by Joseph H. Radder
Andy Sedita, Erie County’s Deputy Commissioner of Parks and Recreation, says,
“They call me the Commissioner of Fun.” He’s referring, of course, to his
involvement in the many fun-filled events and recreational activities held at the parks
and elsewhere. Of course, there are serious matters like environmental concerns and care
for the beautiful trees, grounds, equipment and facilities, but Andy’s area of the
department is concerned mainly with special events.
Erie County’s system of twelve beautiful parks, two golf courses, two beaches, the
Botanical Gardens in South Buffalo and the Riverwalk from Amherst to downtown Buffalo, all
come under the jurisdiction of the County Parks and Recreation Department, and is known as
one of the finest park systems in the country. Sedita beams as he says, “Our system
is second to none.”
When asked to tell us about a typical day at work, Sedita said, “A typical day could
include a day at the Ft. Erie racetrack, a ballgame at Dunn Tire Park and a visit to the
casino in Niagara Falls with groups of senior citizens - a lot of fun stuff. We have three
large senior luncheons, one for our WinterFest, two other luncheons during the year and
our annual senior picnic at Emery Park. Over 1700 seniors join us for these events.”
But Andy’s work is not all with seniors, “We do a lot with our younger folks
too,” he continued. “We try to break it up.” There is a baseball program
that reaches out to thousands of youngsters ages 13 to 20. And there are swimming meets,
track and field events as well. “Around Christmastime we do a Santa’s Park
program at Chestnut Ridge. At Eastertime we do a program at Ellicott Creek.”
He also works with the disabled. “Two weeks ago we had our day for the disabled at
the Buffalo Zoo.” On the day of our visit Sedita would be helping run the Special
Olympics for disabled persons.
Until meeting Andy Sedita, this writer thought of the parks department as an organization
that trimmed trees, mowed grass and painted picnic tables. It was a revelation to hear
about all of these fun activities for youngsters, seniors and the disabled; planned,
organized and staged under the direction of Deputy Commissioner for Parks and Recreation,
Andy Sedita.
It’s clear that Sedita shares a kind of parental pride about the county’s parks
when he says, “Some of our parks are absolutely magnificent. There’s Akron
Falls, Chestnut Ridge, Como, Ellicott Creek and all the others.”
He continues with enthusiasm, “Through the graciousness of the County Executive, we
were funded in last year’s capital budget to the tune of about $3 million to upgrade
equipment and $15 million of the tobacco settlement for parks restoration. We now have a
Parks Master Plan in place for the next ten years.” This will assure continuation of
the quality of parks and activities that Erie County is known for nationwide.
Spare time activity? He plays a little golf, but Andy Sedita’s real hobby is
politics. He has worked on a lot of campaigns over the years. He started out in 1977
working with Jimmy Griffin. He worked on the first campaign for U.S. Senator Alfonse
D’Amato. But he didn’t restrict his work to the Republican party. He worked on
Governor Cuomo’s first campaign as well as Governor Pataki’s campaign the first
time he ran. He, of course, will be working for the re-election of the County Executive.
He’s very high on Joel Giambra. “He has a vision for this community and has
started people thinking a little differently. Giambra is convinced you can’t continue
to throw money at problems and hope they’ll go away.”
He has an admirable philosophy about politicians, who are of course, often maligned. He
says, “We must never forget the phrase ‘Civil Servant’. We’re here to
serve people. Good politicians are able to enhance people’s quality of life.”
He tells the story of the time the city removed a number of traffic signals to save money.
It so happened that the signal near his restaurant was removed, which affected his
business drastically because the people who worked on the other side of Niagara Street
could no longer safely cross the street to get to Andy’s for lunch. When Jimmy
Griffin was elected mayor, Sedita appealed to him and the signal was soon re-installed.
Andy Sedita was in business on Niagara Street for thirty years, at a restaurant and clam
bar called Andy’s, founded early in 1968 by his Grandfather Angelo (Andy) Sedita. In
1996, Sedita sold the restaurant and re-opened at Brighton and Eggert Rds.
He comes by his work ethic naturally. His grandfather, Angelo, his father, Salvatore, his
mother, Frances, his sister, Antoinette, and his brother, Joe, all put in long hours at
the clam stand and restaurant.
Sedita was born in Buffalo in 1950. He grew up on the west side. As a child, Andy attended
Our Lady of Loretto School on 14th Street. Later he went to Grover Cleveland High School
and, upon graduation, attended the University of Buffalo.
He has many awards and honors on the wall if his office in the Rath County Office
Building. The one of which he is most proud commemorates the time he was elected Man of
the Year by the Niagara District Civic Association. Indeed, Andy Sedita is not only the
man of the year but a man for all seasons, dedicated to serving his fellow man as
“The Commissioner of Fun” for Erie County.
Joseph H. Radder, a free-lance writer and regular contributor to Living Prime
Time, is the author of a new book, a fictional biography of a young Jew named Jesus,
“Young Jesus, the missing years.”