The public now has greater access to Buffalo's Outer Harbor. Officials cut the ribbon Friday on the new Tifft Street Pier and Boardwalk along Furhmann Boulevard. State DOT Regional Director Darrell Kaminski says the project was designed to bring people out onto the water.
"We did what we call a ribbon walk, which brings you out about 30-40 feet from the shore, and then we extended the pier out about another 100 feet from there," Kaminski said.
The concept was to bring people right to the water. That's why we have the ramps and the floating platform, which actually floats in the water. When you walk down the ramps, you're surrounded on four sides by water."
Kaminski says the $4 million project won a statewide competition for scarce federal funds set aside for recreation trails. He says the unique design helps people with disabilities who can't easily get onto a boat.
"You can feel the waves, you can feel the water because the platform moves. It is a floating dock," he added
The new pier and boardwalk provides access for fishing and includes seating and a shelter. It's all linked to miles of trails along the Outer Harbor.