By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 October 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – The First Presbyterian Church of Albion is lit up during lightning at about 7:30 p.m. today when thunderstorms with gusty winds and small hail hit the area.
The church, with its steeple reaching 175 feet high, is the tallest building in Orleans County. Swan Library is pictured at bottom during some of the lightning.
The courthouse has a pink tint in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. This photo also shows the Orleans County Jail and the Presbyterian Church.
The National Weather Service says the temperature will take a big drop this weekend with a chance of snow.
Friday will have a high 54 and a low of 36. On Saturday, the temperature will only reach 43 with a low of 32, the Weather Service is forecasting. Sunday the high will be 41 with a low of 31 and chance for snow.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 October 2015 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – Rich Colonna, center, is pictured with his children Jeff and Lindsey. The family is working to rebuild the Washboard Willy’s Laundromat that burned in a May 23 fire on Starr Street in Medina.
Colonna opened the Washboard Willy’s in 2001. The family opened a second Laundromat last December on maple Ridge Road.
Customers there have asked that the Starr Street location be reopened, Colonna said. He said it has been inconvenient for many of the Starr Street customers, who often need to find rides to get their laundry done on maple Ridge Road.
Photo by Tom Rivers
Washboard Willy’s should reopen in February or March after extensive renovations. A new roof should be on by the end of next week. Colonna wants the site to be closed up before winter, then the new electric, plumbing and gas will be installed.
The new laundry machines will use less energy, water and soap.
Photo by Tom Rivers
The family said they could have bulldozed the site and sold the property. But they wanted laundry services to be available for residents in the immediate neighborhood.
Jeff, Lindsey and their brother Kevin, a sheriff’s deputy, all work with their father in the business, which is a demanding enterprise.
“It’s seven days a week, 24 hours a day,” Jeff Colonna said. “It has to be cleaned daily.”
Provided photo
Rich Colonna says the fire from May 23 remains under investigation. He said he is grateful for the quick response from the Medina Fire Department at 2 in the morning.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 October 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Fourth-graders harvested squash this morning, filling two big bins at the Albion FFA Land Lab along Clarendon Road.
FFA students planted the squash last June and today it was picked from the field. It will be give to Community Action of Orleans & Genesee, which will use some for its food pantry and also for holiday baskets. Some squash will also be shared with other food pantries in the community, said Andy Ebbs, the facilities manager for Community Action.
Jack Kinter holds a squash he picked from a field. Students didn’t mind a little mud.
Albion FFA students planted the squash last June and helped direct the students during today’s harvest. This trio of FFA students includes, from left: Rylie Lear, FFA President Vivian Rivers, and Alexis Bentley.
Brian Postle, right, joins his fourth grade classmates in today’s squash harvest.
Another student is happy to help with the harvest.
The FFA also grew gourds that will be shared with teachers for a fall festival celebration. Students also grew pumpkins that will be sold at Panek’s Pumpkin Patch with proceeds donated for breast cancer awareness and research.
Photo by Tom Rivers – This file photo from April 2014 shows a flooded field along Presbyterian Road.
The state is making $1.4 million available in a pilot program for “Climate Resilient Farming,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced.
The funds will support projects that mitigate the environmental impact of agriculture-related activities and increase the resiliency of farms throughout New York State in the face of a changing climate.
“New York State is a leader and national model when it comes to dealing with the effects of climate change and this funding further strengthens that standing,” Cuomo said. “This first-ever grant program addresses the need to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of farms, while also enhancing the ability of those farms to recover after severe weather events which have become an all too frequent reality.”
The funding is being made available to agricultural projects which develop and implement best management practices to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration. Additionally, funding is available to projects that help agricultural producers prepare for and better manage the impacts of climate change like increased heavy rain storm events and periods of drought.
County Soil and Water Conservation Districts will apply for the competitive grants on behalf of farmers. Applications must be submitted for one of the following project categories: agricultural waste storage cover and flare systems; on-farm riparian, floodplain, and upland water management systems; and soil health systems.
Funding for the Climate Resilient Farming grant program comes from the 2015-2016 New York State Environmental Protection Fund and is administered by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.
“The Soil and Water Conservation Committee is proud to work with our partners, including the Department of Agriculture and Markets, Cornell University, Soil and Water Conservation Districts, and most importantly farmers to build on the strengths of our Agricultural Environmental Management framework to enhance resiliency and reduce emissions on farms across New York State,” said Le Roy dairy farmer Dale Stein, chairman of the New York State Soil and Water Conservation Committee.
Applicants for the Climate Resilient Farming grant program must submit their proposals by 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 14. For more information, click here.
“As large agricultural producers, we must also be mindful of our environmental footprint, and this funding will help our state’s farms develop procedures which reduce detrimental environmental impact without damaging the farms’ ability to grow produce and livestock,” said State Assemblyman Steve Hawley, R-Batavia. “This is a victory for our environment, as well as farmers who could use increased funding to protect their livelihoods from flooding and drought.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 October 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
KNOWLESVILLE – It was the third annual Family Game Night at the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds with activities light on gadgets but designed to make residents and children more aware of services in the community.
In the top photo, Cincere Lowe, 8, of Albion gets his face painted to look like a vampire. Vivian Neroni, a DSS worker, shared her artistic talents at the face-painting station.
Families could also play board games and meet the staff at many county departments, which offered activities for families to learn about county services. The event was coordinated by the Youth Bureau.
Tom Drennan lets Aaron Schmidli of Medina try on a bullet-proof vest. Drennan, chief deputy for the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department, said the vest weighs 20 to 25 pounds. Aaron’s brother Andrew, in back, also had a chance to wear the vest.
Chuck Nesbitt, the county’s chief administrative officer, went fishing with his daughter Jane, 4. They hooked a magnetic lake trout at a station run by the Orleans County Tourism Department.
Dale Banker (left), the county’s emergency management director, and Pat Eick, administrative assistant for the Emergency Management Office, pass out an “Emergency Go Bag” to County Legislator John DeFilipps, right. Eick developed the bags with emergency items for people to keep in their vehicles in case they are stranded with winter around the corner.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 October 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
HOLLEY – A small sign on a tree in a ditch in Holley notes that this was part of the original Erie Canal loop that meandered to the Public Square area of Holley.
The state veered the canal from a relatively straight line in 1823 due to the high banks and engineering challenge in dealing with Sandy Creek.
This map in the Holley Post Office shows how the Erie Canal used to loop about 2,000 feet towards the Public Square.
There was an unusually deep ravine formed by the east branch of Sandy Creek, which presented a difficult engineering problem for builders of the original Erie Canal in the early 1820s, according to display on the north side of the canal by the Holley lift bridge. The State Canal Corp. put up that display about “The Holley Loop.”
This historical marker is next to the railroad depot used by the Murray-Holley Historical Society near Save-A-Lot. The original canal went near the depot and Public Square and some stone and remnants are still visible in the community.
Rather than try to build the canal on the ravine, engineers opted to take a sharp turn near the current lift bridge and cross over a relatively narrow section of the creek.
“The sharp curve required boaters to slow down, which made a promising location for canal-oriented businesses,” according to the state display. “The Village of Holley grew at this bend in the canal.”
The village created a canal park about 15 years ago and the path follows close to where the canal loop passed through nearly 200 years ago.
The canal was widened throughout the 363-mile-long system from 1905 to 1918 and much of the original canal was replaced by the wider and deeper canal.
But in Holley, some of the original remained because it wasn’t touched as part of the Barge Canal widening in the early 1900s.
Another map, this one displayed in the office of Dr. Dan Schiavone, shows the Holley Loop. It linked back to the canal just west of Bennetts Corners Road.
The state in 1854-61, decided the original loop needed to be straightened out in Holley to create a shorter, more navigable waterway. A new section of the canal was built over a very high and long embankment.
“Because state law did not allow canal sections to be abandoned in villages or cities, the old loop was still used for several decades to serve local businesses,” according to the state display about the Holley Loop. “Canal traffic no longer stopped in the village, however, and eventually the loop was drained and eliminated. Traces of the original canal can still be seen east of the Public Square.”
This culvert from the old canal can be seen from Route 31, a few houses east of Glenside Automotive.
I wrote about trying to find the original canal in Holley last week while on a nature walk on the Holley trail system off the canal.
I couldn’t find any signs pointing to the old canal, and wasn’t sure if I was seeing any remnants from the original canal.
Three people offered to show it to me on Tuesday. I was joined by Holley dentist Dan Schiavone, Erin Anheier from the Clarendon Historical Society, and Mark Scarborough, who lives on Bennetts Corners Road where the former trolley passed by his home until the trolly closed in the 1930s.
This trail runs from off Route 31, west of Bennetts Corners Road to the canal. The canal once ran along side this path. However, Mark Scarborough said this was a companion to the original canal, which is more to the left with lots of stone and other remnants from the original.
Scarborough says invasive plants, including Wild Rose, have proliferated in the old canal bed.
Holley’s trail system doesn’t have any wayfinding signs that would point to the original canal. The only sign is the small one nailed to a tree.
So, I wonder if the old canal bed is a big deal, or maybe a really big deal? Should it be cleared out and perhaps made into a walking trail that could be explored? Would people come check out the only original canal bed west of Rochester on the canal system?
I would encourage the village and canal to at least have signs pointing to the canal bed, and interpretive panels that talk about the “Holley Loop” and this bit of Holley and canal history. There could be interpretive panels on the trail near the canal and also in the Public Square. That wouldn’t cost too much. (The state information display is on the north side of the canal away from the gazebo and the canal park. I doubt many people look at it.)
The village created this trail system in 2000 and used sandstone to line one side. The stone isn’t from the original canal project, but the path follows close to the Holley Loop.
Holley named the canal trail in honor of Andrew Cuomo, who was the HUD secretary at the time and directed some federal funds to the village for the project.
The historical marker is close to the start of the trail.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 October 2015 at 12:00 am
Editorial
Photos by Tom Rivers – Steve Hyde, president and CEO of the Genesee County Economic Development Center, faces a gauntlet of reporters following last week’s announcement that a high-tech company would be the first tenant in the STAMP site in the Town of Alabama.
Two big economic development projects are coming to the area, and those projects should have a ripple effect, leading to other support businesses and boosting the local economy with more spending money at local restaurants and businesses.
The projects were years in the making, and show the importance of vision and laying the groundwork.
In Orleans County, Pride Pak will build a 64,000-square-foot vegetable processing plant on Route 31A in Medina, across from the GCC campus. Pride Pak is from Canada, and the Medina site will be its first U.S.-based facility.
The Orleans Economic Development Agency has welcomed several Canadian companies to the community in recent years, with Brunner International and Hinspergers Poly Industries among the group that has tackled expansions in Medina.
Medina and other villages have the sewer and water infrastructure that are critical to attracting manufacturing and processing plants. But many villages don’t have the open space for those sites. Medina village officials about 30 years ago, back when Marcia Tuohey was mayor, worked to develop a business park on Maple Ridge Road.
The site drew BMP and the former Trek. The Orleans EDA has worked in recent years to expand the business park, and those efforts are paying off with Pride Pak coming to town.
It can be a slow, expensive process, acquiring land, running infrastructure and access roads, mapping out wetlands, sometimes taking down decrepit buildings with asbestos, and trying to come out with the dollars to do it all.
The EDA deserves lots of praise for getting Pride Pak to the finish line and committing to Medina. The company has a site plan that is under review by the local Planning Boards. It expects to break ground next month and have the new building ready with 85 to 100 employees by next June.
Steve Karr (right), chief executive officer for Pride Pak Canada, last Tuesday meets village officials and others working on the company’s new 64,000-square-foot vegetable processing facility. He is pictured with Mauro LoRusso, vice president of finance for Pride Pak (center); Gabrielle Barone, vice president of business development for the Orleans Economic Development Agency (far left); and Marguerite Sherman, village trustee (second from left).
The EDA also has been working for several years to make other spots in Medina ready for businesses. The agency has about 300 acres that are “shovel ready” with the infrastructure in place.
Those efforts should pay dividends now that the first tenant has committed to the STAMP site just down the road in the Town of Alabama.
1366 Technologies Inc. of New Bedford, Mass., was joined by Gov. Andrew Cuomo last Wednesday at GCC in announcing an initial $100 million manufacturing plant at STAMP, which is about 1 mile south of the Orleans County line.
The company has revolutionized manufacturing silicon carbon wafers – considered “the heart” of solar panels. It looked at 300 sites for its new factory.
1366 Technologies expects to expand and make a $700 million investment in the area, starting with 600 full-time workers and growing to 1,000. The company will use about 100 acres of STAMP, a 1,250-acre site.
Genesee County Economic Development Center officials expect STAMP will draw more companies that that the first tenant is committed. The site will be a big user of the Medina sewer.
Steve Hyde, GCEDC chief executive officer and president, started working on STAMP a decade ago. Back then, the economic development focus was putting new business parks along the Thruway. Genesee County added sites in Batavia, Bergen and Pembroke.
Hyde started talking about a “mega-site” in the Town of Alabama. A lot of folks seemed skeptical. STAMP is about 10 times the size of a typical business park and it is located near a swamp with little infrastructure.
Hyde saw the example in Albany with the Luther Forest Technology Campus, a mega site that has attracted global nanotech leaders, investing billions.
Alabama in rural Genesee County was remote, a “quiet site” like Luther Forest for the delicate manufacturing in nanotechnology. It also is a huge site. The high-tech companies, like 1366 Technologies, need a lot of room to grow. The Thruway business parks don’t have the land.
Hyde and Genesee County officials spent a decade building support for the project in the community, the region and state. New York committed $33 million to bring the infrastructure to the site.
While working on STAMP, the Genesee EDC had major successes bringing two yogurt plants to Batavia, projects that helped the agency build credibility in the region and state, leading to more confidence in STAMP.
Steve Hyde and Jim Whipple, the leader of the Orleans EDA, often say, “Economic development isn’t a sprint, but a marathon.”
Gov. Andrew Cuomo urges communities to develop plans for shaping their future and be tenacious in implementing them.
Too even be in the economic development race, communities need to have an inventory of buildings and land that would be attractive to companies.
If they don’t have the assets in place, they need to work on getting them there, and they could be in for years of effort with lots of upfront costs before they see a nickel of return.
With governments cash-strapped, many municipal leaders may be inclined to pull back of economic development. Who wants to spend $50,000 cleaning up a brownfields site when there are so many other needs in the community? Who wants to build roads through farm fields, especially ones by a swamp?
Twenty years ago, when Vicki Pratt was leading the Orleans EDA, she pushed to create the Holley Business Park, putting together a game plan to extend the village’s low-cost electricity, and water, sewer, and roads to the site. That Business Park emerged with efforts from the Village of Holley, Town of Murray and Orleans County. It was a farmfield. Now it’s the home of Precision Packaging Products and other businesses.
Our communities should take stock of their assets for bringing in businesses, an honest appraisal of strengths and weaknesses.
There is still space at the Holley Business Park and lots of room for businesses in Medina. I worry about Albion. There is 6 acres available in the Albion Business Park by Butts Road. I don’t see a lot of other options.
There is the Route 98 corridor from 31A to the village, but there isn’t sewer for a manufacturer or processing plant. Albion officials should try to make that happen.
It makes sense because Albion has the capacity in its water and sewer plants to serve big users. Other communities don’t have the water or sewer to serve a big user.
Albion has the resource, but it needs options with vacant land with existing sewer for someone to build a Pride Pak-type facility.
I’d also look at the Point Breeze area and what could be done to make that a bigger draw. For years I’ve heard people talk about the need for a big investment in sewer infrastructure in that area. With STAMP bringing hundreds of high-paying jobs, the Point and all of the Orleans County lakefront could be in demand if there was more infrastructure in place.
The governor, while speaking at GCC last week, praised the efforts to prepare STAMP for the next generation of high-tech companies. Those businesses will shape the region for years and decades to come.
The governor said communities that want to succeed need to be laying the groundwork now. It’s a highly competitive environment as cities, regions and states vie to land manufacturers and businesses.
“The future isn’t just going to happen,” the governor said. “The future is what you make of it.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 October 2015 at 12:00 am
Ashley Wiegele is pictured in her senior photo.
ALBION – Ashley Wiegele was only a few days away from her high school graduation when she was in a boating accident on Lake Ontario on June 20, 2014.
Ashley, then 17, wasn’t able to participate in commencement. She was paralyzed from the chest down.
She is home in an apartment with her mother, and receives physical and occupational therapy. Ashley is hopeful she will one day walk again.
For right now, she is mostly limited to her apartment, which isn’t handicapped accessible.
Her friends and the staff at Albion Central School want to give her more freedom to be out in the community. They have organized a benefit on Oct. 24, with a goal to raise at least $10,000 to buy a van with a wheelchair for Ashley.
“Rock ‘n Roll for Ashley” will feature live music from several local musical acts from 3 to 10 p.m. at the Albion Elk’s Lodge, 428 West State St. in Albion. The event also includes a giant basket raffle, pumpkin decorating for kids and adults, and side raffles.
“Albion and Orleans County are great. When somebody is in need they’re there to help,” said Scott Green, a guidance counselor at the high school and also the event chairman.
Ashley’s injuries have required her mom to become her full-time caregiver, resulting in a loss of income for the family.
Ashley has been mostly confined to a bed at her apartment. She only leaves the house for doctor’s appointments, which requires calling for a special van to transport her, Green said.
“This is about her mobility, to allow her to get up and go,” Green said. “Having a van will give Ashley some independence, allowing her to do things that other people take for granted, like grocery shop with her mom, or visit the library, or catch a movie with friends.”
Solo performers at the Oct. 24 “Rock ‘n Roll for Ashley” include Gregg Albertson and Shannon Vanderlaan, who will open the event. They will be followed by several local bands including Delano Steele and Atomic Swamis.
Food will be available for purchase at the event. Tickets are $5 and can be purchased at the door or by calling (585) 944-0678.
There is also an on-line fund-raising page for Ashley at CrowdRise. Click here for more information.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 October 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Three new granite benches were added outside Hoag Library on Tuesday. The benches are the work of Brigden Memorials in Albion and were paid for with donations.
Connie Archbald paid for this bench in memory of her parents, Ed and Jean Archbald of Carlton.
This bench lists the members of the library board of trustees in 2013, including President Kevin Doherty, and members Jan Albanese, Linda Smith, Colleen McKenna, Mary Anne Braunbach, Dele Theodorakos, Terry Wilbert and Patricia West. Susan Rudnicky, the former library director, also is listed on the bench.
The classmates of Duann J. Zicari paid for this bench. (It was raining earlier today so some of the letters have water on them, making them look less crisp.)
HENRIETTA – State Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R-Batavia) will host a free community health fair, sponsored by the Assembly Minority Conference on Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the RIT Inn and Conference Center at 5257 West Henrietta Rd. in Henrietta.
The health fair will be aimed at informing seniors about services available to them and how they can best manage their health. Free services at the fair will include blood pressure and glucose screenings, hearing, laser and vision screenings, flu shots and organ and tissue donor registration information.
“I am excited to host this free community health fair to give back to our seniors and help them access a multitude of free services,” Hawley said. “Healthcare is becoming increasingly expensive, and unfortunately, many residents lose access to certain services when they retire. I encourage all of my constituents to take advantage of this free health fair, and I look forward to seeing them in attendance.”
