OBSERVER Photo by Braden Carmen Buffalo Street in the village of Silver Creek is in need of improvements. The village is seeking grant funding to assist with the project.

SILVER CREEK — Mayor Jeff Hornburg and Deputy Mayor Kathy Tampio recently spoke with residents of Buffalo Street about the plans for improvements to the street in the near future. They were joined by Rebecca Wurster, Special Projects Coordinator with the Chautauqua County Department of Planning and Development.

Hornburg said that together, the group “formulated a game plan” for addressing the area. Wurster will assist the Village of Silver Creek in seeking grant funding for the project, which Hornburg anticipates will be at a significant cost.

“I’m not saying what they want is wrong, but what they want is expensive,” Hornburg said. “We cannot do it in one fell swoop without some kind of grant aid to get it done.”

Residents attended multiple Village Board meetings on the matter over the past few years. Most notably was this past April, when resident Paul Bogosian presented a petition to the Village Board signed by residents seeking improvements to Buffalo Street, including new pavement, drainage, and curbing.

“An entire neighborhood is supportive of you and your effort to proceed with this process,” Bogosian said at the time. “That’s what the petition is about.”

Since then, the Village Board has met with an engineer to get a better idea of the scope of the project. Hornburg has said that he hopes the project can be done in 2026, but he is not sure if that is feasible at this time. “It may take us longer than that to get the grant written and approved,” Hornburg said.

Also of note, the Village Board approved a water/sewer tap application from Park Grove Realty at the site of the former Main Street School. Construction at the site has begun for a senior living facility. Hornburg was happy to see that the project is moving forward, and stated he hopes that construction can continue through the winter.

Hornburg also said the Silver Creek Fire Department anticipates the arrival of its new ambulance “shortly.” The vehicle has arrived in Buffalo and is undergoing its finishing touches, such as lettering on the side and the interior detailed.

Leaf pickup in the village has begun, and brush pickup has concluded. If brush is included in leaf piles, they will not be picked up due to the damage it would cause to village equipment. Additionally, Nov. 26 will be the final day for heavy metal pickup. On-street parking overnight in the village will be banned from Nov. 15 until April 1.

Also of note, the next Mobile Food Pantry event, sponsored by the Silver Creek Food Pantry, the Village of Silver Creek, and Feedmore WNY, will be on Tuesday, Nov. 25, from 11 a.m. until 12:30 p.m., at the village municipal parking lot. The event is free of charge to residents of Silver Creek and other nearby communities. The Village appreciates and welcomes all volunteers.

The next Silver Creek Village Board meeting is Monday, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m.