ALBION – Four residents were elected trustees to Hoag Library on Monday. There were 90 voters on Monday, and Gloria Nauden received the most votes, 77, in being elected to a four-year term.

Anitrice Bennett received 50 votes and was elected to a three-year term. Rose English was elected to a two-year term with 46 votes, and Terry Wilbert secured the final open seat, a one-year term, with 41 votes. Two other candidates also were on the ballot. Debbie DiBacco received 26 votes and Angel Slick, 25.

The trustees met after the library’s annual meeting on Monday and backed Kevin Doherty for another term as president, with Wilbert picked to serve as vice president.

Doherty went over recent highlights for the library, including refinancing the mortgage on the building, switching from Farm Credit to Steuben Trust. The library was able to reduce the mortgage from $1.4 million to $1 million and now has a fixed rate for financing over 20 years at 5 percent interest.

Doherty said the monthly mortgage payment will drop from about $10,000 a month to $6,600. That savings, as well as with electricity cost reductions from the solar array on the library roof, is allowing the library to not seek more funds from residents with property taxes.

Betty Sue Miller, director of Hoag Library, goes over highlights for the library during its annual meeting on Monday.

The budget vote on May 16 will ask the public to approve $682,211 for the library, the same as last year. That proposition is part of the school budget vote from noon to 8 p.m. at the elementary school.

The library has benefitted from recent donations, including $100,000 from Maurice “Mo” Hoag and his wife Courtenay, $75,000 from Dale Blissett in honor of his mother Helen Rice Blissett, and $50,000 from the estate of the late Elio D’Andrea.

Library Director Betty Sue Miller said the donations make Hoag the envy of many libraries in the three-county Nioga library system. Many of the libraries are struggling financially.

“We’re really, really fortunate,” Miller said.

Hoag also has dedicated volunteers. She noted that Bill Lattin comes in weekly to water plants and wind the clocks. Don Trapiss, a library neighbor, watered the lawn last year, helping the grass and trees survive the drought.

Ken Mart, Debbie Barlow, Carol Mayer, Louise Henderson and Joyce Riley all are active volunteers.

The Friends of Library are important contributors as well, Miller said. They sell used books and raise money for Hoag, allowing the library to pay for programs and supplies. The Friends are raising money for a sign outside the library that would advertise programs and events. That stone sign would be computerized with electronic messages. Miller is hopeful it will be in place by next year.

Miller went over some statistics from 2016:

• 90,774 total circulation

• 10,239 number of patrons

• 10,011 items borrowed from other libraries

• 5,921 items loaned to other libraries

• 1,167 items downloaded from overdrive

Hoag Library is a popular meeting place for many organizations, including the Alzheimer’s Association, a Breast Cancer support group, AARP for a driver’s course, and many other community groups, Miller said.

She and the staff are gearing up for the summer reading program, which kicks off June 24 with a theme: “Build a Better World.” The programming will include a reading challenge, but there will also be activities for building and creating, as well as a program on ecology and sustainability. Miller said she will also be promoting “kindness” in building a better world.

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United Methodists wish blessings upon North Point Chapel

ALBION – The United Methodist Church in Albion officially sold its historic building last week to a new congregation, North Point Chapel.

The sale came about two years after the United Methodists left the building, due to its deteriorating condition, particularly with the roof over the sanctuary.

“It was beyond our means,” said Reid Cole, chairman of the church’s board of trustees.

Engineers estimated it would cost about $1 million to fix the roof and make over brick repairs.

For two years the United Methodists have been holding services at Christ Church, the Episcopalian’s home on Main Street. Cole said that arrangement has worked well for both congregations. The United Methodists plan to stay there for at least the short-term and may consider their own building in the future.

The United Methodists are grateful their former building won’t languish as a vacant site.

“It is better for Albion to keep this as a church,” Cole said.

Cole said potential buyers looked at the church for apartments and offices. He is happy North Point pushed to buy the property, a 14,000-square-foot structure with a neighboring house/office building that is currently rented to Community Action of Orleans & Genesee. Community Action agencies that use the building include ACT – Helping Youth ACT Responsibly, Child Care Resource & Referral (CCR&R) and Early Head Start Child Care Partnership (EHS-CCP).

Provided photo: Leaders from the two churches sign closing documents last Friday. Cathy Moore, a trustee with the United Methodist Church, and attorney Sandy Church are on the left. Mike Outten, pastor of North Point Chapel, and attorney Erin Gromley are on the right.

North Point’s pastor Mike Outten signed the final closing papers on Friday, along with UMC leaders. The two churches had been waiting months for a sign-off from the State Attorney General’s Office.

The church and next door house sold for $38,000, with North Point also agreeing to assume the costs for timber beams that are used for roof support. There is a monthly charge for the beams and an additional cost for when the company removes them.

Outten was unable to attend a ceremonial photo on Tuesday with the UMC leaders. He was called to see someone at a Buffalo hospital.

North Point is using the 1959 addition of the church currently for services and offices. North Point was holding services at the Arnold Gregory Office Complex. The church held its first service on April 2 at the former UMC building.

Outten told Orleans Hub on March 29 that North Point Chapel thinks God still has a plan for the building, which includes many stunning stained-glass windows, a pipe organ and space for more than 250 people.

“I walked in here and I just dropped,” Outten said last month.

It wasn’t the windows or the architecture that stunned Outten. It was all of the empty seats. He imagined the sanctuary full of earnest Christians. The church, like so many in the United States, seems way too big for the congregations today.

“There used to be people who sat in these seats and believed in Jesus Christ,” Outten said. “I look around and I see 250 saints singing to God.”

For now, North Point is using space from two classrooms for services.

“We’re here to meet people where they’re at,” Outten said. “Jesus didn’t look at people’s exterior, but at their hearts. This building is just a tool. We will show people that we care for them and love them.”

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BARRE – Residents in Barre again voted down spending money for a new fire hall. The proposition, to borrow $2.52 million, was rejected, 188-137.

That is closer than the vote on June 4, 2014, when a  proposition to borrow $1.4 million was voted down, 249-114.

There were fewer “no” votes this time, and also more “yes” votes. But Barre firefighters were again disappointed in the outcome.

“It shoots morale to hell,” said Barre firefighter Jesse Babcock after the vote totals were announced.

The new building, in a long-term loan, wouldn’t have increased fire district taxes, said Barry Flansburg, one of the fire commissioners.

Now, the fire company faces the prospect of upgrading an existing building that is too small. The truck bays are too short to accommodate new fire trucks without costly modifications. Barre has to have its fire trucks retrofitted to be shorter and not as long as the regular specifications. That will be the case when the fire company replaces a 1990 pumper. That truck is 27 years old and should be replaced with a new vehicle soon, firefighters said.

Mark Farone, one of the fire commissioners, said a retrofitted new truck could add $200,000 to the truck costs.

He is disappointed in today’s vote. He believes the firefighters and commissioners made the case that the new building would improve fire service without raising taxes. The building also would function as a community center and Red Cross shelter in emergencies.

The ballots are shown after the vote today. There were 188 “no” votes and 137 for “yes.”

“The issue of the building won’t go away with a no vote,” Flansburg said. “We’re really up against it now.”

The proposed new fire hall was expanded from the proposal in 2014 to include a community center after feedback from residents. That center would have been available to community organizations, but wouldn’t have been for wedding receptions and parties.

The main focus was to better accommodate fire trucks and equipment.

The current firehall has four bays with doors that are 10 feet tall. Many of the modern fire trucks are 10 feet, 2 inches tall. Barre had to have its most recent fire truck special ordered so it was 9 feet, 6 inches in height. That made the truck costlier, adding about $100,000 to the cost, Farone said.

The Fire District is the taxing authority for the Barre Volunteer Fire Company. The fire company provides the personnel, and the fire district finances the trucks and equipment. The current firehall is owned by the fire company. The new one would have been owned by the fire district.

The district currently pays an annual fee to the fire company for using the old firehall. That payment could have instead been used as the debt payment for the $2.5 million facility, which would be paid over 30 years. The existing fire hall may have been put up for sale if the proposition for a new building had been approved.

Barre firefighters have tried to show their worth to the community, Flansburg said.

Barre has about 40 active firefighters who responded to 209 calls in 2016. They have fought fires on major holidays, and stepped up outreach efforts, including an annual toy delivery with Santa.

They held open houses on Tuesday evenings, leading up to the vote. Flansburg and Farone said only about four people attended those each week, or about 20 people total.

The firefighters worked hard to put together a project that was sensitive to taxpayers’ budgets, while also meeting the needs of the community and the fire company.

“I don’t know what more we could do,” Flansburg said. “The people would have been paying the same taxes for better service, and they still said no.”

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ALBION – Last month Vinny Navarra said he put up a “flag” with the word “Liquor” to promote his business, Main Street Liquor & Wine, on Main Street.

The sign had a dramatic effect, boosting his sales by 50 percent in March, he said.

Village Code Enforcement Officer Ron Vendetti said the flag shouldn’t be allowed because it is really a “fluttering device,” which is banned in the village code for signs.

He has sent Navarra a citation, saying the “Liquor” sign isn’t allowed. Navarra attended Wednesday’s Village Board meeting and said the sign has given his business a big boost.

“This is why everyone is moving out of the village,” Navarra told the board. “We’re picking on the damn signs.”

Vendetti said he is just doing his job, enforcing the codes. He referenced the village code, Section 290-95D, which states: “No sign or part thereof shall contain or consist of banners, posters, pennants, ribbons, streamers, spinners or similar fluttering devices.”

He suggested the Village Board look at the sign code, and make some revisions.

“My job as code enforcement officer is to enforce the code,” Vendetti said. “If the board wants to change the code, then change the code.”

Board members said they want to look at possibly making some revisions.

Trustee Pete Sidari said the village may need to make some modifications to stay current.

“I don’t want to see a lot of crazy stuff down there,” he said.

Board members said they will review the sign ordinance, and will seek input from the Historic Preservation Committee.

The general regulations of the sign ordiance also include:

A. No illuminated signs or outdoor illumination shall direct light in a way which would create a traffic hazard or nuisance or be unreasonably detrimental to adjoining or neighboring properties.

B. No sign shall be erected in such a manner as to confuse or obstruct the view of any traffic sign, signal or device.

C. Except for time and temperature signs, no sign shall be illuminated by or contain flashing, intermittent, rotating or moving light or lights.

E. No sign shall consist of animated or moving parts.

F. No sign shall be attached to fences, utility poles or trees.

G. No sign or sign support shall be erected or maintained above the peak of the roof of any building or structure.

H. No sign which obscures visibility at elevations between three and seven feet above street level shall be placed or maintained within 25 feet of the intersection of the street or highway lines.

I. No motor vehicle, mobile home or trailer on which is placed or painted any sign shall be parked or stationed in a manner primarily intended to display the sign.

J. No sound amplifiers, public address systems or other sound devices shall be used as a means of advertising or to attract attention to a sign.

K. No off-premises advertising signs shall be permitted other than as permitted under the exempt sign provisions of § 290-98 and directional signs as provided for in § 290-101A.

L. No advertising message shall be extended over more than one sign placed along a street or highway.

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Pawlak’s no longer a Save-A-Lot in Albion

ALBION – The Pawlak family, a fourth-generation grocery store operator in Orleans County, is going back to its roots as an independent grocery store.

The family for 15 years operated a Save-A-Lot in Albion at 320 West Ave. On Friday, Jerome Pawlak and his son Joe had their last day running the store as a Save-A-Lot.

On Saturday it became Pawlak’s Food Center. The store is affiliated with the Olean Wholesale Grocery Cooperative, which serves independently owned groceries in New York, Pennsylvania and northeast Ohio.

“We have decided to join this group and will complete the conversion of the store shortly,” the Pawlak family said in a message to customers. “We ask that you bear with us during the remodeling period.”

The family has been in the grocery business for 57 years, starting in Lyndonville. It ran a Save-A-Lot in Holley for about 3 ½ years before closing in September.

The Pawlak family ran the Albion store as a Shurfine from 1997 to 2002, before Jerome Pawlak changed to a Save-A-Lot to better compete against Tops, which opened a new store next door. Since then, Walmart opened a Supercenter in Albion (in 2006) with groceries as well as general merchandise.  Walmart also has supercenters in Lockport, Batavia and Brockport. An Aldi Foods also has recently opened in Medina.

Pawlak said it’s a very competitive business. His family puts a focus on giving the customers what they want. Pawlak said he was sometimes constrained by Save-A-Lot in what the store offered and how he ran discounts and other specials.

“Save-A-Lot dictated a lot of what we could do,” Pawlak said. “Now we can be more customer-driven.”

Pawlak’s Food Center will carry more items. The freezer already has been stocked full with Perry’s Ice Cream. Pawlak’s will carry more Western New York products, including Sahlen’s hot dogs.

“We must continually evaluate our business to best serve the needs of our valued customers, our associates and our community,” the Pawlak family said in a message posted at the store.

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