YMCA will close at 2 p.m.
MEDINA – The Orleans County YMCA will close at 2 p.m. due to the deteriorating weather conditions. All evening sports leagues are also cancelled at the Y on Pearl Street.
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Oak Orchard Health will close 4 sites at noon
Due to the inclement weather, Oak Orchard Health will close its health care sites at noon in Albion, Lyndonville, Brockport and Warsaw in Wyoming County.
The county remains under a travel advisory and a blizzard warning is in effect until 2 a.m. The National Weather Service says 10 to 16 inches of snow could fall today and overnight.
All Orleans libraries will close today
With a travel advisory in effect and the snow coming down fast and furious, Lee-Whedon Memorial Library in Medina is taking an unusual step in closing at 2 p.m. today.
“We try to stay open but there are times when prudence must reign,” said Catherine Cooper, library director.
Lee-Whedon is usually open until 8 p.m. on Wednesdays. Other libraries in Orleans County didn’t open today, including Hoag Library in Albion and Community Free Library in Holley. The Yates Community Library in Lyndonville is closed on Wednesdays.
Cooper said most of the libraries in the three-county NIOGA system are closed today.
County offices will be closed Wednesday
Employees should report to jail, nursing home, public safety
ALBION – Orleans County offices will be closed on Wednesday and all nonessential personnel are directed to stay home, Legislature Chairman David Callard decided tonight.
Employees are to report at the jail, nursing home, highway department and for public safety jobs with the Sheriff’s Department and dispatch.
The county has closed the County Administration Building, Mental Health Building, Legislative Office and Clerk’s Building for Wednesday. This is the first time the offices have closed since the storm in October 2006, said Chuck Nesbitt, the county chief administrative officer.
Orleans is under a blizzard warning for Wednesday.
Storm warning upgraded to ‘Blizzard’
Five area schools will be closed on Wednesday
Update: Albion Central is closed on Wednesday.
Holley, Kendall, Lyndonville and Medina school districts have cancelled classes and activities on Wednesday due to the impending severe weather.
The National Weather Service has upgraded the Winter Storm Warning for Orleans and surrounding counties to a Blizzard Warning, in effect from 2 a.m. on Wednesday until 2 a.m. on Thursday.
The storm may result in accumulations of 9 to 17 inches with wind gusts up to 45 mph creating periods of whiteout conditions.
The National Weather Service warns, “Conditions will rapidly deteriorate Wednesday morning with relatively light snow becoming heavy by late morning. The combination of heavy snow and blowing snow will make travel extremely difficult to nearly impossible Wednesday afternoon into Wednesday evening. Visibility will be reduced to near-zero at times with deep snow cover on roadways during the peak of the storm along with significant blowing and drifting of snow.”
2 schools already close for Wednesday
Two school districts announced this evening they were closing on Wednesday with the threat of a major snowstorm.
Orleans County is expected to get about a foot of snow on Wednesday. Both Holley and Kendall schools will be closed.
In addition, Albion town court has been cancelled for Wednesday.
Orleans Hub will update the list of closings if we get more from school officials.
Schumer says Oak Orchard Harbor will be dredged by June 15
File photo by Tom Rivers – A boat passes through the Oak orchard Harbor last summer. Sediment buildup in the channel has made it difficult for larger boats to use the harbor.
U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced today that Oak Orchard Harbor will receive a large maintenance dredge this year, valued at $420,000 and funded through the Sandy Supplemental Appropriations bill.
Schumer met with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Buffalo District Director LTC Beaudoin who confirmed the USACE’s plans and estimated the dredge is scheduled to be completed by around June 15. Schumer has long fought for Oak Orchard Harbor to be dredged, especially since Superstorm Sandy caused sediment damage to the harbor, and has specifically pushed for Sandy Supplemental funds to be used for dredging.
Schumer said this new dredge will allow recreational traffic to move more efficiently and support the charter fishing industry in the area, which generates approximately $269,000 in annual income.
“When it comes to dredging our ports, there is no time to waste, which is why I’ve kept the pressure on the Army Corps to accomplish this Oak Orchard dredging, especially since Superstorm Sandy,” Schumer said. “The timeline to finish dredging by mid-June is great news and it means we will soon get Oak Orchard Harbor moving full steam ahead – which will be an enormous boost this summer to the regional economy, family boaters and fishing charters.”
Oak Orchard Harbor is located on the southern shore of Lake Ontario at the mouth of Oak Orchard Creek. It supports 33 fishing charters and is in need of dredging.
Since Superstorm Sandy left sediment damage, the need for a maintenance dredge has increased. Schumer explained that using money from the Sandy Supplemental Fund will help alleviate the problems posed by the current shallowness of the harbor and return Oak Orchard Harbor to a better-functioning depth.
Storm may bring a foot of snow on Wednesday
The area will be hit with a major dumping of snow on Wednesday, with 10 to 17 inches in the forecast, according to the National Weather Service.
It has issued a Winter Storm Warning for Orleans and several counties, a warning that is in effect from 2 a.m. Wednesday to 2 a.m. Thursday.
The storm will bring a mix of heavy snow and blowing snow. Northeast winds at 25 to 35 miles per hour, with gusts up to 45 MPH, will create near whiteout conditions at times, the Weather Service advised.
“The combination of heavy snow and blowing snow will result in severe winter travel conditions,” the Weather Service said. “Driving will become extremely difficult or even nearly impossible at times.”
Teachers and principal will rock at Lyndonville talent show
‘Common Core’ will entertain at intermission, playing AC/DC, Johnny Cash and more
Photo by Tom Rivers – The “Common Core” band of Lyndonville teachers and a principal gets together Monday. Pictured from left include Brian Lang on guitar, Jason Wilhelm as lead singer and guitar, Kristina Best on drums and Aaron Slack on guitar. John Bailey is also part of the group.
LYNDONVILLE – The annual talent show at Lyndonville Central School is a much-anticipated event, with several hundred people packing into the school’s Stroyan Auditorium.
The event, in the past, has included teachers, but that participation had tapered off in recent years. However, the teachers will be back on stage for Thursday’s talent show, and they’ll be back in a big way.
Four teachers plus Middle/High School Principal Dr. Aaron Slack will perform in a rock band, “Common Core.” The band will make its debut and play about 10 songs during intermission, and the audience will hear a variety of music from hard-rocking AC/DC to contemporary Christian.
The band is led by lead singer and rhythm guitarist Jason Wilhelm, who is also the district’s information technology director. He is part of a U2 cover band.
“I think when the kids see us up on the stage it will excite them to get more involved in the school,” Wilhelm said.
The Lyndonville band will also perform songs by Tom Petty, Johnny Cash, Imagine Dragons, and Darius Rucker.
Courtesy of Lyndonville Central School – This doctored poster hangs in the Lyndonville community promoting a performance by Common Core, which includes from left: PE and health teacher Brian Lang, high school band teacher Kristina Best, school district IT director Jason Wilhelm, elementary music teacher John Bailey and middle/high school principal Dr. Aaron Slack.
Wilhelm and Slack are joined in “Common Core” by elementary physical education and health teacher Brian Lang, high school band teacher Kristina Best, and elementary music teacher John Bailey. The teachers are busy leading extracurricular programs at Lyndonville, including coaching sports and playing in the high school musical. Slack also has been busy working on the district’s budget.
The busy schedules have made it a challenge for the band to practice for Thursday’s show. But they have found time. After a final rehearsal on Wednesday, Slack said the group will be ready.
“We want to show students that they can pursue musicianship when they are older,” said Slack, who is a freelance guitar player for different bands.
Lang, the PE teacher, also hopes the band’s willingness to perform for a big crowd will encourage students to try more activities in school, even ones that are outside their comfort zones.
“We hope the kids will see us in a different way outside of normal roles at school,” Lang said. “I think we might be able to motivate the kids to be more involved.”
“Common Core” was picked as a name for the band. That is also the name for the state’s new standardized testing program.
The talent show begins at 7 p.m. and includes 15 student acts that include dancing, singing, tumbling and cheerleading, and various musical ensembles. Tickets are available at the door. Proceeds will go towards the junior/senior prom.
Hoag will have a new library director
File photo by Tom Rivers – The Hoag Library opened in July 2012, more than doubling the space from the previous library.
ALBION – After 15 years of leading Albion’s public library, Susan Rudnicky is no longer director of the center on Main Street.
The Swan Library Association board of trustees voted tonight to end Rudnicky’s tenure. The board named a trustee, Terry Wilbert, to serve as temporary library administrator during the search process for a new leader. Wilbert will take a leave of absence from the board.
Rudnicky led the organization during its relocation from a 6,000-square-foot converted home on North Main Street to a 14,600-square-foot new building that opened in July 2012. She is also president of the Cobblestone Society Museum’s board of directors.
Susan Rudnicky
“This transition is not about good or bad, or about the past, but clearly reflects the Trustees’ determination to match skill sets with program needs,” Board President Kevin Doherty said in an email announcing the change in leadership. “We have a breath-taking new facility, constructed with the support of an over $1 million capital campaign from this community, and as Trustees, we have a responsibility to maximize the community value of the Hoag Library.”
Wilbert, a retired guidance counselor and school administrator, worked in the Albion, Pal-Mac and Livingston Manor School Districts, and also at the Ulster County BOCES and the Rochester Urban League. He has been a soccer coach for the Oakfield-Alabama Central School and a number of community clubs. Wilbert is a candidate for the Village Board in the March 18 election.
Doherty said a search for a new director will begin immediately and will involve community members. He said he expects there will be a good pool candidates and a new director will be picked “in a reasonable time.”
“There may be additional re-alignments of duties plus improved offerings and services in the coming year,” he said.
County Legislature meeting cancelled due to weather on Wednesday
ALBION – With blizzard-like conditions in the forecast for Wednesday, the County Legislature meeting has been cancelled. It had been scheduled for 4:30 p.m. and will be rescheduled, Legislature Clerk Nadine Hanlon advised tonight.
County officials have also closed the county office building, Clerk’s Building, and Mental Health Building. The jail, nursing home, highway department and public safety services will be open.
Albion Town Justice Kevin Howard also has closed court for Wednesday due to the weather conditions.
Medina Dissolution Committee moves meeting to Friday
MEDINA – A committee that was scheduled to meet on Wednesday morning is pushing back the session until Friday to avoid a snowstorm that is forecast to hit tomorrow.
The Medina Dissolution Committee was to meet at 8 a.m. on Wednesday. It will now meet on Friday at 8 a.m. The committee expects to have projected tax impacts for the village and the towns of Shelby and Ridgeway in a number of scenarios for the dissolution of the village and how the current services could be provided.
The meeting will be at City Hall. The committee is close to accepting a final report on the dissolution. It has been working with a consultant, the Center for Governmental Research in Rochester. The committee on Friday may schedule a public hearing for the residents to comment on the proposal.
The Village Board also is expected to have its own public meetings and hearings on a dissolution plan, which ultimately will be decided in a public referendum by village residents.
Lyndonville student picked among top 100 for WNY
Abigail Feldman
LYNDONVILLE – A Lyndonville student has been named to a list of the top 100 high school seniors in the eight-county Western New York region.
Business First of Buffalo announced Abigail Feldman will receive Special Mention honors for the 2014 All-Western New York Academic Team. An eight-member selection committee put Feldman on the list.
Business First’s Academic Team puts the spotlight students who pursue excellence both in and out of the classroom.
Feldman in January won the Distinguished Woman of New York during a competition at SUNY Albany. She advances to the national competition in June in Mobile, Ala.
Girls graduate from private school in Albion in 1858
By Bill Lattin
Orleans County Historian
ALBION – This image is an ambrotype, which is a positive picture made of a photographic negative on glass backed by a black surface.
It shows the graduating class of girls in 1858 from Phipps Union Female Seminary in Albion. Caroline Phipps Achilles operated this private school for girls from 1833 to 1874. It was located on the Courthouse Square and removed in 1882 when the county purchased it and built the County Clerks Office on the site.
Adelaide Murdock Pells from Ridgeway is in the top row, fourth from left. Thanks to Nelda Callard for the donation of this picture to the Orleans County Department of History.
Lynn-Ette farm buys Harbor Pointe golf course
Most of land likely will be converted to farmland
Provided photos – Lynn-Ette and Sons on Friday closed on a deal to buy Harbor Pointe Country Club on Route 98 in Carlton.
Some of the trees are being cleared.
WATERPORT – A golf course that opened 50 years ago on Route 98 in Carlton has been purchased by a local farm, which will discontinue the site as a golf venue.
Lynn-Ette and Sons closed on a deal Friday to acquire Harbor Pointe Country Club from the Cardone family. The Cardones owned and operated the course since June 1, 1981. The course opened in 1964 as the Oak Orchard Country Club.
The course had several owners before the Cardones bought it in 1981.
“It was a wonderful business to operate,” said Joe Cardone. “My mother and father made a lot of close friends. We appreciate their business and friendships.”
The golf business has struggled in the region in recent years, due to the economy and increased competition with many golf courses, Cardone said.
“There has been a drop off in golf play,” he said. “It’s also an indication of the economic times in Orleans County.”
As part of the deal, Lynn-Ette purchased 93 acres on the east side of Route 98 that have been farmed. The local farm also bought the 100-plus acres that is the golf course.
The land won’t be orchards. The farm is cleaning up the property and clearing some trees. It will need to do soil tests to determine a good crop match for the ground.
The farm’s owners weren’t available to comment today, but an employee said Lynn-Ette will likely keep the existing buildings. The farm is still evaluating how it wants to use the site.
Cardone said he was happy to have a local buyer – Lynn Roberts and his family – pursue the property.
“We were thankful we were able to work something out with the Roberts family,” Cardone said. “They’re a wonderful family and they’re working hard down there.”
