OBSERVER Photo by M.J. Stafford The city of Dunkirk attempted to acquire this courtyard on Central Avenue next to the city-owned Stearns Building, but a deed was reportedly never filed. The Dunkirk Common Council has just overturned the 2021 resolution it made to buy the courtyard.

The Dunkirk Common Council approved leasing out part of the Washington Avenue parking lot, backed an arrangement with Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) lawyers, and addressed a botched Central Avenue property transfer last week.

The property transfer, concerning a courtyard next to the Stearns Building, was the only one of the items that did not pass via a unanimous 5-0 vote. That was approved, 3-1, with Councilwoman Natalie Luczkowiak voting no and Councilman Michael Civiletto abstaining because he used to work for the people who are acquiring the property.

The new owners of the adjacent Central Station restaurant are acquiring the courtyard property from the Robert Lesser Trust. The city’s involvement comes from a 2021 council resolution that sought its purchase of the courtyard; Dunkirk had just acquired the Stearns Building, across the courtyard from Central Station, to house some of its city government operations.

However, current city officials claim that Richard Morrisroe, city attorney at the time, never filed a deed for the property. That made a subsequent 2023 resolution concerning the courtyard essentially null and void.

Monday’s council action overturned both the 2021 and the 2023 resolutions. It allows the Lesser Trust, which originally tried to gift the property to the city, to instead retain ownership of it. Meanwhile, the city gets a $4,000 donation out of the deal.

“The Lesser trust can sell it for what they want, especially because the city never took ownership of it,” said Councilman Frank Torain at the council meeting. “This resolution clears that up.”

“If we acquire this property, we also acquire the liability,” noted Elliot Raimondo, the city’s current attorney.

However, “I believed that the resolutions from 2021 and 2023 should be honored,” Luczkowiak told the OBSERVER. “And Morrisroe never filed a deed in which the property in question… was to be gifted to the city. In the meantime, the owner died, and the property went to the estate. ”

The First Ward councilwoman added, “Our easement agreement clearly stated we had the right to first refusal, which means the city has the right to ownership first before anyone else can buy it. So, we turned this property over to the owner of Central Station for a donation of $4,000, (but) I believe it is worth so much more! There was an argument of someone falling a few weeks ago and might now be suing (not sure); however, had that been ours, we easily could have had the sidewalk fixed by now through the CDBG sidewalk project.”

As for the parking lot lease and the BESS lawyers:

— Kulback’s Construction, Inc. is going to lease part of the Washington Avenue parking lot, the side nearest Second Street, for at least six months. The rent will be $500 a month, with an option for a month-to-month lease after the original term expires.

Kulback’s is the general contractor for Regan Development’s project to build two apartment buildings in the area, including on Washington Avenue just a block from the parking lot. The “leased area will be utilized as a construction material laydown yard and employee/subcontractor parking area in support of ongoing construction operations in the vicinity,” the approved council resolution states.

Luczkowiak asked if city officials spoke to Brian Meyer, who runs the Dunkirk Flea Market in the parking lot, about the arrangement. Mayor Kate Wdowiasz stated he had no problems with it and that Kulback’s won’t use the lot much until the fall, after Meyer’s flea market closes for the summer.

Meyer spoke up from the audience and asked if Kulback’s would have to get insurance for its operations in the lot, noting he needed insurance for the flea market. Meyer was told Kulback’s will get insurance. It was further clarified for him that Kulback’s will use the Second Street side of the lot, not the Lake Shore Drive side where he holds his flea market.

— Council agreed to hire the Mackenzie Hughes law firm of Syracuse to draft a Host Community Agreement and Road Use Agreement for the proposed BESS. The BESS site would be located in woodland off Brigham Road.

Lighthouse Battery, the company that wants to install the BESS, will pay the fees associated with the drafting of the agreements, according to the resolution.

Raimondo explained that to avoid the appearance of official impropriety as far as city government is concerned, Lighthouse will transfer the money to the city in escrow. The city will then pay Mackenzie Hughes directly.