By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 19 March 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
This is generally an ugly time of the year. The snow melts and leaves a muddy wake. At the tail end of winter, the houses, front yards and community look like they have been through a battle.
Yesterday’s sunset felt like a gift. I don’t recall one more spectacular with the colors and clouds for dramatic effect. I stopped several times on my drive from Albion to Carlton. The top photo shows a field on Route 98 with a snow fence. This is south of Route 104.
The scenes are a reminder of the beauty of Orleans County.
My drive started on East Park Street, looking towards St. Joseph’s Catholic Church and the First Baptist Church.
I climbed the stairs on the Main Street lift bridge to get this photo.
This one was taken from the walkway on the bridge.
Here is one of the front of the lift bridge.
There were about a dozen deer together in the field on Route 98, south of 104. I zoomed in for this photo of six of them.
The waning sunset bathes Stillwater Road in Carlton.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 18 March 2015 at 3:08 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
CLARENDON – Firefighters from several departments are trying to bring a fire under control at 16323 Church St., a house owned by Stephen Beck and his family.
In the top photo, Chuck Prentice of Albion, left, and Joe Brooks of Clarendon run a hose closer to the house for interior firefighters.
Mr. Beck was home at the time of the fire at about 1 p.m., alerted by a smoke detector, Orleans County Deputy Amy Jenks said.
His dog was safely rescued by firefighters. The American Red Cross is on its way to assist the family.
Ron Meiers of the Holley Fire Department is operating the ladder truck.
Twice firefighters were inside and given an emergency evacuation notice due to the deteriorating conditions.
Firefighters from Clarendon, Holley, Albion, Kendall, Barre, Shelby, Brockport and Hamlin were on scene, and perhaps more.
Smoke from the fire filled the neighborhood near the Town Hall, just off Route 31A.
Chuck Prentice and several other firefighters are outside the house, getting ready to spray water on the fire.
Clarendon Fire Company President Bob Freida listens on his radio. He gave an order to evacuate the house as conditions deteriorated.
There is no cause given for the fire, which will be under investigation once the fire is brought under control.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 18 March 2015 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
ALBION – These horses are out getting a drink from a waterlogged pasture at the corner of Route 31 and Long Bridge Road in Albion late this afternoon. The horses are owned by the Bokman family.
They were out at about 5 p.m. when it was 32 degrees out. The temperature will fall to 16 degrees tonight, according to the National Weather Service in Buffalo.
Thursday is forecast for a high of 35 and a low of 22, followed by 39 and 31 on Friday, and 42 and 18 on Saturday, according to the Weather Service.
Voters approved construction project last December
HOLLEY – The State Education Department has approved an $8.9 million construction project that was backed by district voters last December by a 2-to-1 ratio.
The district is working with SEI Design and Turner Construction on the third and final phase of the Capital Project.
Holley voters approved the third phase of the district’s Capital Project on Dec. 9 in a vote of 175-72. The Phase III portion of the project encompasses replacement of rooftop HVAC units, replacement of radiators and water pumps, repairs around windows and doors to prevent leaking, replacement of flooring, installation of new tennis courts and playgrounds, and construction of a bus loop in the front of the elementary school to separate bus from vehicle traffic.
Once this project is complete, the district will have completed almost $40 million of capital construction work, using reserves to cover the local share of the projects.
“Our physical plant will become the most modern and up-to-date of any school district in the area,” said Robert D’Angelo, school district superintendent.
The Capital Project Phase III work is projected to begin this summer and will end during the 2016-17 school year. The replacement and upgrade of equipment and machinery at Holley will enable the district to become more energy efficient and save money on utility costs. The community will reap the benefits of playing on new tennis courts and playgrounds for years to come, the district said in a press release today.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 18 March 2015 at 12:00 am
Tuk, Covell re-elected in Lyndonville
Photo by Tom Rivers – Owen Toale, left, and Todd Bensley were elected to two-year terms on the Village Board today. The terms begin on April 1.
MEDINA – Todd Bensley and Owen Toale were elected to two-year terms to the Village Board today.
Only 311 voters came out, down from the nearly 1,500 that voted on Jan. 20 public referendum on the village dissolution.
Bensley led with 285 votes followed by 180 for Toale, who was a write-in candidate. Jeremy Hogan, co-owner of O’Brien’s, also was a write-in and received 98 votes.
The two-year terms will start on April 1. Bensley and Toale will replace Mark Irwin and Mark Kruzynski, who didn’t seek re-election.
Bensley and Toale were both outspoken against dissolution leading up to that vote. They believe cost savings can be achieved by working with the towns of Shelby and Ridgeway.
“I don’t think enough effort has been put in with the towns to find common ground and solutions to problems,” said Toale, a retired newspaper publisher and public transportation manager.
Toale has served on the Village Board before. He believes his management experience will be an asset to overseeing village services.
Bensley is a teacher at Medina. He teaches AP government and participation in government.
“I teach the kids about civics and about giving back to the community,” he said.
Bensley has been active in the village as historian, and a member of the Boxwood Cemetery Commission and Planning Board. He will have to give up his appointed positions on the Planning Board and Commission to become a Village Trustee. He expects he will also step back from historian to devote more time to village trustee.
Bensley said he will continue to promote Medina history and work on projects at the cemetery, which was recently named to the National Register of Historic Places.
He would like to see more economic development for the community, more attention on vacant houses, and more aid from the state for the village and a greater share of the local sales tax from the county.
The village also needs to work on its infrastructure. “That’s on everyone’s mind as we drive down the roads,” he said.
In Lyndonville, incumbents Charles Covell and James Tuk – both unopposed in today’s election – each received 15 votes and were re-elected.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 18 March 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers – Martin Mackenzie, new administrator at The Villages Health and Rehabilitation Center, is pictured with Buddy, a popular Golden Retriever at the nursing home.
ALBION – The change from a county-owned nursing home to a private ownership hasn’t been without glitches, some nursing home employees and the union president for the employees have told Orleans Hub.
After a difficult beginning – payroll mistakes, supply shortages, understaffing and unsatisfactory food – the union leader said the situation is improved.
The union credits Martin MacKenzie, the new administrator for The Villages of Orleans Health and Rehabilitation Center, for working hard to address issues raised by employees and residents.
“Martin is a godsend,” said Dylan Miller, president of the employees’ union. “He is definitely working to better the facility.”
MacKenzie started on Feb. 2. He worked the previous three years as administrator for the nursing home owned by Wyoming County in Warsaw. He remains a consultant there.
He was hired to lead the 120-bed nursing home in Albion, which is now owned by Comprehensive Healthcare Management Services LLC. That company paid $7.8 million for the nursing home and took ownership on Jan. 1.
The company is looking to renovate the lobby, a rehab/gym room, and some of the hallways on the western entrance that lead to the Board of Elections and the alternative education program for Albion Central School. There are also plans for new flooring and lighting, and expanded recreational programs including concerts.
MacKenzie said his top focus is care for residents, and that means he will work to make sure the employees have what they need to do their jobs.
MacKenzie is a registered nurse who has worked in the healthcare field for two decades. He started as personal care aide for patients with cerebral palsy in Niagara County.
He has pitched in at The Villages, helping to feed residents and walk them to activities. He has stayed late on bi-weekly payroll periods the past two paydays, making sure the paychecks were accurate.
“I think he does care,” Miller said. “I feel he is an advocate for the residents and the staff.”
Miller said the union still has issues with supplies – food, diapers, cleaning products – sometimes being in short supply.
He would like to see a full staff to make sure the place is clean and residents get timely care.
Miller and some employees interviewed said the nursing home lacked leadership the first month. It showed with dissatisfaction in food, payroll errors and piled up laundry. (Some workers didn’t get paid overtime and in some cases, straight time, issues that still need to be resolved, Miller said.)
A new food service provider was only offering one choice for meals, down from three choices from the previous operator. The new vendor is now offering two meal choices and will work to offer three.
MacKenzie said a new food supervisor is starting this week as well as a registered dietician. He is pushing to fill certified nursing assistant and licensed practical nurse positions.
This file photo shows the 120-bed nursing home in Albion, which was sold for $7.8 million to Comprehensive Healthcare Management Services LLC.
The facility had 148 employees under county ownership and now has 130. Miller said understaffing has made it a challenge for workers to get all of their work done. If they need to stay late for overtime the request is often not granted.
MacKenzie said filling the CNA and LPN positions is a priority.
“It’s the CNA that makes or breaks the place,” MacKenzie said during an interview on Tuesday.
He is pleased with the dedication from the employees, and the level of participation from residents and families. He established a Family Council and the first meeting had 28 people in attendance, up from the 6 to 8 that usually attend those meetings at the nursing home in Warsaw.
“The staff here has impressed me,” MacKenzie said. “It’s a top-notch crew. I’ve worked at a lot of places. This home has a very friendly atmosphere. I know that’s a cliché. Everybody here is polite, even the residents.”
MacKenzie said The Villages also is in good shape as a facility. The county spent about $10 million in a renovation and expansion in 2007.
Orleans, like many county-owned sites, began to see big deficits as government reimbursements failed to keep pace with the costs. MacKenzie said half of the county-owned homes have either been sold or closed in recent years, with more likely to sell, including in Genesee County.
“The heart of the story here is there are still 120 seniors being taken care of,” MacKenzie said.
He said he also is impressed with the principal owners at Comprehensive, who are looking to invest at the Albion facility.
“I believe they will have a premiere nursing home here,” he said. “I am part of a company that is growing.”
He acknowledged there is work to do at The Villages as the new ownership settles in. He expects many of the issues raised by the union to be resolved soon.
He said he keeps an open door to employees, residents and their families.
“My number one priority is the residents and the front-line caregiving staff,” he said. “Communication with families is a priority. I will not let them down.”
Photos by Tom Rivers
CLARENDON – Crews are on the scene of a house fire at 16323 Church St., Clarendon. The home is owned by Stephen Beck and appears to be a total loss.
There were no injuries during the fire and one dog was rescued from the blaze.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 18 March 2015 at 12:00 am
MEDINA – Village residents will go to the polls today from noon to 9 p.m. at the Senior Center at 615 West Ave.
Two trustee positions are open in Medina and both incumbents, Mark Irwin and Mark Kruzynski, aren’t seeking re-election.
Village Planning Board member and historian, Todd Bensley, was the only candidate to submit petitions to be on the ballot. Bensley, a Medina social studies teacher, is running under the independent “The Medina’s Future Party.”
Two other candidates are mounting write-in campaigns. Owen Toale is a former village trustee and a retired newspaper publisher. Jeremy Hogan is co-owner of O’Brien’s Tavern in Medina.
All three candidates have sent letters to the editor to the Orleans Hub. Click here to see the letters.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 17 March 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers – This former one-room schoolhouse on Gaines Basin Road, just north of the Erie Canal, has been largely abandoned since decentralization in the mid-1940s. A Gaines resident would like to see the building be saved and preserved for years to come.
GAINES – A building that has been vacant since about World War II could get new life through the efforts of local preservationists.
Gaines resident Al Capurso is leading the effort to save, stabilize and seek resources for a former cobblestone schoolhouse on Gaines Basin Road, just north of the Erie Canal.
The Orleans County Historical Association will discuss efforts to preserve Gaines Basin District No. 2. The association meets 2 p.m. Thursday at Hoag Library. The public is welcome to attend and share ideas for the building.
“It is sitting there, just waiting for us to take care of it,” Capurso said about the building.
The schoolhouse was built in 1832. A log cabin schoolhouse preceded that structure at the site. Capurso said some of the early pioneers in the Albion and Gaines area attended the school. Caroline Phipps was one of the teachers at the log cabin. It’s where she got her start as a teacher.
She would later start a women’s academy, the Phipps Union Seminary, in Albion. That school was located where the County Clerk’s Building now stands next to the courthouse.
There is an effort to have a historical marker outside the building and also to get the site listed on the state and national registers of historic places.
Capurso would like to have a historical marker by the cobblestone building that notes the significance of the site as a school. He wants the Orleans County Historical Association, where he is a member, to apply for a grant from the Pomeroy Foundation for the marker. That foundation funded a marker in Clarendon for Hillside Cemetery last year.
Capurso has also recruited help from Melissa Ierlan and Erin Anheier, members of the Clarendon Historical Society, to help get the cobblestone schoolhouse on the state and national registers of historic places. Anheier wrote successful applications for several sites in Clarendon and in the Brockport area, helping the properties to be listed and making them eligible for tax credits for renovations and preservation efforts.
Capurso said community members will also be needed to help with some of the work to make the building usable as a possible museum, display area and meeting place, perhaps for the Orleans County Historical Association.
“Saving the building will be a longer term effort with human power,” Capurso said.
