ORCHARD PARK
Angel Flight scurries to obtain permit for fundraiser
A planned fundraiser to support Angel Flight — a group that flies critically ill patients to get care — must scramble for event permits, or it won’t get off the ground as planned Sept. 13 in Orchard Park.
“There’s an illegal building on the property right now,” Town Attorney Leonard Berkowitz said during a recent Town Board work session.
But he added, “This is a big event . . . We need to find a way to let this happen.”
The fundraiser attracted 2,500 people last year and expects about 3,000 this year, organizers said.
The problem centers on a 5,000- square-foot pavilion that organizer Joseph DeMarco erected on the party site at 3964 California Road without a building permit, town officials say.
With no documentation to show that the structure is safe, the town can’t issue an operating permit for the fundraiser, officials said.
DeMarco said during a telephone interview that he has told his architect to rush “as-built” plans to the Planning Department to meet an expedited review process the town has agreed to set up.
“We’re trying to go through all the hoops,” he said. “It would be terrible if this thing didn’t happen.”
Many $25 tickets for the event already have been sold, and publicity campaigns are in full swing.
Last year’s event was held under a tent rather than a solid structure, De- Marco said.
The nonprofit organization flies critically ill patients to get transplants or participate in clinical trials in faraway hospitals, often on short notice. Pilots like DeMarco volunteer their time, but other costs average about $1,000 a flight, he said.
Last year’s fundraiser cleared $125,000 for the organization, and a larger crowd is expected this year, DeMarco said.
Friction between the organizers and town officials preceded Wednesday’s agreement. Building Inspector Andrew Geist said a stop-work order was violated within a half hour of being issued. When he recently tried to inspect the site, he was asked to leave the property.
DeMarco said plans were submitted to the town but lacked official stamps. DeMarco also said he missed a Planning Board meeting because of an Angel Flight board meeting to review a fatal crash earlier this month in Massachusetts.
Now, however, the town is offering to expedite the review process if DeMarco can supply documentation by the next Town Board meeting Sept. 3.
