did in all nine days of early voting in the last race for governor, and with two days left the county is on pace to set a new mark for a midterm year.
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Buffalo’s police overtime is a hiring problem and a budgeting problem, and City Hall should fix both now
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Erie County cleared its child care waitlist. The Bipartisan Policy Center’s Kentucky lessons show what Western New York should do next
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The Bills stadium surcharge is beating its forecast, and Erie County should publish where every dollar goes
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AEI says the data-center backlash collides with plans to tax them. Western New York’s towns should use their pause to decide
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Chludzinski concedes the 143rd Assembly District to Taughrin after a 570-vote count
Democrat Ryan Taughrin finished 570 votes ahead of Republican Assemblyman Patrick Chludzinski in the Cheektowaga district, and Chludzinski has conceded. Both men thanked each other; the…
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Buffalo police overtime to cover minimum staffing jumped 65% in a year, and new officers are two years away
Records show minimum-staffing overtime hours rose 65% last fiscal year. The commissioner blames a hiring gap, while the comptroller’s payroll data show overtime rising even when…
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New York sues Interior to strip two Seneca parcels of sovereign status. The case turns on where the money came from
The state filed two federal suits Friday challenging Interior’s restricted-fee decisions for Seneca Nation land in Buffalo and on Grand Island. Here is what each side…
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Buffalo says it has 44 pieces of snow equipment and 3,000 tons of salt ready, as the first snow of the season nears
Public Works Commissioner Nolan Skipper told the Common Council the city is “ready to go.” Here is what is in the fleet, what is new on…
Suburbs
The Northtowns
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Summit Center buys a Sweet Home Road building to shrink a 500-child preschool waiting list, and still needs about $3.5 million
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North Tonawanda voters back an $18 million community center, and the city’s seniors and teens get out of borrowed space
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The Kenney Field jet is nearly restored, and the crew found bullet holes under its old patches
The Southtowns
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A 43-acre Eden farm is headed for permanent protection, and the land conservancy says leased farmland is especially vulnerable
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Colden’s highway tax would rise 24% as road salt jumps to $93 a ton, and a new general fund tax arrives
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OLV Basilica’s copper dome is about 80% restored, with the scaffolding due down next August
The East Towns
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Cheektowaga’s board rejects cuts and tables a 9.8% tax levy increase, with a Nov. 20 budget deadline ahead
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Lancaster police publish their first annual report: 41 uses of force, and more than half involved a person in crisis
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Alden’s ambulance switch is three weeks away, and residents still have questions about the Mercy Flight deal
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Speaker Heastie defends $1 million in Assembly Democrats’ sports spending, including suites donated by Buffalo’s Delaware North
A New York Focus investigation tallied more than $1 million in sports spending by the Assembly Democrats’ campaign committee, including the Sabres, and Celtics suites from…
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Erie County’s 2026 count isn’t finished. The 143rd Assembly race shows what is still left to tally
Five days after Election Day, Democrat Ryan Taughrin leads Assemblyman Patrick Chludzinski by 561 votes with about 800 absentees outstanding. Here is the Erie County Board…
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Niagara power and Albany spending frame the Bologna-Sholk race in the 144th Assembly District
Republican Assemblyman Paul Bologna says New York cannot spend its way to prosperity. Democrat Donna Dye Sholk wants unallocated Niagara hydropower sent to Erie and Niagara…
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Baskin runs on her record as Szymanski tries to unseat her in the 63rd Senate District
First-term state Sen. April Baskin faces former Lackawanna Mayor Geoffrey Szymanski on Tuesday in a district covering much of Buffalo’s East Side, Cheektowaga and Lackawanna.
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The House shelves the Hegseth impeachment articles, 211-204. Here is how Langworthy, Tenney and Kennedy voted, and what the charges say
The House voted 211-204 to send Rep. Thomas Massie’s eight articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to committee. Western New York’s members split on…
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Hegseth asks Congress for $350 billion more as Senate Democrats weigh using the Dec. 11 funding bill to end the Iran war
The defense secretary wants a reconciliation bill before Republicans lose their majorities. Democrats want war-funding limits in the stopgap. Here are both sides, the odds and…
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Schumer and Gillibrand vote to advance the permitting overhaul as New York activists urged a ‘no’
The Senate voted 73-25 to take up a bipartisan bill to speed energy and infrastructure approvals and make data centers pay for their power. Here is…
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Congress returns with a Dec. 11 funding deadline, a stalled farm bill and a defense bill in doubt. Here is what Western New York has riding on it
Republicans still control both chambers for five weeks. The calendar, the committee chairs’ own words, the White House and Democratic positions, and the places where Western…
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Trump’s $15 billion in farm promises lands days before the midterms, and New York growers want Albany to add diesel relief
The Trump administration has pledged more than $15 billion to farmers hit by record diesel prices in the final weeks before Election Day. Farm groups welcome…
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Justice Department asks appeals court to lift order barring pressure on election officials over noncitizen ballots
A federal judge barred the Justice and Homeland Security departments from pressuring election officials to set aside ballots. The administration has asked the 9th Circuit to…
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White House circulates fishing industry praise for America First Seafood Strategy
The White House released endorsements from fishing groups and Cabinet officials for its seafood plan.
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Federal survey finds serious violent crime fell 25 percent in 2025, with caveats from a redesigned count
The government’s victimization survey found serious violent crime fell 25 percent and aggravated assault 31 percent in 2025. The Justice Department credits President Trump; the bureau…
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Carl Cain, who lost to Mayor Restaino by 212 votes in 2023, launches a 2027 Niagara Falls mayoral bid
The retired police deputy superintendent says his narrow 2023 loss showed voters are with him. Former DPW director John Caso plans a Democratic primary challenge, and…
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Niagara County Republicans keep the Legislature at 12–3, but a 34-vote Democratic lead in District 5 is still being counted
Republicans gained District 12 and held control. The party chairs disagree on why, and absentee ballots could still move one seat.
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Niagara Falls sewage plant fix now costs $338 million, and the water board’s engineers call it unaffordable
A state order forces Niagara Falls to convert its sewage plant to biological treatment. The estimate has climbed to $338.2 million, and the board’s engineers say…
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Lockport Common Council votes to take down the city’s Flock license plate cameras
The Common Council voted 5-1 to revoke permission for all eight Flock Safety cameras in the city.
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Haldimand trial witness acknowledged Confederacy chiefs are staying out of the case over jurisdiction, Six Nations summary says
Six Nations’ official summary of Joe Martin’s Oct. 26–27 testimony shows Canada and Ontario testing the sources of oral history evidence, and records why the traditional…
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A judge keeps Six Nations’ elected council out of the HDI lawsuit, and leaves open who holds Haldimand Tract rights
An Ontario court refused to add the Six Nations Elected Council to a decade-old class action over the Haudenosaunee Development Institute’s money. Here is what the…
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Haldimand Tract trial resumes Monday after a Six Nations witness described language loss and displacement
The Six Nations land-rights trial returns Nov. 9 with Professor Alan Taylor scheduled to testify. Turtle Island News has published the first account of Joseph Martin’s…
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Seneca voters pick a new president Tuesday, and with it the next negotiator on an unsigned casino compact
Councilor Tina Abrams, the Seneca Party nominee, would be the Nation’s first woman president. She would inherit a compact standoff in which Gov. Hochul says there…
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Buffalo’s $61.4 million heat network won approval. The state’s own math says heat pumps would cut carbon for less
National Fuel’s sewer-heated thermal network for downtown Buffalo is one of two pilots the state approved out of 11. The commission’s own figures show it would…
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DOE touts West Valley cleanup progress, but the study behind its biggest decision still hasn’t been released
The Energy Department is highlighting demolition and a rebuilt spillway at the West Valley nuclear site, but the draft study it projected for late 2025, which…
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A vacant Swan Street corner is slated for housing. Tests found lead at 50 times the residential cleanup limit
A developer who grew up nearby wants to build apartments and affordable townhomes at Swan and Chicago streets. His consultant’s tests found lead, mercury and buried…
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Radioactive slag was documented at a Town of Niagara drive-in in 2020. Neighbors are still waiting for answers
A 2020 report for Niagara County’s land bank found radiation on a vacant Witmer Road drive-in across Gill Creek from homes and recommended a $1.25 million…
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Gendron jury selection enters its fifth week as a juror is excused over the death penalty
Fifty prospective jurors have qualified toward a pool of 70 in the federal death penalty trial of the Tops shooter, with the trial set to start…
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The Old Pink’s arsonist gets five years. The Allen Street lots the fires left behind are still waiting on a plan
John W. Burns was sentenced to 60 months for the 2024 fire that destroyed the Old Pink. Court records lay out the texts that helped convict…
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Halton-Pope moves to write Buffalo’s limits on ICE cooperation into city law
A Common Council resolution would direct Corporation Counsel to codify Mayor Sean Ryan’s January executive order barring city resources from federal civil immigration enforcement, with quarterly…
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Gendron jury selection enters week three as a fatal taxi crash brings an indictment
Gendron’s lawyers tell prospective jurors the case is about life or death. Also: a DWI homicide indictment in Kensington-Grider, two sentences for Buffalo killings, a Hamburg…
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The Bills stadium’s 6% surcharge has raised $2.88 million for Erie County in two months. None of it stays in the county
The charge on tickets, parking, food and merchandise at Highmark Stadium is passed to the state each April 30. Here is what the 2022 agreement says…
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Station Twelve opens its first stores Thursday, 11 years after Amherst was promised a new Northtown Plaza
Five stores open at Amherst’s Station Twelve on Nov. 5, 11 years after WS Development bought Northtown Plaza. Here’s what the town was promised, the permit…
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Buffalo Urban League gets $5 million in state aid for Jefferson Avenue headquarters
Gov. Hochul announced $5 million toward the Urban League’s $25 million campus at 1137 Jefferson Ave.
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Young Development buys the land for its $25 million Village Walk senior apartments in East Aurora as plans head to the Planning Commission
Young Development paid $1.2 million for 11 acres on Quaker Road for a 118-unit, 55-and-older complex. The project, which divided residents at a July rezoning vote,…
The Chronicle Magazine
Culture, Food & Life in Western New York
Buffalo’s Finest
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John Rzeznik, the Broadway-Fillmore kid who never lost the shag, brings the Goo Goo Dolls home for FeedMore
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Jessica Pegula, Buffalo’s own ‘JPEG,’ takes her clean tennis look to the WTA Finals once more
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Wolf Blitzer, the Kenmore kid with the silver beard, brings his Situation Room cool home to Buffalo
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The Bills scored 3 points on their first six drives in Minnesota and still won by 17. Here’s how
Missing two starters on the left side of the line, the Bills beat the Vikings 23-6 by holding the ball for more than 42 minutes and…
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Bills come off the bye with a safety suspended, Lamar Jackson back and a fourth-quarter problem to solve
The 5-1 Bills host Baltimore today with C.J. Gardner-Johnson suspended, Damar Hamlin stepping in and Lamar Jackson expected back. After giving up 30 fourth-quarter points in…
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Western New York’s four Division I men’s basketball teams open Monday picked near the bottom
UB, Canisius, Niagara and St. Bonaventure all start the season Nov. 2 ranked in the bottom third of their conference polls. That includes UB, which just…
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Messiah Burch carries UB past Bowling Green and into a crowded MAC race
Senior running back Messiah Burch ran for a career-high 184 yards and three touchdowns as Buffalo beat Bowling Green 31-24 on Senior Day. The Bulls are…
From Coast to Coast to Coast
Canada Edition
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Canada is thirsty for a strong father figure. Pierre Poilievre is built for the job
A GTA mom argues the country is aching for confident, masculine leadership, and that the handsome, hard-charging Conservative leader is the dad Canada has been waiting for.
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Ontario bill aims to finish Highway 69 widening five years sooner
The proposed Building Highway 69 Faster Act would streamline environmental reviews for the last 68 km between Parry Sound and Sudbury. The province hasn’t given a cost or a completion date.
Ottawa
House of Commons · Senate · Supreme Court · Global Affairs · Prime Minister’s Office · Leader of the Opposition · Assembly of First Nations · Federal Elections
Latest News
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Erie County’s Legislature should write purchasing limits into law before it votes on the 2027 budget
A comptroller’s audit found Erie County signed a helicopter contract before the money was appropriated and changed it without a documented vote. The Legislature should set dollar limits…
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A fatal crash should trigger a quick look at the street, and Buffalo can build that habit now
A Strong Towns essay argues governments learn too slowly from fatal crashes. Buffalo, with city, county and state streets, should adopt a short written protocol for reviewing the…
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The Feed: Seneca land lawsuits, New York’s ICE jail deadline, Canada’s immigration numbers and Stephen Miller’s appointment lead the week online
New York’s lawsuits over Seneca Nation land in Buffalo and on Grand Island, a Nov. 25 deadline to end ICE detention agreements in county jails, the immigration numbers…
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UB enrolls its 20 paused license-plate cameras in a seminar on how to be properly socialized
Satire: After UB paused its license-plate camera pilot because the plan “wasn’t socialized,” the cameras themselves have been sent to a seminar and a committee that has met…
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Hamburg votes unanimously to pause data centers for a year, and officials say nothing is proposed
Hamburg’s Town Board voted 5-0 Monday for a one-year moratorium on data-center applications and permits. Officials said no project is proposed and the town wants time to update…
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Rachel Martinez wins Cheektowaga’s special Town Board election as voters also back term limits
Democrat Rachel Martinez defeated Republican David DeFields Jr. in unofficial results for Cheektowaga’s open Town Board seat. Voters also approved 12-year term limits by a wide margin.
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Buffalo’s school board should put its final closure plan in writing and vote on it Nov. 18
Buffalo’s Board of Education still has no date to vote on closing and merging schools, and the savings estimate keeps moving. The board should post its final plan,…
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Workforce Pell can pay for fast job training. New York should start certifying programs Buffalo can use
A Heritage Foundation commentary calls Workforce Pell Grants, created by the law President Trump signed in July 2025, one of the best new ways to get workers job…
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Langworthy, Tenney and Kennedy head back to a House that Democrats will run
Western New York reelected all four of its House members, but Democrats won control of the chamber. Rep. Nick Langworthy says he is ready for the minority; Rep.…
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Abuse survivors approve the Buffalo Diocese’s $327 million settlement plan, with court approval still to come
All but three of 541 voting claimants backed the Buffalo Diocese’s $327 million bankruptcy plan. A Nov. 18 hearing, insurance agreements and individual awards still lie ahead.
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UB pauses its Flock camera pilot indefinitely, and hands the decision to a committee that has met twice
President Caroline Attardo Genco has paused the University at Buffalo’s planned 20-camera license plate reader trial and asked a police advisory committee to gather campus input. Some committee…
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Erie County is right to open a 24/7 shelter. It should show the public the bill.
Erie County is right to open a 200-bed winter shelter on South Park Avenue. But it bid a 24/7 program with local money covering warm nights, and it…
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Erie County’s helicopter deal shows how its purchasing office slipped past its own guardrails
An April audit says Erie County’s purchasing office let one helicopter become two without legislative review, paid a deposit to the wrong vendor and could not document much…
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Election Day in Western New York: polls open 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. after nearly 100,000 early votes in Erie County
Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Here is where to vote, what is on the ballot, and what record early voting does and does not…
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Buffalo’s school closure plan is headed for changes, with no new vote date yet
The Buffalo Board of Education has not rescheduled its vote on closing and merging schools. The interim superintendent says the plan will likely be modified, and the district…
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Fantasy Island is still for sale, and Grand Island is waiting to learn what comes next
Seven weeks after the former Fantasy Island site was listed for just under $5 million, no buyer has been announced. Grand Island’s supervisor says the town can only…
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West Seneca neighbors want a Thruway sound wall, but state rules leave little room for one
Covington Drive residents say Thruway noise has gotten worse since National Fuel cleared trees along a pipeline corridor. The town will price a noise study, but state policy…
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Amtrak should say whether the Depew platform is getting a fix or a patch
Crews are finally sealing cracks on the Buffalo-Depew Amtrak platform, more than two years after Amtrak promised a full accessible rebuild. Amtrak should publish the real replacement schedule,…
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Erie County’s new South Park shelter will stay open on warm nights, too, and local taxpayers will cover those nights
Erie County’s lease on the former Buffalo Creek Academy began Nov. 1. County documents show the shelter will run 24/7 all winter, with local funds paying for nights…
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On Election Day, the Supreme Court takes up Catholic preschools shut out of Colorado’s free pre-K
The justices open their November session Monday and hear St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy on Tuesday, a test of whether states can require religious preschools to follow…
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New research suggests New York’s top earners are already near the tax ceiling, and Albany should take note
A Tax Foundation summary of new research puts the revenue-maximizing top tax rate near 48%, close to what New York’s highest earners already pay in combined federal and…
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Herzog tells Israel’s leaders to ‘stop climbing trees’ as Arab parties line up behind Eisenkot
Israel’s president opens coalition consultations Wednesday after a deadlocked election. The Arab parties are expected to back Gadi Eisenkot, which would give him 67 recommendations, while Netanyahu privately…
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UB will test 20 Flock license plate cameras this spring. Students and faculty want to know why
The University at Buffalo plans a free 60-day trial of 20 Flock license plate readers at campus entrances next spring. Police say it will help solve crimes, while…
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Hamburg is set to vote on a one-year pause on data centers while it rewrites the rules
Hamburg’s Town Board votes tonight on a one-year moratorium on data center applications and permits while it rewrites its zoning rules. West Seneca and the state have already…
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Marilla’s budget grows by half a million dollars, but the highway tax rate goes down
Marilla’s 2027 budget would rise about 17% while the highway tax rate dips a penny, with reserves covering health insurance and fire costs. The board holds a hearing…
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Kenmore’s old Presbyterian church has a demolition permit and a Shake Shack plan, but no start date
The former Kenmore Presbyterian Church on Delaware Avenue is cleared for demolition to make way for a Shake Shack and apartments, but the village says it has no…
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Aurora highway crew pickets as contract talks stall over raises and health insurance
Ten months without a contract, Aurora’s highway workers want 5% raises and relief on insurance costs. The town has offered 4% and a $500 bonus, and the supervisor…
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Repairs finally start on the crumbling Depew Amtrak platform, but how far will they go?
A crew is sealing cracks at the Buffalo-Depew Amtrak station after a CSX flagger finally arrived. The rider who fell there wants the platform rebuilt, and Amtrak has…
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Albany’s $9 billion surplus cuts next year’s budget gap to $2.9 billion, two days before voters pick who spends it
The state’s Mid-Year Update raises tax revenue by $8.1 billion and cuts next year’s gap from $6.4 billion to $2.9 billion. What it means for the governor’s race,…
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Buffalo picks a former police precinct in the Old First Ward for its new animal shelter
Mayor Sean Ryan says the city will turn the former police station at 294 Louisiana St. into a modern animal shelter, replacing the cramped Oak Street building.
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Buffalo should publish a plow report card after every storm
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Property tax relief means little unless Buffalo and Erie County say what they will stop paying for
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Albany should send Hochul the Richardson campus land bill, and she should sign it
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Brookings says hospital cybersecurity needs mandates and money together. New York already tried that mix
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Niagara County’s sewer moratoriums need a repair plan and a hard end date, not open-ended renewals
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Reason makes a case for a Jones Act economic-need waiver, and Buffalo’s lakers deserve a say in the details
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Backyard apartments are catching on, and Western New York’s suburbs should make room for them
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