West Seneca, New York

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Position within Erie County.

West Seneca is a town in Erie County, New York, USA. The population was 45,920 at the 2000 census.

The Town of West Seneca is a centrally-located interior town of the county, southeast of Buffalo, New York. West Seneca along with Orchard Park and Hamburg form the inner “Southtowns”, a cluster of middle-class suburban towns south of Buffalo.

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[edit] Quality of Life

West Seneca offers a rich suburban lifestyle. The town and local businesses sponsor a large number of family oriented community events and festivals. The town has an extensive set of recreational facilities including 15 town parks, ice rink, swimming center, youth community center and a large soccer complex. The town is home to the Charles E. Burchfield Nature & Art Center. West Seneca is also the location of the 7.2 million dollar state of the art Southtowns Family YMCA Facility that opened in 2003. A recreational bicycle and pedestrian trail tentatively named the Seneca Creek Pathway is planned.

An 18 hole championship course is being built by the West Seneca Rotary Foundation on a 250-acre site donated by Buffalo businessman Carl Lambein. When the public golf course opens in 2007 it will have special pricing and tee times for West Seneca and Orchard Park residents. Other amenities will include a driving range, three hole golf teaching facility and a short game center. The First Tee chapter of Western NY is headquartered at the golf course.

West Seneca is home to a large number of organized recreational leagues and clubs including; West Seneca Youth Baseball, West Seneca Little Loop Football and Cheerleading,West Seneca Girls Softball Association, West Seneca Youth Hockey Association, West Seneca Soccer Club, West Seneca Competitive Swim and RGC All Star Cheerleading.

Downtown Buffalo and its cultural offerings are only 20 minutes away while both the American and Canadian sides of Niagara Falls are about a 40 minute drive.

There is no mall inside the West Seneca town limits but the McKinley Mall and Walden Galleria are both within a 15 minute drive. West Seneca does have various shopping centers, the best known is Southgate Plaza.

[edit] Education

There are two separate public school districts within the town. The West Seneca Central School District is the largest and serves the majority of the town. The Orchard Park Central School District occupies the south eastern portion of the town.

West Seneca is home to the following private primary and secondary schools; Fourteen Holy Helpers School, Queen of Heaven School, St Bonaventure School, The Center Road Christian Academy, Trinity Christian School, and West Seneca Christian School.

Houghton College has a campus within the town.

[edit] History

Because the town is on land of the former Buffalo Creek Reservation, it was not open to settlement until near the mid 19th century. The Town of West Seneca, as the "Town of Seneca," was formed in 1851 from parts of the Towns of Cheektowaga and Hamburg. The town changed the name to "West Seneca" in 1852 to avoid confusion with another location in the state (Seneca, New York in Ontario County). In 1909 the area immediately south of Buffalo split from West Seneca, becoming the city of Lackawanna.

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 55.4 km² (21.4 mi²). 55.3 km² (21.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.09%) is water.

The New York State Thruway (Interstate 90) passes through the town and intersects New York State Route 400 {Aurora Expressway) in the northwest part of the town and US Route 219 in the southwest part. The east town line is marked by New York State Route 78 (Transit Road). New York State Route 240 (Harlem Road/Orchard Park Road) and New York State Route 277 (Union Road) are other major north-south roads, while New York State Route 16 (Seneca Street/Center Road) and New York State Route 354 (Clinton Street) are major east-west highways.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 45,920 people, 18,328 households, and 12,737 families residing in the town. The population density was 829.7/km² (2,148.8/mi²). There were 18,982 housing units at an average density of 343.0/km² (888.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.11% White, 0.46% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 0.50% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.19% from other races, and 0.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.88% of the population.

There were 18,328 households out of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.5% were non-families. 26.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the town the population was spread out with 22.3% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 25.4% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 91.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $46,278, and the median income for a family was $54,179. Males had a median income of $39,003 versus $26,846 for females. The per capita income for the town was $20,529. About 3.0% of families and 4.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.1% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Communities and locations in West Seneca

  • Buffalo Airpark (9G0) -- A general aviation airport on the north town line.
  • Buffalo Creek -- A stream flowing westward through the town. The French name for this stream was Beau Fleuve, and the name of the city of Buffalo, New York is derived from the stream. There were no buffalo living in the area in the colonial period, although they are now raised on several farms locally. The creek is called the Buffalo River as it departs the western edge of the town.
  • East Seneca -- A location on Route 16 in the east part of the town.
  • Ebenezer - Centrally located, a hamlet named after the "Ebenezers" (also called the Inspirationalists), a group of German Lutherans who purchased land and settled this area around 1843. Later, many of this communal group moved to Amana, Iowa and had abandoned their four settlements in West Seneca by 1863.
  • French Quarters -- A location in the northwest part of the town.
  • Gardenville -- A hamlet on the northern border of the town shared with the town of Cheektowaga.
  • New Ebenezer -- A hamlet east of Gardenville.
  • West Seneca Developmental Center -- A facility for disabled children in the southeast part of the town.

[edit] Related Links

  • West Seneca Central School District serves West Seneca and parts of Cheektowaga
  • Orchard Park Central School District serves the southern part of West Seneca that borders Orchard Park

[edit] External links


Municipalities and Communities of Erie County, New York
(County Seat: Buffalo)
Cities Buffalo | Lackawanna | Tonawanda
Towns Alden | Amherst | Aurora | Boston | Brant | Cheektowaga | Clarence | Collins | Concord | Eden | Elma | Evans | Grand Island | Hamburg | Holland | Lancaster | Marilla | Newstead | North Collins | Orchard Park | Sardinia | Tonawanda | Wales | West Seneca
Villages Alden | Angola | Blasdell | Depew | East Aurora | Farham | Gowanda | Hamburg | Kenmore | Lancaster | North Collins | Orchard Park | Sloan | Springville | Williamsville
CDPs Angola on the Lake | Billington Heights | Cheektowaga | Clarence Center | Eden | Elma Center | Harris Hill | Holland | Lake Erie Beach | North Boston | Tonawanda | Town Line | West Seneca
Reservations Cattaraugus Reservation | Tonawanda Reservation
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