FOURTH OF JULY
Thousands celebrate at wharf
Several thousand residents grabbed flags, sweaters and red, white and blue sunglasses to celebrate the Fourth of July on Buffalo’s waterfront Saturday for the second year of what organizers — and attendees — said they hope would become an annual tradition.
“It’s about time,” said Timothy Kozlow, who sat on the Erie Canal Harbor Central Wharf with his family. “I’ve been waiting for this for 25 years.”
The Elmwood Village resident was one of some 4,000 people who filed down to water’s edge by 8 p. m. Saturday, organizers said.
The festivities—held in the shadow of the USS Little Rock and the Sullivans, two retired Navy ships, with huge American flags on the stage — included food vendors, a children’s museum and area jazz and rock bands. More people converged on the Central Wharf as dusk neared for the anticipated fireworks display.
Fireworks and the smell of sulfur filled Western New York skies Saturday, as Amherst, Niagara Falls, Ellicottville and many other communities held their own displays. The celebrations came despite economic cutbacks that forced some local communities to scale back or cancel their shows.
The City of Buffalo has vacillated on an official site for its Fourth celebration, some on hand for the festivities pointed outs.
Last year, about 10,000 people flocked to the newly renovated Central Wharf, which has come to represent lakefront development, said Steven Joseph, manager of marketing for Buffalo Place, one of the event’s sponsors, along with Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp. and the City of Buffalo.
And although no official plans have been made for next year, Joseph said he hopes to make the Central Wharf the go-to site.
“We’ve never made it a habit to start investing in something and then stop,” he said.
Still, most attendees said they were just happy they had a nice place to watch fireworks.
As dusk approached, Bill and Joyce Clark carried two folding chairs trying to figure out which place would give them the best view of the spectacle. They settled on the south corner of the boardwalk.
“Anytime you bring people downtown, it’s a good thing,” said Bill Clark, 68, a Boston native. “That’s what’s surprising: people are reluctant to come downtown when downtown is beautiful.”
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