Village still needs to OK final site plan for project creating 18 apartments

Photos by Tom Rivers: Bilal Huzair of Carlton, CEO of Buildmore Corporation, discusses a plan to turn the former Clover Hill Adult Residence into 18 one-bedroom apartments. Jeff Palumbo, an attorney, is in back. Huzair’s company would do the interior construction for the project if it moves forward.

ALBION – The Village of Albion Planning Board on Thursday approved a special use permit to turn the former Clover Hill Adult Residence into a multi-family dwelling.

Clover Hill was an assisted living site at 355 South Main St. It closed in March 2022.

Realtegic LP in Amherst is seeking to acquire the site and turn it into 18 one-bedroom apartments that would also include a bathroom and kitchen. Ravi Prasher is president of Realtegic.

The project still needs a site plan review before going forward.

Bilal Huzair of Carlton and his company, Buildmore Corporation, would do the interior construction. Huzair spoke during a public hearing on Thursday about the special use permit. He was joined by attorney Jeff Palumbo.

The Clover Hill assisted living site at 355 South Main St. closed in March 2022.

They said they were holding off on the site plan until first hearing whether the special use permit would be approved. Now that Realtegic has that permit, the business will have an architect work on the renderings for how the building will be transformed into the one-bedroom apartments.

Huzair said they will be rented for $1,500 a month and that is all inclusive with utilities.

The apartments aren’t exclusively for senior citizens, but Huzair said he expects seniors seeking to downsize will pursue the apartments, which will also appeal to younger adults and couples.

Some of the nearby residents voiced their displeasure during a public hearing that the site would turn into a muti-family dwelling.

“We don’t want high-density living right there,” said Diana Reed, who owns the house next door.

She said the change to apartments would have a bigger impact on the neighborhood than when it was assisted living. She said there would be more traffic and noise with the change to apartments.

“What is the highest and best use of the property that won’t be something that will degrade the neighborhood?” Reed asked at the hearing.

Jason Dragon, a village resident on East Avenue, also sees the switch to apartments as a more intrusive use for the neighborhood, possibly pushing down property values.

Jeff Palumbo, the attorney for Realtegic, said there are other multi-family dwellings nearby, as well as commercial businesses in the neighborhood. He said the change to one-bedroom apartments makes good use of existing facility that has been vacant for 16 months now.

Karen Conn, the Planning Board chairwoman, said the switch to apartments will not be a significant change on the site. She and the board said they foresee it could result in a moderate increase in traffic.

The special use permit is limited to Realtegic only. If a different owner acquires the site, that owner would have to seek its own permit. Conn noted the board and public can also review the site plan and offer more feedback at a future meeting.

Conn, who also is a real estate agent, said there is a need in the community for apartments for seniors looking to downsize from larger homes and yard work. Many younger couples and singles are also looking for apartments that aren’t targeted for lower-income tenants, she said.

Huzair said the property will stay on the tax rolls and the owner won’t be seeking tax breaks as part of the project.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The band Zero closed out a 10-year run with a rocking concert on Wednesday evening at Bullard Park.

This photo shows Mike “Thunder” Warren, Zack Burgess and Dylan DeSmit. (Chad DeSmit plays the drums for the band.)

The members are in other bands and their schedule is busy, making it difficult to make the time to rehearse and schedule performances.

The band was a mainstay at the Rock the Park music festivals, helping to raise money for improvements at Bullard.

Zack Burgess sings “Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival. Burgess also performs with the Zackstreet Boys.

Mike Warren strums the guitar. He had the crowd rocking with his performance of “TNT” by AC/DC. Warren is a member of the Savage Cabbage band.

Chad DeSmit pounds the skins as the drummer for the band. DeSmit fills in for other bands as a drummer.

Dylan DeSmit performs at the amphitheater on Wednesday. He is also a member of driVen and Appetite for Voltage.

The band opened the concert by performing by playing “Slither” by Velvet Revolver.

The Albion summer concert series continues at Bullard with the remaining schedule: August 2, Hastings Duo; August 9, Highway 31; August 16, McHenry & Baz; August 23, Rain Date; and August 30, Geneseo Wind Quinet.

The shows all start at 6:30, except for the final one on Aug. 30 which begins at 6 p.m.

Rock the Park also is back on Aug. 4-5 with nine bands performing over two days as well as an open mic opportunity.

85 see snakes and reptiles up close at Hoag Library program

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Ken Kuehne of Kent, left, brought 12 exotic snakes and other reptiles to Hoag Library today as part of a summer reading program. Kuehne and his daughter Amanda, right, let these kids hold an 11-foot-long Columbian red-tailed boa constrictor that weighs about 60 pounds.

Kuehne owns Know Your Rep and does events with snakes and reptiles at schools, community organizations and businesses, and at parties.

He said snakes are often portrayed as villains in movies.

“We have a learned fear of snakes,” he said. “I want to get rid of that myth.”

Layla Hanna and her mother Jessica Hanna touch one of the snakes at today’s presentation at Hoag Library. About 85 people attended the event, the most popular so far in the summer reading program.

Michael Magnuson, the Adult Services Librarian, built up the courage to hold the big boa.

Amanda Kuehne lets the kids touch a jungle carpet python that is about 9 feet long.

Ken Kuehne also brought a baby alligator to today’s show outside on the lawn at the library. He gets nose to nose with the alligator which has 80 teeth, 40 on top and 40 on the bottom.

He said the alligator has been trained to respond to his voice commands. Alligators can slow their heart rate down to two or three beats a minute to stay under water for up to an hour.

Elizabeth Tuttle, the Youth Services Librarian, gets a close look at the alligator.

Willa Diegelman, 2, of Waterport touches the scales on two snakes. Willa’s mother Katherine is next to her.

Katherine Diegelman of Waterport takes a turn holding the mammoth boa.

Melissa Prince takes over Brushstrokes and Amanda Flagler opens ‘Learning Lab Tutoring Center’

Photos by Tom Rivers: Melissa Prince, new owner of Brushstrokes Studios, is shown with some of the bisques to be painted and then glazed. Brushstrokes is located on the second floor of the Arnold Gregory Office Complex at 243 South Main St. Prince is also an elementary art teacher at Albion.

ALBION – Two elementary teachers at Albion are both running businesses at the Arnold Gregory Office Complex. They didn’t plan to have the businesses next to each other on the second floor.

But Melissa Prince and Amanda Flagler see opportunities to promote each other’s business and work together.

Prince is the new owner of Brushstrokes Studio. She bought the business from Dee and Al Hansel. Prince, an elementary art teacher for 23 years, praised the Hansels for building up Brushstrokes and making a comfortable space for artists to create at Arnold Gregory. Brushstrokes has a painting room, display room, inventory room, space for a kiln and a birthday party room.

“I feel like it’s an extension of what I’m doing and it’s my passion,” Prince said about the business offering art to the community.

Brushstrokes has several hundred different bisques – plates, cups, platters, seasonal and holiday items, many woodland creatures, animals and characters from video games. Prince said Brushstrokes has been popular with many beginning artists and those farther along with their skills.

The prices range from $10 for smaller bisques up to $45 for the larger pieces. That includes the bisque, paint, supplies, studio time and to be dipped in glaze and fired in the kiln.

“It’s about disconnecting from electronics and exploring your own creativity,” Prince said.

The remainder of the summer Brushstrokes will have studio hour Tuesday through Friday and from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays. Prince will also have pop-up events in the community on Mondays. (She will be at the Rock the Park music festival at Bullard Park on Aug. 5.)

Once the school year starts, Brushstrokes will be open for appointments Monday through Friday, with studio hours on the weekends.

Prince said she is planning to offer art classes at Brushstrokes in the future. Click here for more information.

Amanda Flagler has opened The Learning Lab Tutoring Center on the second floor at Arnold Gregory. She is standing in front of a sensory bin on the table where kids find letters, sorting through beans. She has activities, puzzles and games to help students with phonics, math and reading skills.

Flagler opened The Learning Lab Tutoring Center on July 3. She has been an elementary teacher for 10 years and is moving from fourth to fifth grade this school year at Albion.

She will have the Learning Lab open after school from 4:30 to 7 p.m. from Tuesday to Thursday.

She will be working with students from pre-K to grade 8, and has students this summer to help prevent the “summer slide” where students often have learning loss in math and English. She also is helping some younger students with kindergarten readiness.

Flagler has worked as a private tutor. She said many students have gaps due to the Covid pandemic with students out of in-person classes for several months, and then on a hybrid schedule for much of the 2020-21 school year. She works with students one-on-one to fill those gaps.

The Learning Lab has bean bag chairs, tables and a comfortable rug for students to work on their skills with reading, math and phonics.

“This is a separate space outside their home that is safe and quiet,” Flagler said.

Flagler said she expects most of the Learning Lab students will be from Orleans County. She picked the Arnold Gregory site because it is close to the Albion schools and the former hospital is well known in the community. She also likes the connections in the building, including The Tree House, an early childhood enrichment program on the second floor of Arnold Gregory.

The Learning Lab will have an open house from 9 a.m. to noon on Aug. 26. For more information, contact Flagler at (716) 525-3976 or check The Learning Lab Facebook page.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Crews have starting clearing land on Butts Road in Albion for a 25-bed women and children community residence. This will be the first residential program for the Genesee/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse that serves women and their children.

These photos were taken last week as contractors made a path to the site and removed trees and brush.

GCASA has seen more women in recovery and addiction programs with the opioid epidemic, with the prevalence of addictive painkillers, John Bennett, GCASA executive director, said during a public hearing about the project on Aug. 3, 2022.

The $4.6 million community residence will be the first in the GLOW region for women in recovery.

About 12 years ago, women accounted for 23 percent of the GCASA census or people served by the agency. But by 2016-17, that percentage jumped to nearly 40 percent, Bennett said.

The Albion site will allow women, 18 and older, to receive services to aid in their recovery while in a residential setting. Five of the 25 units will accommodate women with children younger than kindergarten. Up to two children can stay in those units. The property will include walking trails and a playground.

This project will be one of the few residential programs in the state that is solely for women with room for their children.

“Women have been neglected in residential programs,” Bennett said during the hearing.

The project has been awarded a $4.6 million grant from the state Department of Health for construction of the residence. That grant doesn’t include the operation of the site, which will be staffed 24-7, Bennett said during the hearing.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The Albion Fire Department this Saturday will be testing the fire whistle on top of the Village Office from noon to 3 p.m.

“If you hear it going off, please do not be alarmed,” said Jeremy Graham, the Albion fire chief. “There is no emergency.”

The fire whistle hasn’t been used in more than a decade. Some of the downtown business owners used to complain the siren was too loud.

The Fire Department sought to make it operational again and received permission from the Village Board.

“In the near future, we may use it on larger and more serious calls,” Graham said.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Bullard Park was busy today for the annual carnival put on by the Village of Albion Recreation Program. For the second year the Albion Rec Program welcomed children from throughout the area.

There were five bounce houses brought by Best of Tymes Party Rentals.

John Grillo, the recreation director, estimated more than 500 children and their families attended the four-hour event.

Michelle Wiseman of Best of Tymes serves cotton candy. Best of Thymes also had popcorn, nachos and snow cones. They charged $5 per child for the food and for unlimited use of the bounce houses.

The Albion Masonic Lodge and the Royal Body Shop Outreach Ministries also helped the Recreation Department put on the event today at the park.

The splash pad at Bullard remains a big hit about a year after it opened.

These kids throw the football around at Bullard on a day with many different activities.

File photo by Tom Rivers: A firefighter in turnout gear and an air pack battles a fire on June 15, 2022 when a truck with more than 400 used tires caught on fire next to the Albion Walmart.

ALBION – The Albion Fire Department has 24 air packs and those units used by interior firefighters all reach their 10-year expiration date on Dec. 31.

The Village Board voted last week to replace the 24 units for $229,000. Each self-contained breathing apparatus includes two bottles per pack and a mask.

The village has applied for a federal Assistance to Firefighters Grant to cover the expense. Albion used funds from the AFG program before to purchase new air packs, said Fire Chief Jeremy Graham.

There is about a 24-week wait with receiving the air packs from when they are ordered. Graham said the new units should arrive just in time before the old ones must be replaced.

The village expects to hear whether it will receive AFG money in about two months. If Albion doesn’t receive the grant, the board said it could use money from the federal American Rescue Plan Act and also dip into the village’s reserve balance and fund balance.

ALBION – The Albion Police Department will be at the carnival at Bullard Park on Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., checking to make sure car seats are safely installed.

The Police Department has a limited number of car seats available for free. The public is welcome to stop and have a trained car seat technician make sure the seats are safely in place.

The Orleans County Sheriff’s Office is also doing a car seat check on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Orleans County Public Safety Building at 13925 Route 31 in Albion.

Bullard will also host Who Dats for concert in evening

Photo by Tom Rivers: About 350 children enjoyed the bounce houses, games and the splash pad at Bullard Park during the carnival on July 13, 2022. The event will be this Wednesday and is again open to kids from throughout the Orleans County.

By Ginny Kropf and Tom Rivers

ALBION – Bullard Park will host its annual summer carnival this Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Last year the event was opened to children from throughout Orleans County, not just Albion. About 350 kids attended last year.

Christina Nenni from Best of Tymes Party Rentals will be back with bounce houses. A $5 wrist band gets attendants in and includes free lunch for kids, provided by the Royal Body Shop Ministries and Albion’s Masonic Lodge.

Lunch for adults, which includes a hot dog or hamburger, French fries and a drink is $5. Lunch will be available from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The event also includes kid’s activities, carnival games and music. Mike Seege will present “Say No to Bullying” Magic Show, which is free to all.

Best of Tymes will sell snow cones for $2 and popcorn, soda or water for $1 each. Lyncoln Bear and Buddies will be on site, as well.

The splash pad and playground will be open all day.

The Village of Albion concert series also will shift from the downtown to Bullard Park from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. with The Who Dats performing.

The concert is free to the public and will include food and alcohol vendors.

Photo by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The new Taco Bell is under construction at 118 West Ave. Contractors have been working on the project for about three months.

The new 2,600-foot restaurant is expected to open in mid-August, said Anne Podolak, a Village of Albion code enforcement officer. She updated the Village Board on the project during the board meeting on Wednesday evening.

Hospitality Syracuse is the developer for the project on vacant land owned by Landsman Development of Rochester.

The new Taco Bell will go next to McDonalds and across from Freeze-Dry Foods. Hospitality Syracuse will make about 40 percent of the 1.33-acre lot green space with grass. The company has removed a water tank in the back corner of the lot and is replacing chain-link fences with ones made of wood.