Evaluation of Canal Perceptions underway

The growing importance associated with preserving New York's heritage resources and using them as a method to strengthen community pride and stimulate economic development has prompted the Western Erie Canal Heritage Corridor Planning Commission to initiate a unique summer marketing program.

The Planning Commission has recruited a team of ethnographers to assess the use of patterns of people along the 130 mile, Wayne County to Buffalo stretch of the Heritage Corridor. The perceptions, values and desires expressed by local residents and visitors regarding the canal will also be recorded as part of this initiative. "The goal of this approach," stated Amanda Mason, projects manager for the Commission, "which is similar to methods used by corporations in promoting consumer products, is to provide us with a contemporary understanding of what the canal means to the people of Western New York, and what the connections are to various visitor groups."

Rosemary Riel, an Anthropologist from Maryland who is part of the survey team, recalls an interview with a tourist from Michigan who commented, "Other than recreation … I don't know the importance of the canal. I guess it's a part of history." From another perspective, a fisherman interviewed in the Village of Holley reflected, "Any day off is a good day for fishing," while someone walking their dog on the canal path in Adams Basin stated that she and her husband "do this to survive." Riel suggested that these last two comments support the project's conclusion that local residents predominately viewed the canal as a shared community resource, not particularly as a tourist destination.

"This preliminary data indicates that there is significant local recognition of the recreational opportunities offered by the Erie Canal waterway and multi-use path, but more education and public presentation of the canal's rich history needs to be accomplished," added Mason.

The project team will be active along the canal and at various canal festivals during the summer. A marketing analysis will be presented to the Planning Commission this fall.

The Western Erie Canal Heritage Corridor Planning Commission was created by New York State legislation in July 1999. The 22-member commission is charged with developing a Heritage Corridor Management Plan for the five county region by July 2003. The legislatures of Wayne, Monroe, Orleans, Niagara and Erie Counties, and New York State, will approve the plan.

Perspectives to share? Westside News Inc. would like to know residents' perspectives on the Erie Canal. Mail signed letters to Editor, Westside News Inc., P.O. Box 106, Spencerport 14559 or e-mail westside@netacc.net. All correspondence should include a daytime phone number.