Communities
Related Photos
FLIGHT OF FIVE: 'Retro' job is in progress
Randy Tagliarini wields his tools with all the care he can muster.
His job Wednesday, taking up a section of stair for replacement, sounded simple enough, but it’s a stone stair.
A roughly 167-year-old stone stair, actually; third from the bottom of the stone center island separating original and modern Erie Canal locks east of Pine Street.
As Tagliarini made shallow saw marks in the stone, then used a chisel and hammer to knock it away in small bits, he was keenly aware: If he cut too deeply or hammered too hard, he might damage the portion of the step that’s still in good shape.
Were that to happen, he says, “I know what to do: Grab a big piece (of stone), jump in and don’t let go.”
“That’s right,” Tagliarini’s coworker, Randy Burrows, says. “He goes into the canal and I take off for Armenia; someplace they can’t find me.”
Tagliarini and Burrows are laborers with BVR Construction of Rochester, the company hired by the city to complete a Flight of Five locks restoration demonstration project this summer. BVR’s charge is to repair and restore iron railings on the east end of the center island, along with two weather-worn curved stone staircases, leading from water’s edge to the top of the island.
Specifically, BVR and subcontractors are: repairing/preserving the stairs by filling cracks with mortar or epoxy; replacing the broken part of one step; stripping lead paint from/repainting cast-iron railings around the stairs and island tip; and installing a new, iron railing at the south-side staircase, so visitors will be able to walk it again. The original has been missing for some time.
The Flight of Five locks — two sets, one each for west- and eastbound boat traffic — were constructed in the early 1820s and enlarged in the 1840s. The south-side series was removed in the early 1900s to make way for larger, modern locks E34 and E35. The north-side series and center island remained to serve the new locks.
BVR crews are humbled by the Flight of Five’s enduring grandness. The island, stairs and lock walls basically are huge chunks of limestone, hand-cut into desired shapes, stacked and stuck together without visible “mudlines” — and all still intact after 165-plus years.
Burrows, who used to build fireplaces for a living, says the craftsmanship is awe-inspiring.
“To think about all that work being done before there were steam engines, it’s amazing,” he said.
“They were real artists,” Tagliarini asserted as he chiseled away at their work.
BVR has acquired a suitable piece of limestone, also known as dolomite, to rebuild the broken step. The substitute piece will not match the original too closely, since the State Historic Preservation Office requires measures to avoid the new being misinterpreted as “old.”
Even so, the 273-pound stone, shaped into a 13-by-18-by-10 3/4-inch block, will be set into the stair base tightly enough that there are no mudlines seen between it and the remaining original. Modern, electrified craftsmen intend to match the greatness of their hand-tool-wielding predecessors, according to Burrows.
“Our job is to help preserve this for your kids and grandkids. ... It’s a privilege,” he said. “We (the BVR crew) all are taking as much pride in the work today as they did back then.”
BVR is expected to complete demonstration work by the end of this month.
Contact reporter Joyce Miles at 439-9222, ext. 6245.
- Communities
-
-
TOWN OF LOCKPORT: Pair of birthday kids give gifts to less fortunate
Will Rahill and Clare Casalinuovo got nothing for their birthdays. That’s because the 6-year-olds decided to give some gifts of their own to those less fortunate
-
SCHOOLS: Starpoint Invent-A-Thon encourages ingenuity
Starpoint Intermediate School’s annual Invent-A-Thon encourages ingenuity while helping students find solutions to real world problems.
-
COMMUNITIES: United Way prepares for next chapter
The Eastern Niagara United Way is looking to the future after taking a moment Thursday to remember the past, included recognizing individuals for their contributions in 200
-
LOCAL WEATHER: Folks break out, enjoy advance of spring
Lockportians got the jump on spring Wednesday, walking, biking, jogging and taking a picnic break as the afternoon temperature pushed towards 50 degrees.
-
LOCKPORT SCHOOLS: DeWitt Clinton targeted for closing; John Pound, for reuse
DeWitt Clinton and John Pound elementary schools could have their bells ring for the final time in June, as the schools are in serious jeopardy of closing this fall.
-
LOCKPORT: District to announce school closing, 're-purposing' today
A big crowd is expected at the Lockport Board of Education meeting tonight, where it is expected that Superintendent Terry Ann Carbone will announce the closing of an elementary school and the re-purposing of another.
-
COMMUNITIES: Safety-Net Team extends helping hand
The Mobile Safety-Net Team kicked off its first Community Resource Event in Lockport on Monday at St. John’s Outreach Center to help those in need during a tough economic time.
-
POLICE: Sheriff's department changes transmissions to plain English
The Niagara County Sheriff's Department has changed it's scanner transmissions from code to plain English as of this month.
-
SCHOOLS: Area districts provide help to keep kids in school
When it comes to keeping kids on track for that diploma, local high schools keep an eye out for the students who may need some help. And there are a variety of ways schools provide that help as soon as possible.
- CITY OF LOCKPORT: Lockport Ice Arena is not on ice, backers say The search for a “lead” donor is still on by supporters of Lockport Ice Arena & Sports Center.
- More Communities Headlines
-
