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It was around 1:00pm Saturday, January 17, 2009 and I was driving along Lundy's Lane in Niagara Falls when I noticed how little traffic there was. Usually this is a very busy road on the weekends with out-of-town tourists coming in to enjoy the incredible scenery or have some fun on Clifton Hill. It then occurred to me that traffic on this road has been unusually light for the past 2 years, winter and summer. What's going on?

Well I'll tell you what's going on! The tourism business in Niagara Falls has gone to crap(s)! Pardon the pun!

Everything and I mean EVERYTHING about Niagara Falls now centres around the Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort and the big hotels on Fallsview Avenue. Even the traffic flow is directed to the Fallsview hotels area. The City has closed off the intersection of Main & Stanley Ave. to ensure traffic is directed right to the casino. Signs on the QEW highway point to the casino and road signs all over the city direct tourists to the casino. Even the first exit off of the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge (bridge/border-crossing between USA & Canada) has been changed to keep travelers off of River Road. The exit is now at Stanley Avenue which directs tourists right to the casino.

Don't get me wrong, I don't have any issues with the existence of casinos in Niagara Falls nor do I wish to see development stop in the Fallsview hotel area but I can't accept the demise of all the other tourism businesses in Niagara Falls as a result of the focus on "Fallsview".

The whole point of allowing casino gambling in Niagara Falls was to draw tourists to the area which in turn would benefit all the local businesses. The reality is that the casino and the Fallsview hotels have managed to draw all the tourism (apparently with the help of the city) right to their doors, bypassing everything else Niagara Falls has to offer.

The casinos and the big hotel owners have the money and the power to influence the City and they use it to benefit themselves and I don't blame them, that's their job. I blame the City for yielding to their every request. Wake Up!

The "Falls"(Horseshoe Falls and American Falls), the well manicured parks along River Road, the beautiful gardens, the family oriented attractions and all the small businesses that cater to tourists are what has made this city one of the Wonders Of The World. Not gaming!

The time has come to re-think the direction this city has taken and get back to the fundamentals.

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