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Dec 31

2022

iPost readers vote evictions report top story of ’22

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Readers have selected I’Jaz Ja’ciel’s report on evictions as Investigative Post’s top story of 2022.  Her Nov. 9 story, which also aired on WGRZ, not only reported on the large number of eviction warrants issued in Erie County, primarily Buffalo, but explained why. The reasons include Buffalo’s high poverty rate and meager government assistance for low-income renters. Buffalo landlords are acting to evict tenants in greater numbers than any portion of the state aside from Brooklyn, according to data from the New York State Unified Court System.  Judges have issued more than 3,700 eviction warrants this year in Erie County,[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Dec 30

2022

Buffalo doesn’t track actual evictions

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Landlords in Erie County, especially in Buffalo, are more aggressive in obtaining warrants to evict tenants than almost anywhere in the state. But no one tracks how many of those warrants result in tenants being put out in the street. Why not? The city doesn’t keep tabs, said Herbert Bellamy Jr, the city’s chief marshal. “We simply do not have the resources to compile that information,” Bellamy told Investigative Post in an email. Read our original report, voted top story of 2022 The risk of eviction was a problem in the city before the COVID-19 pandemic and the numbers show[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Dec 29

2022

Is Byron Brown the worst mayor in America?

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Byron Brown’s incompetency as mayor has been on full display since the blizzard hit last Friday. The city was unprepared to handle what was coming or clean up when the snow and wind finally relented.  No snow removal plan that contemplated a blizzard.  Not enough plows and drivers.  Too few warming centers — two of which had to close because when their power failed they lacked backup generators. No plan to police vulnerable commercial districts. The list goes on. Lots of common folks have been grumbling about the city’s ineptitude and the mayor’s insensitive, self-serving “I told you so” remarks. Erie[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Dec 28

2022

Podcast: Reflecting on 10 years of iPost

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Investigative Post is wrapping up its tenth year in business. Founder and editor Jim Heaney and Geoff Kelly, our senior reporter, look back on the decade and what it’s meant for Investigative Post and local news outlets. This is a companion to Heaney’s post of earlier this week, a Report to Readers. Watch or listen to the podcast here, or check it out — along with dozens of other stories and interviews — on our YouTube channel.

Posted 2 years ago

Dec 27

2022

A report to iPost readers

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Investigative Post celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2022. I anticipated the year would include a fair amount of introspection, but aside from a column I wrote in February and a podcast we posted earlier this week, we were too busy with the present to reflect much on the past. That’s a good thing, because 2022 was our busiest year yet. Head-spinning at times, but all good. We turned over three-quarters of our reporting staff and this summer brought on board J. Dale Shoemaker, I’Jaz Ja’ciel and Garrett Looker. In doing so we improved our staff diversity and bolstered our capacity for data-based reporting and video and[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Dec 26

2022

Tracking the plows in Buffalo

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  Updated: Wednesday, 1:15 p.m. This post has received a lot of traffic over the past couple of days, primarily, I suspect, because of the link to the city-affiliated map showing what streets in Buffalo have been plowed. The map might have been useful at some point, but no longer. Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz disclosed at a press conference earlier Wednesday that county and state crews have taken on responsibility for plowing streets. Poloncarz termed the city’s effort “embarrassing .” The Buffalo Police Department tweeted that there are more than 450 pieces of snow fighting equipment clearing city streets,[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Dec 20

2022

Donate to iPost and double your money

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As Western New York’s only nonprofit newsroom, Investigative Post depends on the financial support of the community to fund our work. Our annual drive is an important source of revenue for us. We’re down to the final week-and-a-half of our campaign. Consider donating today to support Western New York’s only news organization dedicated exclusively to producing watchdog journalism. At a time when our democracy is under threat, and our leaders are less transparent than ever, supporting local journalism has never been more important.  “Love your publication and your attention to the facts,” one donor wrote in a note that accompanied[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Dec 19

2022

Monday Morning Read

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Sign up for a free subscription to WeeklyPost, from which this post is extracted from. I cringed while watching the Bills game a week ago Sunday after Jets quarterback Mike White was returned to the game after suffering an injury that sent him to the hospital that night and is keeping him sidelined this week. It was the latest example of the NFL treating its players like disposable commodities. Other examples this season include the concussion fiasco involving Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and the Bills and Dolphins playing in a brutal heat and humidity that sent many players to the sidelines with cramps. I[...]

Posted 2 years ago
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