BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — As the DOT moves forward with plans to cover part of the Kensington Expressway in Buffalo, generations of Western New Yorkers are watching.
Sacred Heart High School senior Kele Ezenwa comes to church at St. Martin de Porres in Buffalo every week. The church is about a block from the 33 - so when she started learning about the impact the road had on the community, she paid close attention.
"I learned about the Kensington Expressway - and how cutting through some neighborhoods and communities was really detrimental," she said.
When it came time for her to pick a subject for a major research project, that's exactly what she chose.
The DOT recently released the most updated plans to cover a section of the 33, restoring the are to a parkway.
"This is def the largest and biggest scale project the DOT has undertaken in WNY," explained DOT spokesperson Susan Surdej.
The DOT has been meeting with stakeholders as it worked to narrow the number of tunnel designs. A public meeting on the design/designs that will move forward into the next phase will be held next month.
Stephanie Barber Geter is one of the stakeholders who has been pushing to restore the neighborhood she says was lost when the highway was created.
"Whole scale we lost houses, people who gave up. Just couldn't hang on. The impact of the road had much impact on them," she explained.
People in the neighborhood have been speaking up to make sure their voices are heard as the project moves forward. After looking at parkway renderings, they told the DOT they wanted to expand the area the tunnel covers.
Initially, the covered areas was going to stretch from Dodge to East Ferry Street. Now, they DOT is hoping to stretch it two blocks past East Ferry - to Sidney Street.
"I think the community wants as much covered as possible to expand the greenspace and reunite the communities.," said Surdej.
"One of the reasons we wanted to go farther - is that it's our dream to connect Delaware Park and MLK Park together," echoed Barber Geter.
Barber Geter says so many of the neighbors around the 33 have waited years for things to move forward. Now, the next generation, like Ezenwa, are invested in what's to come.
"This is our community. This is Buffalo. We are the City of Good Neighbors," said Ezenwa. "And we are the people who are going to grow up in Buffalo, and our children are going to be affected by - our children are going to live here."
You can get the latest information on the DOT's plan for the 33 here.
