For the first time, Peace Bridge officials said Monday that they're open to tunneling

under the Niagara Thruway rather than rebuilding an elevated ramp across the highway.

They're switching course as a way to gain the Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy's backing

for the long-stalled Peace Bridge project.

The conservancy has long objected to the elevated ramp for cars exiting the plaza for the

southbound Niagara Thruway because it cuts off the views to the waterfront and the Wright

Boathouse from Front Park.

Conservancy leaders said Monday they would drop their opposition to the Peace Bridge

project if the Peace Bridge Authority digs a tunnel instead of building another elevated ramp

to replace the existing one. Conservancy leaders, along with Rep. Brian Higgins, D-Buffalo,

have scheduled a news conference for today to promote spending federal aid to do that.

Frederick Law Olmsted completed the design for the park in 1870, choosing its location

because of the high elevation and spectacular view of the confluence of the Niagara River and

Lake Erie, the conservancy has said. The existing ramp juts over the Niagara Thruway and then

curves and slopes down to allow cars to merge onto the highway — blocking the view of

the water.

"We have an opportunity to correct a historical wrong, and those opportunities don't come

along very often," said Anne Harding Joyce, chairwoman-elect of the Olmsted group. "I think it

would be a shame if we weren't able to take advantage of it."

Higgins said the cost of tunneling under the Niagara Thruway — some $20 million more

than simply rebuilding the elevated ramp — should come from $25 million in federal aid

he helped secure for community enhancements to the Peace Bridge neighborhood.

Peace Bridge officials have not committed to using that money for a tunnel. The authority

has previously said decisions about how to spend the community enhancement money should be

made at the grassroots level by residents at community meetings.

"I'm not sure where the money will come from, but if this is what is needed to get the

project approved, we're ready to support it," said Kenneth A. Schoetz, chairman of the Peace

Bridge Authority.

The state Department of Transportation prepared a technical report that indicates

depressing the exit ramp is feasible, although the department also recommended against doing

so, Higgins said.

The authority, as recently as November 2008, said the idea was extensively reviewed by

engineers and determined not feasible due to construction issues and long-term detours onto

local streets.

Monday, Peace Bridge General Manager Ron Rienas said tunneling under the highway "is

doable."

"It requires a lot more engineering work to make this work," he said.

The Niagara Thruway is built on top of the Erie Canal, as well as sewer lines and other

infrastructure that could complicate the project once any digging starts, he said.

"Yes, there are things under there, and there are things they have to engineer around,"

said David J. Colligan, a Buffalo attorney and the conservancy's chairman. "Engineers can

solve any problems they run into."

The elevated ramp is the last obstacle of many the authority has addressed, Colligan said.

"When the ramp's gone, people are going to go [to Front Park] and watch the sunset, and

probably visit to look at the new bridge," he said. "It's going to restore a part of Buffalo

that many of us have never seen in our lifetime."

From Feb. 2008: Olmsted Parks Conservancy on Front Park and the Peace Bridge

In this February 2008 video, Thomas Herrera-Mishler, chief executive officer of the Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy, explains why the conservancy wants visitors to Front Park to enjoy "the spectacular view" blocked by the Peace Bridge plazas connecting ramps. The video shows the fly-over ramp the Peace Bridge Authority is now considering replacing with a below-grade ramp.