Over the weekend, Diana Augspurger paid a visit to Wilkeson Pointe at the Outer Harbor. What she found came as a big surprise. The easily accessible beach that has become such a well-utilized waterfront asset, is now barricaded. It looks like the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation (ECHDC) has strategically place boulders around the perimeter of the beach.
“This is new since the blizzard,” stated Diana. “ECHDC has created a dike down at Wilkeson Pointe that basically cuts the public off from the beach. I think it flooded in November and December and this is their fix for that. Last summer I ran a sailing program down there that the kids loved but it looks like no one can access that beach anymore without traversing the huge boulders. I think this is going to come as a huge surprise to a lot of people. On any given Sunday there would be a LOT of people on lawn chairs down there enjoying the view and breeze.”
I was under the assumption that the plan for the waterfront was to create more accessible ways for people to interact with the water. This outcropping of boulders certainly goes against that sentiment. I’m surprised that someone signed off on this development. I understand that flooding is a serious issue that must be dealt with, but I would think that there would be a better way to deal with the problem than what we’re seeing here. Hopefully this is just a temporary solution, but it doesn’t look like it.
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