Published: October 07, 2008 12:33 am      

NIAGARA FALLS: Ramping up criticism of downtown structure

City-operated ramp in dire need of repairs

Niagara Falls Tourism Advisory Board member Randy Ubriaco didn’t mince words following a tour Monday of the city-operated parking ramp downtown.

“Would you want your tourist friends to come here?” he asked.

Attached to the old Rainbow Centre Mall, the five-level ramp has a long list of needed repairs and is at the center of debate whether it should be managed by a private company and not the city or torn down completely.

“In my opinion, the priority should be to dump this place,” Tourism Advisory Board Chairman Jerry Genova said. “The condition of this ramp is a representation of ourselves.”

Wanting to “see through the eyes of a tourist,” a handful of board members took a tour of the ramp following their meeting. Led by Ubriaco, who served on the ramp’s security team over the summer, the tour started in front of the vehicle entrance ramp on Rainbow Boulevard. A large sign hangs overhead advertising the mall’s OTB, which hasn’t operated in more than five years. Another sign warning of the entrance’s clearance height is bent and supported by a rusted chain.

The next stop was a dingy stairwell that visitors use to access the first two levels of the ramp. Elevator access is available nearby, but a lack of proper signage keeps it concealed. The stairwell is dirty and plagued by poor lighting; outlets are covered in cobwebs and flicker on and off. Shards of glass from a shattered beer bottle greet walkers on one landing and blacked-out graffiti is mixed into the walls.

The elevator areas also suffer from a lack of maintenance and cleaning. At the top level, the entrance’s window is shattered and covered with a large piece of plywood.

“Let’s take an idea of what tourists are seeing when they park here,” Genova said as the tour came to an end. “It looks scary if you ask me.”

The ramp’s condition is noted in a lawsuit filed against the city by the Cordish Company, which leases the mall. According to the lawsuit, the city has been lax on maintaining the ramp and mall’s structure, which has prevented the company from securing vendors and business. As an example of the ramp’s lack of security, the lawsuit cites when a dead body was left there inside a parked van and wasn’t noticed by anyone for more than a week in 1998.

While he acknowledged the ramp is in poor condition, Ubriaco pointed out staff and the city have been trying to make improvements in recent months. He said ramp manager Jenny Lee Packer pressed to get graffiti painted over, and the city seems open to other repairs.

“I have hope that the city has the knowledge and manpower, in house, to repair the ramp to an acceptable, safe level,” he said. “We must mitigate the upcoming damage to the roof this winter season. I just hope someone listens to us.”

Genova said the city has an obligation to maintain the ramp not only for tourists wanting to park, but for local businesses and agencies that lease out spots for their employees.

Tourism Board member Pam Smith, who also went on the tour, said she didn’t think the ramp’s condition was much different than what is in other cities.

“Any parking ramp is scary,” she said, adding the city must prioritize how it spends its available funds. “Fix the ramp completely or hire police officers? There’s only so much money to go around.”