Daily Archives: January 14, 2010

(This is the first in a series of posts Niagara At Large will carry on treasured heritage sites in our binational region)

By Paul Kassay

At the far end of lake Erie near the Niagara river on the south shore, sits an historic lighthouse, Point Abino juts out into lake Erie and is less than 15 miles from Buffalo NY which is visible most times.

Point Abino Lighthouse on Lake Erie

The Abino light station as it is known has been decommisioned since 1995. The Town of Fort Erie now owns the historic light, thanks to the perserverence of a group of local historians.

From Crystal Beach where we live we can still see the structure, but alas, getting to it is not a simple undertaking.. The road leading to the light is owned by an association of wealthy summer residents, mostly from the USA.. Visitors can access the point via a trolley in the summertime maintained and operated by PALPS through a special arrangement with the Town of Fort Erie who pays the assocication some $4,000.00 anually for the privilege.

The really big problem here is that the Lighthouse proper is considered to be on the Doomsday List by some. It is literally deteriorating. In an effort to get enough money to save the light, the Town has decided to sell off the Lightkeeper’s dwelling, in order to pay for the restoration. And many, like me, are outraged. Continue reading →

By Doug Draper

If you have an ad promoting vegetarianism over eating meat, good luck getting it run – at least on the sides or the back of a St. Catharines Transit bus.

One of the ads an animal activist group wanted to run on transit buses

Niagara Action for Animals, a long-time, not-for-profit organization in the region, advocating for more humane treatment of animals of the non-human kind, had their luck run out with a rejection from the St. Catharines Transit Commission this January to run an ad asking anyone who might have seen a series of their ads why they might love a dog or cat more than a pig or a chicken or a cow.

“Our intentions were to ask people to think critically about this issue,” Kimberly Costello, a spokesperson for Niagara Action for Animals (NAFA) told Niagara At Large. “Most people would be abhorred to think of their pet being genetically modified, intensively confined, mutilated, neglected, and brutally slaughtered, yet we seem to think it is okay when these acts are committed against equally sentient animals, such as cows, pigs and chickens.

But so much for that.

David Sherlock, general manager of the St. Catharines Transit Commission, exercised the veto authority he has to keep the ads from being displayed on the city’s buses. Any ad that may be “controversial” or “that takes a position that could be considered by the public to be politically sensitive…is something we don’t want on our buses,” he said. Continue reading →