By Bill Lattin, Orleans County Historian
ALBION – Our photo illustrates a form of skiing that was popular in the 1920s. We do not advise anyone to attempt this dangerous sport.
Here we see the skier holding on to a tow rope, which is attached to the auto. We believe this photo was taken on Gaines Basin Road, looking north in the town of Albion between Allen and Phipps roads.
Photo by Tom Rivers – Nora the cat was perched on top of a telephone pole with numerous wires and a transformer for about three days before being rescued on Saturday morning in Waterport.
WATERPORT – If a cat is stuck in a tree in Carlton, residents are welcome to call the Carlton Volunteer Fire Company.
Firefighters will try to get the cat as long as the firefighters aren’t in a dangerous situation, Carlton Fire Company President Jim Tabor said.
“In most situations would be more than happy to rescue the cat,” he said. “But when there are live power lines involved we just can’t put our people in jeopardy.”
Some community were upset when Nora, a cat owned by Venita Nauden, was stuck on top of telephone pole in the freezing cold for nearly three days. Carlton firefighters declined to try the rescue. The pole had numerous wires and a transformer attached to it.
“We are not equipped to deal with live power lines regardless of the situation,” Tabor said. “If someone has a motor vehicle accident and there are live power lines involved, we would still need the power company to cut the power before we can perform any life-saving measures.”
Tabor has volunteered in the fire service for 25 years. He doesn’t recall Carlton firefighters rescuing cats, but he said the group would happily try as long as there aren’t power lines in the way.
Jeremy Arnold, owner of JG Tree Service in Holley, uses a bucket truck with a 60-foot-ladder to get to that cat.
National Grid also was contacted by one of Nauden’s neighbors to help get the cat, but the company allegedly declined. Company spokesman Steve Brady said he wasn’t aware of the situation on East Avenue in Waterport.
“I’m not sure what happened in this case, but we have rescued an assortment of animals from our facilities (including, recently, someone’s pet lizard),” Brady wrote in an email. “I can’t say we will rescue every animal or respond to every call – a lot will depend on crew availability, of course – be we have responded to such requests.”
Brady believes time is often the best course for getting an animal to come down.
“We often find that when an animal gets hungry enough, they will find their way back down the pole,” he said. “I know that’s of little solace to the pet owner but it would be quite unusual for animal to be able to climb up and not be able to climb down.”
One of Nauden’s neighbors used a ladder on Friday and nearly got to the top of the pole to get the cat, but Nora wouldn’t get close enough to jump into a basket.
Jeremy Arnold, owner of a tree service in Holley, arrived Saturday with a bucket truck with a 60-foot-ladder. He was able to scoop up the cat and reunite it with its owner.
MEDINA Andrew Meier is seeking re-election to village mayor on March 18, and he hopes to work towards a dissolution of the village which he ultimately said would reduce the costs of local government and ensure a brighter future for Medina.
Today is the first day candidates can pick up petitions for the election. They have until Feb. 11 to submit petitions signed by at least 100 village eligible voters.
Meier was first elected in March 2012, running on the Village Party with David Barhite and Pat Crowley. Their trustee positions are also up for election in March.
Meier, 34, is a local attorney and entrepreneur. He was thrust into the mayor’s position on Sept. 11, 2011 when former mayor Adam Tabelski resigned due to an impending deployment with the U.S. Army.
Meier sees a downtown in the midst of a rebirth. But the neighborhoods need revitalization and more investment is needed.
“There is unfinished work,” he said about his decision to run.
He has been railing against the unfairness in local tax rates and distribution of costs for providing services. He believes the villages bear an unfair burden. The village tax rate of $16.45 per $1,000 of assessed property is far more than outside the village in the towns of Shelby and Ridgeway. The village has the added burden of paying town tax rates as well.
Meier may be the only mayor in Orleans County history who has worked for the elimination of his office. That’s what would happen with a village dissolution, if the village government went away and the two towns then provided services in the village.
In that scenario, Meier expects the tax rates would be nearly uniform, which would take away the incentive for people to own property outside the village where the taxes are far cheaper.
A dissolution committee led by Don Colquhoun, the retired director of the Arc of Orleans County, expects to receive a report from a consultant by Jan. 23. The document from the Center for Governmental Research will provide some scenarios for the dissolution and how services could be shifted to the towns.
“We’re working on answering all of the questions in the process,” Meier said.
There will be several public meetings about the dissolution plan as it moves forward. Village residents will have to approve the dissolution in a public referendum for it to proceed. The two towns are not obligated to follow a plan put together by the village and a committee is working on the issue.
Ridgeway and Shelby leaders say if the dissolution is approved, special taxing districts would likely be created for police, fire and other services.
They performed many good deeds, often when not asked and at no gain to themselves. Orleans Hub would like to recognize some outstanding citizens from 2013.
Before he robbed the Bank of America in Albion, Jeremy Rothmund of Rochester twice got away with similar crimes in the town of Greece. His girlfriend had a getaway car near the banks and Rothmund escaped.
But Rothmund didn’t get away on July 2 when he robbed a bank in Albion. An Albion businessman pulled up to the drive-through at about 4 p.m. that day, ready to deposit a check at the Bank of America.
He looked inside the bank window and saw a man wearing sunglasses with a hat on, and an ace bandage wrapped around his chin and neck. The teller indicated to the drive-through customer that the bank was being robbed.
The local merchant then hopped out of his car, leaving it running in the drive-through. He went towards the front door of the bank and the robber said he had a bomb and thrust a box covered in wires into the merchant’s face, telling him, “I don’t care if we both die and go to Hell.”
The businessman, who has requested anonymity, backed off. “I’m not an Arnold Schwarzenegger, and I could tell he was under the influence of something,” the merchant told the Orleans Hub on July 3.
Although he backed off, the businessman knew the robber was likely fleeing to a getaway car. So the merchant followed the robber behind the bank and along the railroad tracks. He watched the robber tear off his mask and get into a blue Ford Focus. The merchant then relayed that description to police.
Ten minutes later Holley police stopped the car at Woodside Court, an apartment complex off Route 31 on the west side of the village.
Rothmund and his girlfriend Elyse A. Hoffer, 22 have both pleaded guilty. Rothmund faces up to 15 years in state prison.
“I just wanted to help and be a good citizen and a Good Samaritan,” said the resident. “It all happened so fast.”
Photos by Tom Rivers – Roger LaMont is chairman of the New York Apple Growers LLC, a group of farmers that worked with Cornell to grow and market new apple varieties.
Apples are big business in Orleans County. We’re New York’s second-leading apple county behind only Wayne County.
The future of the industry is brighter, and a local grower played a key role in two new apple varieties reaching the market this year. In August, Cornell University and the New York Apple Association unveiled SnapDragon and RubyFrost.
Roger LaMont, an Albion apple grower, served as chairman of a group that formed to grow and market the apples. The new varieties are exclusive to New York growers. They won’t be released to growers in other states, which will give growers in the Empire State an edge. That should lead to bigger returns for the farmers, making their farms stronger financially.
LaMont is nearing retirement. He took the lead on the initiative, wanting to set up the industry for a more viable future. That should make these farms key contributors to the county’s economy for years to come.
Jenn Suhr competes in a pole vaulting competition May 31 at the White Birch Golf Course in Lyndonville.
Jenn Suhr, the Gold Medal-winning pole vaulter, is married to Lyndonville native Rick Suhr, who is also her coach. The couple has a home in Kendall.
Mrs. Suhr is thankful for the support of her fans in Western New York, but she said many of them have never seen pole vaulting live. When Suhr was prepping for the world championships in August (where she won the silver medal), she helped orchestrate three sanctioned vaulting competitions in Lyndonville, using the White Birch Golf Course for the meets. Her brother-in-law Harold Suhr owns the course. He used the second fairway as a runway for three vault competitions between May 31 and July 4.
Suhr cleared the top outdoor height in the world when she went over 16 feet, 1 inch at the White Birch, giving the course a distinction normally reserved for major sporting arenas in the world.
“We wanted to bring the pole vault out here so people don’t have to travel and spend tons of money to see it,” Suhr said.
The old Stone Store building, currently an eyesore at the corner of routes 31A and 237 in Clarendon, is being turned into an attractive asset for the town.
The old Stone Store, once a key focal point to community life in Clarendon, had fallen into disrepair and was considered an eyesore. Many residents two years ago were calling for the building to be torn down.
But one local resident convinced the Town Board to call off the wrecking ball. Erin Anheier, chairwoman of the Old Stone Store Preservation Committee, mobilized volunteers to clean up the property and find a buyer for the site, which dates back to 1836.
She helped get the site on the National Register of Historic Places. She also helped get Hillside Cemetery in Holley on that list this past year, designations that bring prestige and the prospect of grants for building improvements.
Joe and Sue Fertitta are rehabbing the Stone Store. They are gutting and renovating the building, and the couple plans to put on a front porch to match the building’s original look. They expect to have the project done next summer, with a tenant living in the upstairs and the first floor available for offices.
“This shows it can be done,” Anheier said. “These buildings can be saved.”
This home at 204 West Center St., Medina, was one of 17 houses in the village to receive matching funds for improvements through a grant administered by the Orleans County Chamber of Commerce. The $200,000 grant also provided money to 11 businesses for façade and sign upgrades.
It has been a busy year for painters in Medina. An anonymous donor offered matching funds for people who painted their houses or worked on other beautification efforts.
Contractors worked on 28 properties in all as part of $200,000 in matching grants. The grants will continue in 2014. The Orleans County Chamber of Commerce is administering the program.
“It’s just been amazing,” said Kathy Blackburn, Chamber executive director. “We are thrilled with the work that has been done. It’s encouraged others to work on their properties as well.”
The grant in its first year funded projects at 17 homes and 11 businesses. The initiative is aimed to boost the curb-side appeal of the community, and make needed improvements more affordable for property owners. The money has given many neighborhoods a lift.
Adolf Genter, a member of the Concerned Citizens of Orleans County, protests the sale of the county nursing home.
These are apathetic times when it comes to pubic participation in civic affairs. Voter turnout is low. Membership is way down in service clubs, and many political candidates run unopposed.
Gary Kent helped reverse that trend in Orleans County, leading hundreds of residents in a protest against the sale of the county nursing home. Many will say Kent lost the fight because the sale will likely be approved early in 2014 and he failed to be elected to the County Legislature. (Kent was one of six candidates to try to unseat the Republican-endorsed candidates, the most opposition the GOP has faced for the Legislature since it formed in 1980.)
But Kent, a retired social studies teacher, inspired a sustained protest from people of all political parties against the county’s move to sell The Villages of Orleans.
They stood in the rain outside Legislature meetings. They carried petitions. They filed lawsuits. The Concerned Citizens raised money at spaghetti dinners. They tried every route possible in voicing their opposition to the sale. That’s what good citizens do: They engage in the process.
Gia Arnold speaks at a rally against the SAFE Act in April outside the Orleans County Courthouse.
A new movement took off this year, and it was led by a mother of three young children. Gia Arnold of Holley helped create the New York Revolution, a group opposed to the SAFE Act. The group was born after the State Legislature and Gov. Cuomo in January passed the SAFE Act, legislation that NY Revolution saw as an infringement on the Second Amendment rights.
The group has a following state-wide but it may be it’s most powerful in Orleans County. Arnold attended numerous community events and municipal board meetings, and swayed every elected board at the village, town and county level to pass resolutions opposing the SAFE Act. A top goal is unseating Cuomo as governor in November 2014.
Arnold planned a rally in April attended by about 200 people outside the County Courthouse.
“It’s not just a guns issue,” she said. “It’s more of a rights issue. They are taking away our freedoms.”
Photos by Tom Rivers – Jodi Gaines answers questions from the media on Sept. 30, when she announced Claims Recovery Financial Services would be actively recruiting to fill 150 more positions in Albion.
You hear it a lot around here: No jobs for young people so they leave after high school or college in search for more opportunity. Our community is far poorer for it.
One local woman has proven a major force combating the flight of area residents by providing employment in their backyard. Jodi Gaines in a decade has built a company to 600 workers with plans to add 150 more in Albion, with possibly more expansion in the future.
Gaines, chief executive officer and co-owner of Claims Recovery Financial Services, is leading the company in a major growth spurt at a time when Orleans County desperately needs it. We have one of the highest unemployment rates in the state.
This year CRFS outgrew its space in Albion and expanded into a site in Medina at the Olde Pickle Factory. The company had the Albion and Medina sites, and added about 80 people in San Antonio, Texas. CRFS was still pinched for room.
In June, JP Morgan Chase announced it would close its Albion site in September, and would lay off 413 workers, leaving a 60,000-square-foot facility to sit empty in a prominent location in the village. The news was a major blow to the community’s psyche.
Gaines saw an opportunity in the Chase site. In September, she announced she was moving the entire Orleans County operation to Chase building and would actively recruit 150 more workers.
“CRFS is primed to do more for Orleans County than ever before,” Gaines said during a Sept. 30 press conference. “We started in Orleans County. We’re staying in Orleans County and the best is yet to come.”
The announcement had the added good news that Roger Hungerford, owner of the Olde Pickle Factory, was buying the site. He immediately set about painting the big building and making other renovations.
“We’re getting local ownership with the building and someone who will invest in the property,” Albion Mayor Dean Theodorakos said.
For the past 25 years the location has employed hundreds of people in the banking industry, first at Anchor Savings Bank, followed by Dime Bank, North American Mortgage Corporation, Washington Mutual and then Chase.
About every five years one of the banking companies was bought by a bigger bank in a very volatile industry. That always created uncertainty and worry in Albion that the new owners would eliminate the Orleans workforce through a consolidation.
Our Congressional representatives, notably former Congressman John LaFalce and more recently U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, used their clout on banking committees to help keep the banking jobs in Albion.
With a local woman running a locally based company, the community can breathe a little easier that Gaines won’t suddenly spring some bad news on us that she is taking her workforce out of state.
Gaines started as a claims clerk in 1989 for the former Anchor Savings Bank in Albion. She stayed in that department as ownership of the facility changed to Dime Bank and the North American Mortgage Company and then to Washington Mutual. WaMu phased out the claims department in 2002.
Gaines was offered a different job to stay with WaMu, but she opted to start her own company in claims, helping banks and investors to recover money with foreclosed properties.
She started the new venture from her kitchen table in Albion. That was December 2002. She had two employees. The company quickly grew, mastering regulations in all 50 states and taking on more clients.
Her employees work with attorneys, county clerks, utility companies and investors from all over the country. CRFS works to recover past-due interest, unpaid principal, unpaid taxes and unpaid insurance on houses.
“This organization prides itself on results and quality each and every day,” Gaines said. “The work ethic of the CRFS managers and employees is why we are now poised for such tremendous growth.”
Gaines was active in the Albion youth soccer program for many years with her son, once serving as a league commissioner. She remains active on the board of directors for the Orleans County United Way.
She is the Orleans Hub’s 2013 “Person of the Year.”
Joe Allen
LOUISVILLE, Ky. An Albion native was killed early Saturday morning after he was hit by a taxi cab while walking down the side of the road.
Joseph Allen, 26, graduated from Albion in 2005 and then joined the military, serving four years with the Navy before returning to Albion in 2009.
He was killed just before 1:30 a.m. on Dixie Highway just north of Katherine Station Road in Louisville.
“Of course we haven’t ruled out any factors at this point,” Louisville Metro Police Department spokesman Dwight Mitchell told WLKY in Louisville. “Our investigators are investigating. Hopefully we’ll have more information once the investigation is complete.”
Allen of West Point, Ky., was pronounced dead at the scene. He is the son of Dave Allen, a former reporter for The Journal-Register and a lawyer in Medina. Allen is now a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army and lives in Fort Knox, Ky.
Joe’s mother, Carmela Allen, lives in Waterport and his sister, Patricia McDonald, is in Medina.
Mr. Allen, in a Facebook message this morning, said his son visited him in March and liked the area and decided to stay. He was working in maintenance at a local factory.
The family will receive friends at the Christopher Mitchell Funeral Homes, Inc., 21 W. Ave., Albion, on Friday from 5 to 8 p.m., where prayers will be said Saturday at 9:30 a.m. followed by his Mass of Christian Burial at Holy Family Parish/St. Joseph’s Church at 10 a.m. Burial will be in St. Joseph’s Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Veterans Outreach Center, 459 South Ave., Rochester NY 14620.
ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature will meet Thursday during the group’s annual organizational meeting. The seven-member body will choose its chairman and vice chairman.
Three new members – Fred Miller of Albion, Ken DeRoller of Kendall and John DeFilipps of Clarendon – will all be sworn in and will take the oaths of office.
David Callard has been the Legislature chairman the past four years. He is expected to continue in that position. The Legislature is guaranteed to have a new vice chairman because George Bower of Holley retired as a legislator after 24 years.
DeFilipps was elected to take Bower’s spot on the Legislature. DeFilipps has been a member of the Clarendon Town Board for the past 12 years.
He owned a convenience store and gas station in Clarendon for 10 years before joining the Town Board. He worked 28 years at General Motors in Rochester before retiring six years ago. He recently helped develop the Red Rock Ponds RV Resort in Murray.
DeRoller was elected to succeed Ken Rush of Carlton, who didn’t seek re-election after 14 years in a district that includes the towns of Carlton, Kendall and Murray, as well as the village of Holley.
DeRoller worked 38 years at Kodak, retiring 11 years ago in the information technology department as a business analyst. DeRoller also worked as Kendall’s town assessor and served 25 years on the Town Planning Board, including 15 years as chairman.
He has been a member of the Orleans Economic Development Agency the past 10 years. He also helped shape a waterfront development plan in 2002 for the towns of Yates, Carlton and Kendall, a project that helped those communities secure grants.
Miller will be the first Democrat on the Legislature since Gary Kent was last on the Legislature four years ago. Miller has been an Albion village trustee the past five years. He resigned from the position to become a legislator. He also runs Family Hardware in downtown Albion, a business he has owned since 1986.
Thursday’s meeting begins at 4:30 p.m. in the legislative chambers of the County Clerks’ Building, 3 South Main St.
Mother Nature is making her presence felt as 2013 draws to a close. The National Weather Service is forecasting 3 to 5 inches of snow on New Year’s Eve in Orleans County.
The NWS in Buffalo issued a lake effect snow advisory for both Orleans and Niagara counties with the snow expected to fall between 4 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Dec. 31. The snow will result in low visibility and will make driving more precarious.
“In lake effect snow the weather can vary from locally heavy snow in narrow bands to clear skies just a few miles away,” the NWS stated. “If you will be traveling across the region be prepared for rapid changes in road and visibility conditions.”
ALBION Orleans County officials will celebrate the groundbreaking for its new radio and emergency communications system with a 3 p.m. ceremony on Jan. 15 at the Emergency Management Office, 14064 West County House Rd.
The county is building three new radio towers as part of $7.1 million upgrade to the county’s emergency communications system. One will be next to the EMO in Albion.
Another one will be on land owned by the town of Clarendon near its highway garage off Route 31A, and the other will be next to the Medina water tank on Route 31A. Medina and Clarendon both agreed to lease the land to the county at no cost.
Orleans County approved a $5 million deal last year with the Harris Corporation to rebuild the county’s emergency communications systems. Harris is reprogramming 1,100 portable radios and upgrading the dispatch center.
The county’s radio system was last overhauled in 1992. Orleans currently has one transmission tower on Countyhouse Road. That’s about 10 miles from the eastern and western ends of the county. Firefighters, police officers, and other first responders for years have complained that the county’s current radio system is often unreliable, particularly on the edges of the county.
The county was awarded a $2 million state grant towards the project from the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services. Orleans has taken out a $4.5 million bond to help finance the costs of the upgraded system.
Photo by Tom Rivers – JPMorgan Chase closed its Albion call center in September after the company worked five years out of this East Avenue site, which was previously home to Washington Mutual. Claims Recovery Financial Services will be the new tenant in the building, which will house 750 workers for CRFS.
There was a lot of news in Orleans County in 2013. Orleans Hub has weighed the stories, and we have our list of the top 10. We gave preference to stories with impact on the community as a whole.
It was devastating news in June when JP Morgan Chase announced it was shutting down its Albion operation and would lay off 413 workers by September.
Chase once had nearly 1,000 workers in Albion, but had gradually reduced its workforce over five years in Albion.
The company worked out of a massive former tomato processing facility on East Avenue. The site didn’t sit idle for long. Roger Hungerford, owner of the Olde Pickle Factory in Medina, bought the 60,000-square-foot site and started renovations in September for the new tenant: Claims Recovery Financial Services.
That home-grown company, led by Orleans County resident Jodi Gaines, announced it had outgrown sites in Albion and Medina and would consolidate its operations at the former Chase site, employing 750 people in Albion. As part of the move to the Chase site, CRFS announced it would add 150 workers, bringing much-needed jobs to a county with one of the highest unemployment rates in the state.
Conservative talk show host Bob Lonsberry addresses a crowd of nearly 200 people in front of the Orleans County Courthouse during a protest about the SAFE Act on April 13.
In January Gov. Andrew Cuomo and state legislators approved the SAFE Act, which they said was designed to tighten gun control laws.
The new law, which was passed without public comment, was loudly protested in Orleans County and throughout much of Upstate New York. The Orleans County Legislature called for the law’s repeal.
Every town and village elected board in the county also formally opposed the new law, which was called an attack on Americans’ Second Amendment Rights. Orleans is the only county to have every town, village and county elected board pass resolutions against the SAFE Act.
A new citizens group, New York Revolution, formed and was active at local parades and community events. The organization is trying to unseat Cuomo in the 2014 election for governor.
Orleans County District Attorney Joe Cardone told a crowd in October that he wouldn’t prosecute “John Q. Public” for violating some of the provisions of the SAFE Act, including cosmetic requirements that now make some guns illegal.
Ondrea Pate, an employee at The Viilages of Orleans, and about 20 other people rallied in a rainstorm on April 10 for the county to keep its nursing home publicly owned. Concerned Citizens of Orleans County picketed on Main Street during many County Legislature meetings, trying to sway the body not to sell the 120-bed site in Albion.
In February, the County Legislature announced it would sell The Villages of Orleans, a 120-bed nursing home in Albion. The Legislature said the site operated at too much of a loss, burdening local taxpayers by at least $2 million a year with prospects for $4 million in annual deficits.
The decision prompted protests from residents of all ages and political parties. Many protested outside Legislature meetings, standing in storms. Two lawsuits failed to stop the county’s push to sell the nursing home.
A slate of candidates also ran trying to save the nursing home, but they failed to unseat the Republican majority. The Legislature formed a local development corporation to temporarily own the nursing home and to find a buyer for the site. The LDC could select the buyer in January.
The fire at Orleans Pallet quickly spread through the building and turned into an inferno, threatening the neighborhood.
A fire on Oct. 17 destroyed a big warehouse and threatened to damage other nearby structures. But the blaze was contained to Orleans Pallet’s main warehouse, a huge Medina sandstone structure built in 1901.
Smoke from the blaze could be seen from 20 miles in one of the community’s biggest fires ever.
The fire started after a spark from a grinder caught the wooden timbers on fire inside the warehouse. About 150 firefighters kept the blaze from spreading next door to Empire Coating.
Shawn Malark, owner of the warehouse and Orleans Pallet, used the site to store wooden pallets, which he then sold to farms and other businesses. Malark’s main production building survived the fire and he has stayed in business.
Police agencies in three counties worked together to arrest Jonathan Banks, top left; Isaiah Bonk, top right; Jasper Lloyd, bottom, left; Thomas Shingleton, bottom right.
Burglars terrorized Albion and Medina neighborhoods with a series of break-ins over the summer. The burglars would remove window screens or enter through unlocked doors, typically committing their crimes while people were asleep late at night.
Police from multiple agencies in three counties arrested four people in December who are accused of 32 burglaries in August and September, a rash of break-ins in Albion, Medina, Oakfield and Lockport.
One of the suspected burglars, Jonathan Banks, 21, of Medina, was arrested by Lockport police in September. After his arrest, there weren’t additional burglaries, police officials said. Besides Banks, 21, police arrested Isaiah Bonk, 20, of Medina; Jasper Lloyd, 20, of Albion; and Thomas Shingleton, 36, of Medina.
There were other high-profile crimes in the county in 2013, including a bank robbery, murder and attempted murder.
Strong West in September opened the former Lakeside Memorial Hospital as an urgent care center.
Lakeside Memorial Hospital in Brockport, a site that served many Orleans County residents, closed in April due to mounting financial losses. The facility would reopen in September as an urgent care center.
It is now owned by the University of Rochester Medical Center, which renamed it “Strong West.” The site doesn’t currently have an emergency room, meaning fire departments and ambulance squads form Orleans County now have a longer transport for patients on the east side of the county. Lakeside handled 17,000 ER calls in its final year.
Small-town hospitals are struggling, and Medina isn’t immune. The hospital’s board of directors announced in June that long-time hospital CEO Jim Sinner had resigned after 15 years.
The board of directors hired HealthTech Management Services to manage the hospital and healthcare organization. In late October, the board hired Dolores Horvath from HealthTech to serve as CEO.
She said hospitals are challenged and there will be a shift to more outpatient care in the future.
Carlton residents packed several town meetings this year, including this one in April, to sound off about assessments they say were set too high for many properties. The Town Board opted against reappointing the town assessor and is hiring a firm to establish values for the properties in Carlton. The board includes, from left: Dana Woolston, Joyce Harris, Town Supervisor Gayle Ashbery, Robin Lake and Jim Shoemaker.
Orleans County completed its once-every-three-year reassessment in 2012, and the new values were sent to property owners this past spring.
In Carlton, residents were in an uproar over assessments that showed big increases for many sites. Crowds packed Town Board meetings to complain about the assessments.
The backlash prompted the Town Board not to reappoint assessor Karen Adams. The town is hiring a private firm to help establish values for 2,400 sites in the town.
The reassessments painted a gloomy picture for the four villages in the county. While Carlton saw big increases for some properties, the villages collectively went down in value, which may be unprecedented during a reassessment for an entire municipality.
The village of Albion declined nearly $3 million, the biggest loss. The shrinking assessed values results in a smaller tax base to pay for services, likely driving up the tax rate.
The United Methodist Church in Medina meets for the first time in the former Apple Grove Inn on Oct. 27. The church transfromed the former restaurant int a modern church setting.
One congregation at a historic church in Medina left its building and moved to the former Apple Grove Inn, following an extensive three-year renovation.
Another congregation in Albion voted to abandon its historic building, although that congregation continues to meet there.
The Medina United Methodist Church celebrated its first service in the former Apple Grove Inn on Oct. 27. The church bought the landmark building for $100,000 at an auction. Most of the building was gutted, walls were taken out in some spots and new ones put in. The west end of the building was extended to accommodate the sanctuary. The project cost nearly $1 million.
It was a lot of work, and church members did the bulk of the construction, painting and carpeting themselves. The congregation of about 50 people had a final service at their old building at 222 West Center St. Then they walked or drove a mile down the road to the former Apple Grove.
In August, the First United Methodist Church in Albion voted to walk away from its 150-year-old building. The church faces about $1 million in repairs. The church is trying to find a buyer for the site and is looking for a new home. It will continue to meet in the building in the near future. The church is one of seven in Albion named to the National Register of Historic Places.
The national media doesn’t often pay much attention to an Orleans County community, but for weeks leading up to the annual “Squirrel Slam” in February, news organizations from throughout the world were talking about a fund-raiser at Holley.
The Holley Fire Department for six years held a competition where contestants paid an entry fee and then went hunting for squirrels. Hunters as young as 12 could win prizes for biggest squirrels shot.
Animal rights activists protested and urged Holley to cancel the event. The Village Board and Fire Department let it continue and participation surged from the usual 250 to about 700. Outside police were brought in to help manage the protest.
Orleans County Legislature Chairman David Callard gives Narby’s Superette and Tackle owner Sharon Narburgh a hug on June 26. The Point Breeze community received a trophy and check for $25,000 after winning the “Ultimate Fishing Town” competition.
Orleans County has new bait to lure visitors for the county’s top tourism draw, its fishing industry. Point Breeze was named the “Ultimate Fishing Town” in 2013 by the World Fishing Network, topping 700 other fishing communities in the U.S. and Canada for the crown.
Thousands of votes were cast on-line in support of Point Breeze and the Oak Orchard River. It appeared during the competition that Cape Hatteras in North Carolina would win, but voting irregularities for that community led to WFN giving the top award to Point Breeze.
The title has been proclaimed on banners and will be used to market the area to more anglers.
“This can help us to stand out,” said Sharon Narburgh, owner of Narby’s Superette and Tackle.
There were other big stories in the county this year, including Holley Central School’s completion of extensive renovations to the junior-senior high school and elementary school. The district also built a new transportation facility, all-weather track and football stadium
Many of the downtown Albion building owners also painted and did other improvements to their buildings in the most extensive renovation spree in recent memory.
Orleans Hub readers submitted many photos to our web site this year, including some on-the-scene news photos and other more artistic features.
These photos helped us tell the story of Orleans County. We’re grateful for the submissions and welcome more at news@orleanshub.com.
Here are some of our favorites:
On July 2, Jeremy Rothmund robbed the Bank of America in Albion and hopped in a getaway car driven by his girlfriend, Elyse Hoffer, both of Rochester. The two were spotted leaving Albion in a blue Ford Focus and headed east on Route 31 towards Holley.
Police stopped them in Holley at Woodside Court, an apartment complex off Route 31 on the west side of the village. Jeff Schuner lives at Woodside Court and he took this photo of Rothmund being taken into custody.
Peggy Bropst took this photo from a hot-air balloon on June 30. The shadow of the balloon appears in a cornfield. The ride was a belated Father’s Day gift for her father, Chet Wheelock, an 82-year-old farmer from Kent.
Four generations of Wheelocks rode in the balloon, including Wheelock’s grandson Jeremy Mikels and great-grandson Mason Mikels. “You don’t feel any wind up there,” Wheelock said. “You’re traveling with the wind. It’s as still as can be.”
The sun cast an array of colors while setting Aug. 23 at Lake Ontario. Jerome Pawlak of Albion was at Point Breeze and took this photo of the Oak Orchard Lighthouse. I’ve seen a lot of photos of the lighthouse since it was erected in 2010, and I think this is the best one.
Thom Jennings, an event promoter from Albion, took this photo of his son Trevor Jennings, center, playing the drums with Rusted Root after the Pittsburgh band played an encore on Aug. 25 in North Tonawanda.
Before the band would return to stage, they made Trevor, 19, come out and perform with them before 10,000 people. Trevor was backstage with his father Thom. After the song Trevor was invited to take a final bow with the group.
After playing local gigs for nearly a decade, Above the Fog performed for a final time Aug. 22 outside the Hoag Library in Albion. Michael Whiting of Whiting’s Village Studio took this picture of Dylan DeSmit, left, and Taylor Whittier giving an enthusiastic performance during the final concert. The musicians still expect to make an impact on the local music scene.
Chris Busch was out enjoying a gorgeous sunny day on July 23, and talked his way to the rooftop at the R.H. Newell Shirt Factory building at 115 West Center St. He took this photo looking toward the First Baptist Church at 203 West Center. You can also see the Post Office in the front right and St. Mary’s Catholic Church in the back right.
Michael Karcz, a frequent contributor to the Hub, took this picture of the fireworks on July 26 at the Orleans County 4-H Fair. This photo actually represents several different images.
“The firework shots were taken individually, and the shot of the fair was taken after the fireworks,” Karcz said. “I needed a higher vantage point, and the only place I could think of was on top of my van, so I climbed up and shot away. That’s the fun of photography.”
It was big news in the apple world on Aug. 1 when Cornell University and New York apple growers announced the names and logos for two new apple varieties. Orleans Hub wanted to be there for the announcement in Geneva, but couldn’t get away for the several-hour commitment. Ingrid LaMont, wife of apple grower Roger LaMont, was there and sent us a photo from her smart phone. We were one of the first news sites to announce the new names and show their logos.
In recent years, Holley dentist Dan Schiavone has traveled to rural Peru in the Amazon, spending a week providing dental care. His daughter Kaci, a biochemistry student at the University of Rochester, joined him in March for the trip.
Schiavone took this photo of his daughter checking a girl’s teeth and dental health during an exam in Peru. “They are gracious and happy people,” Schiavone said. “They appreciate everything you do.”
Heather Beach Smith of Medina took this picture of the Erie Canal lift bridge on Route 63 in Medina after the ice storm on Dec. 22.
Tabelski
Press release, GCC
MEDINA – Genesee Community College is pleased to announce that former Medina Mayor Adam Tabelski will once again serve as the honorary chairman of the Civil War Encampment for three days in Medina in April.
“I am honored to accept this designation,” said Tabelski, who served as chairman for the 2013 Encampment in Medina, the first time the village has hosted Civil War re-enactors.
The Encampment will include battles next to the GCC campus in Medina, a parade, and several demonstrations and lectures.
Tabelski, a past president of the Medina Historical Society, served as mayor of Medina from 2008-2012. He stepped down when he was deployed to Kuwait with the National Guard. He serves as communications director for State Sen. George Maziarz (R-Newfane). Tabelski and his wife, Rachael live in Medina with their son Adrian.
By Bill Lattin, Orleans County Historian
ALBION – This picture taken in the 1890s shows Shourds Brothers Icehouse at the end of East Park Street in Albion.
Here we see a crew harvesting natural ice off the old mill pond which was just south of East State Street.
The man in front is standing behind an ice plow used in marking out the pond in cakes which were then sawed with ice cutting saws as seen to his right.
Once cut, it was packed with sawdust in the icehouse and sold to homeowners in warm weather for their ice boxes.
Photos by Tom Rivers – Jeremy Arnold, owner of JG Tree Service, gets ready to catch a cat that had been stranded for nearly three days on top of a telephone pole in Waterport.
WATERPORT – After nearly three days on top of a telephone pole, Nora the cat was rescued late this morning by Jeremy Arnold, owner of a JG Tree Service in Holley.
Arnold, 27, has a bucket truck with a 60-foot ladder. He was happy to help after he heard the cat had been stuck and no one seemed willing to give a rescue a try.
“Everybody says it’s just a cat or an animal, but people get attached to their pets,” Arnold said after getting Nora down and handing her to her owner, Venita Nauden.
Venita Nauden is happy to be reunited with her cat, Nora.
Venita thanked Arnold and her neighbors for working to bring down the cat. Lauren Rayner, Nauden’s friend and neighbor, reached out to National Grid, the local fire company and animal shelters, but couldn’t sway anyone to try the rescue. The telephone pole had numerous wires including a transformer.
“It’s nice to see people help, otherwise the cat would have been left to die,” Rayner said.
The neighbors suspected a nearby dog chased the cat up the telephone pole. The cat was perched up there in the cold.
The cat was a little leery to come to Arnold, perhaps spooked by the hiss of the hydraulics with the bucket truck and a flock of geese that passed overhead during the rescue.
Nora didn’t immediately jump into Arnold’s arms. She seemed spooked by the noise from the hydraulics with the bucket truck. A big flock of geese also passed during the rescue attempt.
But after about five minutes, Nora came close to Arnold and he scooped her up.
“I’m just glad it worked out,” Arnold said. “I was worried she might get scared and take off running along the wires.”
Venita’s father Thad Nauden watched the rescue. He praised Arnold and Rayner for caring about the cat.
“I’m so appreciative for the tree surgeon and for my neighbor,” Mr. Nauden said. “I’m shocked that people would go to that extent. My daughter has been very upset about it because she is a cat lover.”
Arnold gets the truck set up on East Avenue while a small crowd gathers.
Photo by Tom Rivers – Nora, the cat, trapped on top of a telephone pole is surrounded by wires and power lines.
WATERPORT – A cat that has been on top of a telephone pole for at least two days survived another cold night and should be rescued later this morning.
A private contractor will be down on East Avenue with a bucket truck to get the cat. Jeremy Arnold of Holley will attempt the rescue.
