BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Tifft St. Pier opened in typical fashion on July 18, 2014. There was a ribbon cutting, elected officials with gleaming smiles, and plenty of photo opportunities for a job well done.
The $4.5M project was yet another sign of progress on the waterfront along the outer harbor.
"This is gonna be a wonderful place to fish and to bring your family and to experience the water," said Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown at the ribbon cutting.
Also in attendance at the grand opening of the pier was Congressman Brian Higgins, and New York State Senators Sean Ryan and Tim Kennedy.
But ever since late 2015 or early 2016, the public has been blocked from accessing the pier.
A viewer reached out to 2 On Your Side to find out why, and trying to figure out all the pieces of the puzzle proved difficult.
Much of the development along the waterfront has been initiated and overseen by Empire State Development. But a spokesperson for the state agency told WGRZ that they had nothing to do with the project and to check with the state Department of Transportation.
A spokesperson for the NYSDOT confirmed that the department oversaw the construction of the $4.5M pier, but when it was completed, the ownership of the pier was transferred to the city of Buffalo.
In the summer of 2020, in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic, Congressman Brian Higgins released a report titled Waterfront Access Denied. The report outlined several waterfront projects that were closed, and Higgins urged those that oversaw those amenities to focus on getting them reopened so the public could enjoy them during the pandemic.
Now, as we near three years since that report was issued and 6 or 7 years since the pier has been closed, there still remain questions as to why it was closed in the first place.
According to the report released by Congressman Higgins, the pier was damaged during a storm. The report, however, does not go into detail about the type of damage the pier incurred.
2 On Your Side reached out to a spokesperson for the city of Buffalo to find out the type of damage, how much longer it will be closed, and how much repairs will cost.
We are still waiting to receive that information.