Lockport? (Buffalo, Cheektowaga, Niagara Falls: houses, movie theater, high school)

[friedzone]

Looking for commentary on Lockport. I know there are some rusting old and sometimes contaminated industrial sites there. Otherwise what do people think about the area? Easy commute to Buffalo? Safe to walk the streets at night? Appreciate any feedback.

[CAugust]

Friedzone, are you still looking for the correct town to settle down in? Youve done a great deal of homework on this one for months, I am surprised you havent found an area that you like as of yet?

[friedzone]

There are a lot of areas I like. If I can afford them or not is another question. Any opinion on Lockport?

[Buffalonian4life]

Lockport is beautiful and yes dont worry about walking out on the streets at night - it's VERY safe. It's a nice town to live in but there are better options too, but I dont know exactly what you are looking for in WNY.

[friedzone]

My favorite towns are Clarence and Lewiston Village. On my limited budget, these are out of the question. Lockport has some very affordable older homes which is my attraction to that area. I just can't decide on whether or not to live in the city or in the surrounding burbs or even in a town like Gowanda which is very country and affordable but maybe too far out with the price of gas and winter commutes and such.

[BuffaloTransplant]

Some parts of Lockport are not as safe as they used to be. I suggest you drive thru the area you like at morning, noon and night and see who is around and what is going on.... You also should check the prices out really well.

[CLL071999]

I lived in Lockport for 27 years of my life up until last year. I am a litte concerned when you say "affordable old houses". Lockport is a very nice area if you know where you are looking. A lot of these old houses can be in the not so nice area of town. I don't want to offend anyone but we all know the parts of town you don't mind driving through but wouldn't want to live there. If you cannot afford Lewiston, that gives me an idea of what you are looking for. I would look on the outskirts of the city and more of the Town of Lockport. With that said, there are very nice houses on streets such as Pine, Locust, Lincoln, High St and areas near the High School in the city. I think the other side of the City near Outwater Park is fairly nice too. In the Town of Lockport areas like Day Rd and Akron Rd are about 5 mins from the City but you could have more of a yard if you are looking for one. Lockport itself has had some rough patches over the last couple of years. We lost our mall and some people have been fighting a Super Walmart coming to replace the current Walmart. They just started a concert series that I hear is going over very well. There is still a nice "downtown" area and the canal is very nice. There are restaruants, banks, shopping, and the Y all downtown. Traveling up Route 78 South , Transit, you will find more stores, restaurants, Home Depot, a Drive In Movie theater and much more. This is also your route to Buffalo, probably by way of Millersport or the 290, probably a 20 min drive.
If you are looking in surrounding areas, Newfane is nice. A little higher taxes but nice lots, close to the lake and still only about 35 min drive to Buffalo or Niagara Falls. Wilson, also very nice. Barker farther away but lots of land and very rural area.
Feel free to ask more questions if you have them. You can also visit Lockport-Journal.com which is the local paper.

[cheese9988]

Lockport is a nice town, I grew up there. It is somewhat self supplied.

It has it's own shopping center, used to have a mall. Decent amount of shops and stores. Delphi is a huge automotive plant that gives the city alot in taxes and also is where a lot of people from the area work. If the plant did ever close up, it could be really bad for the city. The plant has cut back, although around 3000 still work there.

It has nice parks, alot of nice older homes, good chain/mom & pop restaurants, bars, golf range, golf course. You can be out of the city and into the country within a few minutes either direction.

[friedzone]

NYS along the Erie Canal has quite a few victorian era older homes. Lockport has many that seem priced very reasonably. I really need to get out there again and spend some time checking things out. West Seneca & Cheektowaga seem like the best bang for the buck & centrally located if a person doesn't desire to be in the city limits per se.
Last time I drove out to Buffalo I was side tracked on the finger lakes wine trail. Looking forward to exploring the city on my next trip.

[jlmerritt36]

There is nothing wrong with Lockport. It is only about 20 minutes away from Buffalo. Downtown Buffalo, is a different story. Lockport is even starting to clean up by creating new businesses or changing the one's they already have.