Published: June 29, 2009 11:01 pm      

TOWN OF TONAWANDA: New deal allows Kenney Field plane to stay

The Town Board has approved an agreement to keep the airplane at Kenney Field right where it is for the next five years.

Early this summer, rumors had residents worried that the plane was going to be reclaimed by the National Museum of Naval Aviation. But a new agreement only slightly tweaks the prior deal the town had with the Navy.

Councilman Dan Crangle said Carrubba Collision has offered to repair and repaint the plane at no cost to the town. That will fulfill the requirement that the town send a photograph of the plane once a year so the Navy can ensure it’s being upkept.

“The plane obviously won’t be in its original condition, but they’ll make it look a lot better than it does now,” Crangle said.

New signs will also be going up to discourage people from walking and climbing on the plane, alleviating the town’s liability problem and fulfilling the Navy’s request with one action. Given those conditions, the town will be allowed to keep the plane for at least the next five years, said Town Supervisor Anthony Caruana.

“The good news is it will be staying,” Caruana said.

As some residents breathed a sigh of relief, others came to the meeting to complain about an on-going problem in the Sheridan Parkside neighborhood. Rebecca Howitt, who lives on Cobb Street, said she and her neighbors have had problems with a family on their block for three years. In the last month that problem has escalated, resulting in an incident last week where four people were arrested and five police agencies responded to disperse crowds.

Howitt said the neighborhood doesn’t know what to do since the home’s landlord lives in California. She added that some are looking to leave the area because shouted profanity and the threat of erupting violence makes it impossible to even let children play outside.

“The police are there every week, and it’s heartbreaking because I grew up in that neighborhood,” Howitt said.

Police Chief Anthony Palombo said there’s an on-going problem in the area, but that his officers often run into the same roadblocks as residents dealing with absentee landlords. Councilwoman Lisa Chimera told Howitt she would work to put the Parkside resident in touch with other homeowners more experienced in dealing with such problems.

Contact reporter Daniel Pye at 693-1000, ext. 158.