Courtesy Albion Historic Preservation Commission – A Mexican restaurant called “El Gallo” will give a building that is currently painted all white a vastly different look. The site at 33 North Main St. also includes an awning. This design is by the LonoWood Art Company in Albion.

ALBION – A building that has sat mostly vacant for nearly two decades is expected to open next month as a Mexican restaurant.

Miguel Jimenez has been working almost every day since February to renovate 33 North Main St. He would like to open “ El Gallo” – Spanish for “The Rooster” – in time for Cinco de Mayo on May 5.

The building is currently painted white and is located next to a parking lot by the First Presbyterian Church.

Photo by Tom Rivers – Here is the building as it appeared at about 8:30 tonight. The site is prominent in the downtown historic district.

Jimenez received approval for the building’s paint, new sign and an awning during tonight’s Historic Preservation Commission meeting. Commission members praised him for turning a long-vacant structure into a productive use for the community.

“I’m delighted something will be done with the building,” Commission member told Jimenez during the meeting.

The downtown hasn’t had a new awning in many years.

“I love the idea of an awning,” said Commission member Ric Albright. “It will be great.”

The building will be painted in Roycroft Copper Red, Rookwood Amber and Rookwood Dark Green.

Village Code Enforcement Officer Ron Vendetti said he welcomed a new look in the downtown, which is named to the National Register of Historic Places.

“Different colors add character to the district,” Vendetti said.

Photos by Tom Rivers – The Albion Lions Club, Village of Albion and community members are trying to raise $50,000 to update playground equipment and make other improvements at Bullard Park.

ALBION – Some of the equipment may go back 50 years, and some of the playground apparatus have been removed or modified due to safety concerns.

Bullard Park is in need of an update, said Dale Brooks, superintendent for the Department of Public Works.

The village sought state funding in 2012 and 2013, but both grant applications were denied. Brooks and the village want to forge ahead with improvements.

The “Rebuild Bullard” Committee met Tuesday and set a $50,000 fund-raising goal. That should be enough to put in new playground for bigger kids and make other improvements.

However, the committee hasn’t established a priority for the first project at Bullard. Recreation Director John Grillo believes a spray park would be a major draw to the park, bringing people from throughout the county.

Some of the equipment at the park goes back generations.

However, the village needs to run water and sewer lines to a central location for the spray park, and Brooks would like to see bathrooms and a changing area built for a spray park. He will seek construction estimates for the infrastructure, spray park and bathroom. That should be well in excess of $50,000.

Brooks would prefer to first address safety issues with the playground. The village has updated equipment at Pee Wee Park, a section of Bullard for toddlers and younger children. The spot with playground equipment for older children hasn’t been updated in many years.

“My concern is the safety part,” Brooks said at a meeting at Hoag Library.

Brooks is also a member of the Albion Lions Club, and the club is helping to raise funds for the project. Lions Cub President Bill Robinson said the fund-raising and improvements will likely take years. But he wants to get started “so the children’s playground is a safe place to play and the park is a credit to the community.”

The committee brainstormed several fund-raisers including a Battle of Bands, car wash, bowling tournament, dunk tank at the Strawberry Festival and donations that would go into a village account designated for the park.

Brooks and Grillo also would like to see neighboring towns provide some funding for the park because it is used by children and families outside the village.

The improvements will depend on the money coming to fruition. However, Brooks said some safety improvements may be required by the village’s insurance provider.

The committee will meet next at 7 p.m. on May 20 at Hoag Library.

Laquan Simmons

ALBION – A Rochester man currently on parole was arrested with 6.7 grams of crack cocaine in the Wal-Mart parking lot on Monday, the Orleans County Major Felony Crime Task Force reported.

Laquan J. Simmons, 22, of 259 Arborwood Lane was charged with two counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree (a Class B felony) for alleged previous sales to an undercover officer, said Joseph Sacco, the Task Force supervising officer.

Simmons arrest follows an investigation into the possession, sale and distribution of crack cocaine from the city of Rochester to the town of Albion.

Simmons also was charged with one count of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree (a Class A felony).

Police seized 22 bags of crack cocaine packaged for sale and a larger bag of crack cocaine. They have a street value of more than $1,500, the Task Force reported.

Simmons was arraigned in Albion Town Court by Justice Kevin Howard, who remanded Simmons to county jail on $25,000 cash or bond bail. He is to appear in Town Court on Wednesday at 9 a.m.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The state roads in the village of Albion got a fresh coat of paint for center lines and other road markings today.

The top photo shows Accent Stripe Inc. of Orchard Park working on the cross walk at the intersection of Beaver Street and Route 98.

Earlier in the day they were in front of Rite Aid on the south side of the routes 98 and 31 intersection. The rain in late afternoon sent the crews home early.

ALBION – Three sisters who were in a car accident Saturday morning have all been released from the hospital, and their mother is thankful they weren’t seriously injured.

Kayla Strickland, 18, of Albion suffered a broken neck but she could have been paralyzed if her neck had twisted, her mother Linda said this afternoon. Kayla will have to wear a neck brace for about 12 weeks.

“It could have been much worse,” Mrs. Strickland said. “I’m thankful to God and the guys who worked on her.”

Medina and Ridgeway firefighters responded to the scene. Kayla was taken by Mercy Flight to Strong Memorial Hospital. She was released today.

Her 16-year-old twin sisters, Laura and Lilly, were taken by ambulance to Medina Memorial Hospital. They had bumps and bruises, but no injuries, their mother said.

“I am praising God in every way possible that they are all home today,” Mrs. Strickland said.

Kayla, a student at Genesee Community College, was driving her twin sisters home after the three attended a all-nighter at Calvary Tabernacle Church in Medina. Kayla fell asleep at about 7:40 a.m. while driving a 2005 Ford sedan on Knowlesville Rd. The vehicle went off the east side of the road into a field and overturned, coming to rest on its side, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department reported.

Kayla attended the Orleans County Christian School at Calvary Tabernacle, where her mother is the school administrator. Kayla’s twin sisters are both juniors at the school.

The church hosted an all-night youth event that included a praise worship team, preaching, games and fun activities, their mother said.

She and her husband Curt thanked the community for their prayers after the accident.

“I’ve heard from a lot of people and it’s very comforting,” she said.

Agency won’t let company piggyback on Waste Management’s permit from 2003

File photo by Tom Rivers – This photo from last July shows the former McKenna and Orleans Sanitary landfills next to the Erie Canal in Albion, between Densmore and Transit roads. The photo was taken from the Transit Road bridge looking west.

ALBION – In 2003, the state Department of Environmental Conservation approved a permit for Waste Management of New York to operate a new 78-acre landfill in Albion.

Waste Management completed a costly and grueling process to get approval from the DEC. However, the company never gained a permit from the town and wasn’t able to get started on the new landfill.

The state permit drew the notice of landfill operator Richard Penfold of Orchard Park. He has worked in recent years to try to take ownership of the site and have the state permit transferred to his new company, Albion Recycling & Recovery LLC.

On Wednesday, the DEC decided Penfold didn’t have “the legal capacity” to renew the permit originally approved for Waste Management, according to a letter on April 9 to town officials from Scott Sheeley, the regional permit administrator for the DEC.

Penfold can challenge the DEC’s decision within 30 days. He also can seek his own permit for the site but he would have to start from the beginning with environmental studies for the property. That would be far more costly and time-consuming than simply having the Waste Management permit transferred to his company.

Even if he secures the DEC permit, he still would need approval from the Town Board. The board has been adamant in stating its opposition to additional landfills.

A closed gate near Transit Road blocks access to the McKenna Landfil in this photo from last July. Richard Penfold wants to open a new landfill next to the site.

“I am glad they acted in this way,” Town Supervisor Matt Passarell said about the DEC decision. “We thought the application had some gaps. I hope Mr. Penfold doesn’t pursue litigation with this.”

Penfold has said he would offer the town a host community benefits package that would cut taxes, offer residents free garbage pickup, create jobs and also care for two existing landfills. Passarell and the Town Board aren’t interested in having a new landfill.

The DEC in its letter on Wednesday said Waste Management has never formally relinquished its rights for future options at the landfill. Waste Management received a 10-year permit on Nov. 20, 2003, but that permit expired on Nov. 20, 2013, Sheeley said in his letter.

The DEC said it would consider any new applications for the site. The applicant would still need to ultimately satisfy the Town Board.

Provided photos from Trina Press

ALBION – Flames burst out of a car in the GCC parking lot at Albion this morning at about 9:15.

Albion firefighters were quickly on scene to douse the fire. Albion police were also on scene.

“It doesn’t look like anything suspicious,” said Tom O’Hearn, lieutenant with the police department.

Orleans County fire investigators also responded to the call.

Trina Press, an employee with the Farm Service Agency, works next door to the GCC site on Route 31 and took these photos.

The photo below was submitted by Helen Robare.

In some Erie County schools, more than a quarter of students didn’t take recent standardized tests because their parents decided to have their children opt out of taking the exams.

It’s part of a growing protest by parents against Common Core testing. But in the Albion school district, only a few students didn’t take the tests. There are about 800 students in grades 3 through 8 at Albion. About 10 had parents who chose to have the children opt out of taking the tests, said Michael Bonnewell, district superintendent.

That’s about 1 percent of the eligible students in Albion. That compares to West Seneca, where 27 percent of the district’s 3,087 children in third through eighth grades didn’t take the reading tests because they’re parents decided to opt out, according to The Buffalo News.

Parents can keep their children home during testing days, which are spread over 12 days. That would count as 12 absences. Or students can go to school and sit quietly with the untouched test in front of them.

The “sit and stare” has sparked controversy in Western New York. In Albion, middle schoolers who opted out of the tests went to a room separate from their classrooms, Principal Dan Monacelli told the Board of Education on Monday.

Elementary students who opted out stayed with their classrooms during testing, said Principal Rachel Curtin.

The Common Core testing debuted last year and only about a third of students in NY reached or exceeded proficiency levels for math and reading.

Those tests were implemented at a time with new “Race to the Top” testing requirements from the federal government and also new teacher evaluations from the state.

Parents are protesting all of the changes and pressures on students and teachers.

“They are trying to change too many things all at once,” Bonnewell told the board about the new testing and evaluation requirements. “That is three major changes all at once.”

ALBION – The Board of Education tonight approved a $33,551,051 budget for 2014-15 that will not raise property taxes.

The tax levy will remain at $8,439,939, and the tax rate is projected to fall 4 cents from $16.82 to $16.78 per $1,000 of assessed property.

Albion school officials were considering a 1.6 percent tax increase, but they were able to close the gap and not raise taxes.

“We don’t take that lightly,” Margy Brown, the BOE president, said about a tax hike. “Even at 1.6 percent for some people that is challenging.”

Albion raised taxes by 1.5 percent in 2013-14. That was the first increase in seven years.

Albion is down 704 students from 11 years ago and has eliminated 82 positions over that time to reflect the enrollment drop, said Shawn Liddle, the district’s assistant superintendent for business. Those staff reductions have helped the district keep taxes mostly in check for the past decade.

“We’ve been fiscally responsible and conservative,” Brown said. “We’re forward-thinking and we watch the numbers closely.”

The proposed budget will go before voters on May 20, with the polls open from noon to 8 p.m. in conference room A at the Ronald L. Sodoma Elementary School.

The budget maintains current programs. It increases overall spending by 0.6 percent or $202,002. The district will see cost-savings with eight retirements and the turnover of another veteran staff member. They are all planned to be replaced by newer staff at lower salaries.

The budget includes about $130,000 more for computer hardware, software and bandwidth upgrades in anticipation to a transition to on-line testing.

The district will have a public hearing on the budget at 7 p.m. on May 13 in the High School LGI.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The Cobblestone Division of the Girl Scouts of America is having its annual Cake Auction today from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Elks Lodge on West State Street in Albion.

The cakes are all decorated in a musical theme. There were several Elvis-themed cakes, including the one in the top photo by Lauren Freeman.

Molly Wadhams made this cake, “Shot to the Heart,” by the rock band Bon Jovi.

Rebekah Thompson made this cake, “Pretty Punk Piano.”

Allyson Irwin made a “Guitar Hero” cake.

Lucy Rivers made a cake in memory of Albion band teacher Wayne Burlison, who loved lemon-flavored treats. The cake is in the shape of a saxophone.

Photos by Tom Rivers

Albion native and world-class saxophonist Susan Fancher returned home today to perform in the Eastman at Albion Concert Series at the First Presbyterian Church.

She performed in a concert titled, “Sax Appeal.” She was joined by fellow saxophonist and Eastman professor Chien-Kwan Lin.

Fancher has a doctoral degree in music and teaches saxophone at Duke University.

The Albion High School Saxophone Ensemble also performed in the concert. That group includes Charlyne Olick, Sarah Graham, Matthew Flanagan, Emilie Barleben, Steven Stauss, Laura Flanagan and Nicholas Ettinger.

Proceeds from the concert go to the Albion High School Alumni Foundation for scholarships.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – About 100 people are sipping wine and having a good time this evening at Holy Family Parish’s first-ever wine-tasting fundraiser.

Eagle Crest Vineyards form Conesus is providing the wine. Deborah Lill, an employee with the Finger Lakes winery, serves up a glass of wine inside the Lyceum, the former St. Joseph’s School on Main Street.

The wine-tasting is a fundraiser for the parish through the Parish Life Committee, which is headed by Jim Adduci. He is pictured waiting to address the crowd. Adduci is also the Parish Council president.

Eagle Crest supplies the church with wine for communion through its O-Neh-Da Vineyard. It supplies many of the Catholic churches in the state with wine. The wine company did its first parish wine-tasting in 2011 after a church was flooded in Binghamton.

That event proved a successful fundraiser for that parish. Eagle Crest has offered to do similar events for other Catholic churches and now does about 25 wine-tastings for churches in the state. The winery will be in Albany on Sunday for a wine-tasting.

“It’s a great way to bring the community together,” said Lisa Woodhams, one of the leaders of the winery.