By Mark Scheer Niagara Gazette The Niagara Gazette Mon Aug 29, 2011, 12:10 AM EDT
NIAGARA FALLS — The public will get a chance to hear an update this week on efforts to develop an Underground Railroad Heritage Area in Niagara County.
A consultant that has been working with members of a local commission charged with developing a management plan for the project will hold a community outreach meeting on Wednesday.
Jane Rice, a representative from EDR Consultants, the firm assisting in the heritage area’s development, said the meeting will offer residents a chance to better understand what work has already been completed and the steps ahead. Rice said the meeting is the first in a series her team and the commission have planned.
“We’ll be explaining a little bit about the commission, the process that is in place and the project itself,” Rice said. “We’ve done a lot of research already.”
The heritage corridor is part of a $1.3 million state-funded effort to celebrate local history tied to the Underground Railroad. The focal piece of the project is an Underground Railroad Interpretative Center being built inside the historic Customhouse building off Whirlpool Street as part of the development of the city’s new Amtrak train station.
Rice said members of her company’s consulting team have conducted research on local Underground Railroad history, focusing on the period between 1850 and 1875. She said the work has involved historic figures and points of interest in Niagara Falls, Lewiston and other parts of the county. While the project has been criticized by some community leaders who do not believe the project will be worth the expense, Rice said researchers have documented some significant pieces of history that will become part of the commission’s management plan for the heritage area.
“We have some wonderful stories to share with the community,” Rice said. “We have some known sites and we have some others that we’re still doing research on.”
The commission is also continuing to work with the consulting firm Riggs Ward on the development of exhibits for the interpretative center. Riggs Ward representatives have been working since last year to document the community’s ties to the time period. Kevin Cottrell, the state parks employee who is leading the effort to develop the heritage district and interpretative center, said researchers are building a compelling story about the community’s ties to the Underground Railroad. He said Wednesday’s meeting is designed to share with the public the work that has been done so far.
“We’ve brought in total professionals to tell the story of the Underground Railroad, not only in the city but the county,” he said. “If people don’t know what’s going on, they should come and see what’s happening. We want local input.”
WHERE: Niagara Falls Public Library, 1425 Main St.
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