NIAGARA FALLS – A relic from before the American Revolution that must be moved because of a road construction project is one step closer to finding a new home.
The New York Power Authority has pledged to pay for a study of how much it will cost to relocate what’s known as the Old Stone Chimney, a two-story hearth that was part of French and British forts here.
Mayor Paul A. Dyster said Wednesday he received a letter from Power Authority President and CEO Gil C. Quiniones which states the authority will fund engineering work that would examine all phases needed to move and reconstruct the chimney, whose fate has recently seen a resurgence in public interest.
The long-forgotten chimney stands behind a vacant Buffalo Avenue warehouse in an embankment of the Robert Moses Parkway, near the John B. Daly Boulevard exit. Built more than 260 years ago and disassembled, moved and reasssembled twice before, it has to be moved again because construction work to reconfigure that section of the parkway is scheduled to begin in October.
The city wants to move the chimney to Power Authority land on the upper Niagara River known as the “spoils pile,” just east of the Adams Slip where its ice breaker is docked. The letter indicates the Power Authority’s support for that location, Dyster said.
In the letter dated April 11, the authority said the engineering work will generate cost estimates for dismantling, moving and reconstructing the chimney on the new site, as well as site preparation: a new foundation, access road, turning lane and parking area, according to Dyster.
Supporters, who feared that without plans for relocation the chimney would be taken down, believe it deserves a more prominent location, one that would allow stories to be told about its historical ties.
It stood at the upper landing of the Niagara Portage, part of the trade route that connected the Atlantic Ocean to the upper Great Lakes.
The route’s importance diminished once the Erie Canal was built, but remains a good opportunity to boost heritage tourism efforts in the area, supporters say.
The design documents for the Robert Moses Parkway workindicated funding was in place for the relocation of the chimney. Dyster said the Power Authority is apparently willing to move the project forward.
email: abesecker@buffnews.com
The New York Power Authority has pledged to pay for a study of how much it will cost to relocate what’s known as the Old Stone Chimney, a two-story hearth that was part of French and British forts here.
Mayor Paul A. Dyster said Wednesday he received a letter from Power Authority President and CEO Gil C. Quiniones which states the authority will fund engineering work that would examine all phases needed to move and reconstruct the chimney, whose fate has recently seen a resurgence in public interest.
The long-forgotten chimney stands behind a vacant Buffalo Avenue warehouse in an embankment of the Robert Moses Parkway, near the John B. Daly Boulevard exit. Built more than 260 years ago and disassembled, moved and reasssembled twice before, it has to be moved again because construction work to reconfigure that section of the parkway is scheduled to begin in October.
The city wants to move the chimney to Power Authority land on the upper Niagara River known as the “spoils pile,” just east of the Adams Slip where its ice breaker is docked. The letter indicates the Power Authority’s support for that location, Dyster said.
In the letter dated April 11, the authority said the engineering work will generate cost estimates for dismantling, moving and reconstructing the chimney on the new site, as well as site preparation: a new foundation, access road, turning lane and parking area, according to Dyster.
Supporters, who feared that without plans for relocation the chimney would be taken down, believe it deserves a more prominent location, one that would allow stories to be told about its historical ties.
It stood at the upper landing of the Niagara Portage, part of the trade route that connected the Atlantic Ocean to the upper Great Lakes.
The route’s importance diminished once the Erie Canal was built, but remains a good opportunity to boost heritage tourism efforts in the area, supporters say.
The design documents for the Robert Moses Parkway workindicated funding was in place for the relocation of the chimney. Dyster said the Power Authority is apparently willing to move the project forward.
email: abesecker@buffnews.com