I hope you and your family had a wonderful Independence Day. From the parades in East Aurora to the fireworks in Springville, Colden, and Elma, our community celebrated the holiday in full spirit. As we move further into summer, road construction continues across Erie County. The work underway is a reminder of how important it is to invest in the infrastructure we rely on every day.
In the Town of Aurora, Pine Street from Route 20A to the village line remains under a single-lane restriction through November for full rehabilitation. In East Aurora, Knox Road from Gypsy Lane to Grey Street and Willardshire Road from Buffalo Road to Knox Road are reduced to a single lane from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. through July 31 for utility work. Maple Street from NY400 to Main Street, Bowen Road from NY16 to Jamison Road, and West Blood Road from Seneca Street to Kalla Lane are also under similar restrictions.
The Capital Projects Committee is currently reviewing the condition of county-owned roads, bridges, and culverts to determine priorities for the upcoming capital budget. Projects are evaluated based on road scores, structural integrity, safety, and whether they qualify for outside funding. This process is important to ensure our infrastructure investments reflect real community needs. It is especially critical in areas like ours that often do not meet state or federal thresholds for financial assistance.
At this week’s mid-year budget hearings, we learned that Erie County has a positive variance of $20.1 million, largely due to stronger-than-expected sales tax revenue. While this is a positive development, the county’s budget director advised caution, and I agree. However, I believe we must go a step further. In addition to avoiding unnecessary spending, we should also be extremely careful about adding new county-owned assets, creating new programs, or expanding the size of county government through permanent jobs or obligations. Just because funding is available now does not mean it will be in future years, and we should not make long-term commitments based on short-term growth.
That is why I continue to question the use of one-time federal relief funding on projects like ErieNet. This broadband initiative was intended to improve digital access across the county. Three years and thirty-six million dollars later, only twenty miles of the proposed four-hundred-mile fiber system have been installed. No homes or businesses are receiving service. While I fully support expanding internet access, especially in rural areas of my district, the most important need is for last-mile connections that bring service directly to residents. That need remains unmet.
If those funds had been directed toward infrastructure projects ineligible for state or federal assistance, such as roads in our communities, we would already be seeing meaningful progress.
If you have a county-related issue, contact me at 716-858-8922 or Lindsay.Lorigo@erie.gov. You can also follow me on Facebook at Legislator Lindsay Lorigo to stay up to date on county issues.
