By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 December 2018 at 11:20 am
BARRE – The State Police dive team found a missing Barre man this morning. Robert Arnett, 71, was found deceased in a pond behind his home on Quaker Hill Road.
That area near the pond had been searched on Saturday. The dive team was brought in today to check nearby ponds.
Arnett was found at about 10 a.m. He had been missing since Friday at about 7 p.m. A missing vulnerable adult alert was cancelled at 10:35 this morning.
Arnett suffered from Alzheimer’s.
About 150 people were out this morning on the search, including state forest rangers, conservation officers, state troopers, deputies, K9 teams and firefighters from 12 departments in Orleans and Genesee counties.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 December 2018 at 9:27 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
BARRE – A bloodhound with the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office tries to pick up the scent of a missing Barre man this morning on Maple Street near Route 98.
There are about 150 people out looking this morning for Robert Arnett, who was last seen at 7 p.m. on Friday.
Robert M. Arnett
State conservation officers, forest rangers, state troopers, Orleans County deputies and many volunteer firefighters from a dozen departments gathered at the Barre Fire Hall about 8 a.m. before breaking into groups to resume the search.
Arnett was first reported missing at 10 p.m. on Friday. At that point he had been gone for about three hours from his home on Quaker Hill Road (Route 98).
Arnett suffers from Alzheimer’s and requires medication. He has gone missing before. He went outside to look for the family’s cat on Friday evening. The cat came in but Arnett did not. He has been known to take long walks and return home.
The Orleans County Sheriff’s Office put out a missing person alert on Saturday morning for Arnett. He may be wearing a navy T-shirt, light jean jacket, blue jeans and black shoes. He is approximately 5’ 11’’ and 200 pounds with gray hair, gray facial hair and brown eyes.
State forest rangers today are assisting the Barre Volunteer Fire Department and Orleans County Sheriff’s Office. The fire department already has created a grid, showing where people have looked.
Anyone who has seen or had contact with Arnett is urged to call the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office at (585) 589-5527.
Volunteer firefighters assemble this morning at the Barre Fire Hall and prepare to search for a Barre man who has been missing since Friday night.
Oakfield firefighters brought all-terrain vehicles for the search. There are wetlands and wooded areas nearby.
Photos by Tom Rivers: State conservation officers, forest rangers and many volunteer firefighters gather in the Barre fire hall after searching for several hours today for a missing Barre man. The search will resume at 8 a.m. on Sunday.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 December 2018 at 5:33 pm
About 150 people have been trying to find Robert Arnett
Robert M. Arnett
BARRE – About 150 people spent many hours today in an unsuccessful search to find Robert M. Arnett, a Barre man with dementia who was last seen at 7 p.m. on Friday.
There were 132 volunteer firefighters who were part of the search today, a dozen DEC conservation officers, seven Orleans County deputies, two state troopers and several state forest rangers. There also were drones used by the State Police, DEC and Niagara County Sheriff’s Office.
The search will continue on Sunday morning at 8.
“We’ve done an exhaustive search in the immediate area,” said James Neal, chief of the Barre Volunteer Fire Company. “We’ll get some sleep and start over tomorrow.”
Arnett was first reported missing at 10 p.m. on Friday. At that point he had been gone for about three hours from his home on Quaker Hill Road (Route 98).
A Niagara County K9 may have detected Arnett’s scent near the Barre fire hall and Barre Presbyterian Church on Route 98, about ¾ mile north of Arnett’s residence. The dog followed the scent on Friday night to the firehall and church and then it seemed to vanish, Neal said.
Arnett suffers from Alzheimer’s and requires medication. He has gone missing before, Neal said, but was having a good day on Friday. He went outside to look for the family’s cat. The cat came in but Arnett did not.
Arnett’s family doesn’t think he would have got in a car with someone because he is leery of strangers and other people, Neal said.
Clarendon firefighters put an off-road vehicle back in a trailer after they were out trying to locate a Barre man who has dementia.
The Orleans County Sheriff’s Office put out a missing person alert this morning for Arnett. He may be wearing a navy T-shirt, light jean jacket, blue jeans and black shoes. He is approximately 5’ 11’’ and 200 pounds with gray hair, gray facial hair and brown eyes.
About 30 first responders looked for Arnett last night from about 10 p.m. to 3:30 a.m. That number grew five-fold this morning and afternoon.
State forest rangers will assist the Barre Volunteer Fire Department and Orleans County Sheriff’s Office on Sunday. The fire department already has created a grid, showing where people have looked.
Dale Banker, the county’s emergency management director, said he appreciates that so many volunteer firefighters were out trying to find Arnett today.
“I am totally impressed that we have 132 people here, especially these days when fire departments have a shortage of manpower,” Banker said.
Anyone who has seen or had contact with Arnett is urged to call the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office at (585) 589-5527.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 December 2018 at 7:52 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
BARRE – The newly formed Barre Betterment Committee hosted a lighted tractor parade this evening down Route 98.
The top photo shows a tractor with a large American flag in back. Lamb Farms of Oakfield brought this tractor. There were almost 10 tractors in the debut parade.
The road was lined with lights inside milk cartons.
The parade went from Route 98 at East Barre Road to Maple Street. After the parade cookies and hot cocoa were served at the Barre Presbyterian Church.
Hu-Lane Farms decorated this International Harvester.
Martin Bruning drove a pickup and his kids were in the back with a mini-tractor. They include, from left: Aubrey, Everett and Sylvia.
Panek Farms put lights on this track tractor.
The Jurs family decorated a tractor and trailer and also gave Santa a ride.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 December 2018 at 12:42 pm
Provided photos
BARRE – Barre firefighters are escorting Santa around town this weekend, while Santa delivers presents. This group includes, from left: Brian Neal, Kara Bentley, Ben Flansburg, Santa Claus, Doug Bentley and Brian Bentley.
They are making 10 stops today and 20 visits on Sunday. This is the fourth year the Barre Volunteer Fire Company has given Santa rides around town to deliver presents to families.
Santa holds recently born Landon Flansburg.
The Barre Volunteer Fire Company sent out letters to the Barre community, asking if they wanted Santa to stop by this weekend. Santa will make 30 stops this weekend, traveling by fire truck. Santa gives each kid a toy. (Those presents were dropped off at the Barre Fire Hall by parents or grandparents a few days ago.)
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 13 December 2018 at 8:48 am
7-member Siting Board with 5 state agency leaders makes the decision
Photo by Tom Rivers: Lance Mark, the Barre town attorney, responds to a request from resident to have a public referendum about a proposed wind turbine project.
BARRE – Town Board members were asked on Wednesday to put a proposed wind turbine project on the ballot, so residents could make their opinion known on the 47 turbines that would peak at about 600 feet.
John Metzler said surveys on the project have only included a small percentage of residents, including some respondents who don’t live in the town.
“Let all the people of Barre speak,” Metzler said at the Town Board meeting. “That’s the only way to bring a fair end to this.”
The town hired LaBella to do a survey, which accepted responses until July 27. Of the 290 respondents, 44 percent said they are supportive of the project, while 39 percent oppose it, 8 percent are neutral and 7 percent need more information.
Apex Clean Energy, which is working on the wind turbine project in Barre, also commissioned a phone survey in July which included 170 responses from area residents, with 52 percent stating they support the project, compared to 22 percent who say they oppose it.
Metzler said the surveys are far short of getting the opinion of the entire town, which included 2,025 residents in the 2010 Census.
He asked each of the five board members if they supported having a referendum on the project. Lynn Hill, Richard Bennett and Larry Gaylard responded no, while Tom McCabe said he wanted to check if that is legal. Town Supervisor Sean Pogue said he would instead favor a larger public forum where Apex could bring in experts to answer residents’ questions, similar to an Oct. 2 meeting in Lyndonville for Apex’s proposed Lighthouse Wind project in Yates and Somerset.
Town Attorney Lance Mark said a referendum wouldn’t be binding because the state has created a Siting Board through an Article 10 process that will determine if the projects are approved or not. The Siting Board has been through one application so far and approved a wind turbine project in Chautauqua County.
“It’s meaningless,” Mark said about a referendum. “It doesn’t control the outcome of siting turbines.”
Metzler said a referendum would still be beneficial for residents.
“It’s not a legal requirement,” he said about a public vote. “I’m looking to give everyone a fair voice.”
The seven-member Siting Board has five state representatives including the chairman of the Department of Public Service, commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation, commissioner of the Department of Health, chairman of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, and the commissioner of Economic Development.
The Siting Board also includes two representatives from the project area. Robin Nacca of Barre has been appointed to the Siting Board while the other local representative hasn’t been named yet.
Nacca attended Wednesday’s meeting and she said the local sentiment for or against the project is a factor in the Siting Board’s decision.
“The Siting Board has to be unbiased judges and listen to both sides,” she said. “However, the Siting Board doesn’t want to go against the majority.”
Mark agreed the Siting Board will consider community sentiment. He said a citizens’ group, Clear Skies Over Barre, has been recognized by the state to raise concerns from the community.
As part of its preliminary scoping statement for the 200-megawatt project, Apex needed to provide $350 per megawatt or $70,000 in intervenor funds for the local community to hire experts to review the Apex proposal. A judge determined the Town of Barre would receive $40,000 in those funds and Clear Skies Above Barre would have $30,000. That will allow the groups to hire environmental attorneys and experts to review the Apex submission.
Kerri Richardson, Clear Skies president, said Clear Skies wanted $78,000 “to do the job we wanted to do.” The $30,000 has been spent, she told town officials on Wednesday.
She said the town and Clear Skies should have worked together to maximize the funds. The town should be advocating for residents, too, and not expecting Clear Skies to do all of that work, Richardson said.
She told the Town Board she was disappointed it met in executive session on Tuesday with two representatives from Apex. That meeting was only posted on the door of the Town Hall, without many residents knowing the meeting had been called.
Pogue, the town supervisor, was asked by residents what the meeting was about. He said, “negotiations,” and declined to give more details.
“I’m not going to get into it,” Pogue said. “It was an executive session.”
Richardson questioned if it was a legal executive session. If Apex and the Town Board were discussing proposed changes to the town’s zoning for wind turbines, including setbacks, that should have been a public discussion, Richardson said.
Pogue and Mark said if there are any proposed changes in the ordinance there would be a public hearing and residents could provide feedback.
Pogue said the Town Board is pushing to have a draft of a revised wind turbine ordinance done next month, with a public hearing to follow.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 21 November 2018 at 9:31 am
BARRE – The Town Board has approved a $2,208,309 budget that reduces the tax rate by 10 cents, from $9.28 to $9.18 per $1,000 of assessed property.
The town tax levy for the general and highway fund barely increased, by less than 0.1 percent or $851, from $923,325 to $924,176.
The budget is $9,452 under the tax cap, according to town officials.
The budget includes the fire protection rate. That is up from $1.21 to $1.26 per $1,000 of assessed property. The contract for fire protection increased from $199,000 to $210,000.
The town’s tax base grew by nearly $1 million, from $99,631,547 to $100,550,534.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 November 2018 at 11:04 am
Current zoning caps turbines at 500 feet, which is shorter than nearly 600-foot turbines sought by Apex
Photo by Tom Rivers: Town Supervisor Sean Pogue said the Town Board will consider revisions to the ordinance for wind turbines.
BARRE – The Barre Town Planning decided on Monday that the town’s ordinance for wind turbines is just fine the way it is.
The Planning Board received input from Apex Clean Energy, Clear Skies Above Barre and other residents on possible changes to the ordinance. The Planning Board was going to weigh all the comments and suggestions and make a recommendation by Jan. 1 for possibly revising the town law for turbines.
The board on Monday deemed the current local regulations to meet the needs of the community and a developer of a large-scale wind-energy project.
The Town Board, however, will now look at all the letters and comments submitted to the Planning Board, and may decide on changes, Town Supervisor Sean Pogue said during Wednesday’s board meeting.
The town law caps the turbine height at no more than 500 feet. That would be too small for Apex, which is proposing 47 turbines that would be nearly 600 feet high, at maximum tip height. The Barre turbines also would likely generate 4.2 megawatts per turbine, nearly triple the power from the models from a decade ago which were about 400 feet high.
Barre adopted its wind ordinance in 2008 when a different developer was looking at the town for a project that didn’t end up materializing. Apex has proposed some revisions to the ordinance “to modernize the technological standards of the law,” said Ben Yazman, Apex project manager.
Many Barre residents also want much far setbacks than the current town law. The current ordinance says the turbines need a property line setback of at least 1.5 times the tip height. That is for the property lines where the turbine is located.
The current ordinance also says the turbines need to be at least 1,000 feet from any existing residential or commercial building.
Apex has agreed to 1,500 foot setbacks from residential buildings. Yazman also suggests 1.5 times the tip height for setbacks from property lines for non-participating property owners, or landowners without an Apex lease.
Kerri Richardson, president of Clear Skies Above Barre, said the setbacks should be six times the turbine height. That would be at least 3,600 feet or more than a half mile for 600-foot-tall turbines.
John Metzler, a vocal critic of the project, also wants a noise ordinance to limit the sound of the turbines to 40 decibels, which is less than the 45 decibel cap right now.
Town Board member Tom McCabe said the board members have reams of information to look over.
“We got to sit down and digest them,” he said about all of the written comments and submissions. “We want to dig into some of this stuff.”
Metzler asked the Town Board to inform the community of any meetings where the board will be discussing possible changes in the zoning ordinance for turbines.
“It’s not because we want to cause trouble it’s because we care about our community,” Metzler told the board on Wednesday evening. “People first has always been our main thing.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 November 2018 at 9:58 am
Photo by Tom Rivers: This toy tractor is decorated in lights at the Barre Town hall to promote a tractor parade on Dec. 15.
BARRE – The newly formed Barre Betterment Committee is planning a tractor parade on Dec. 15 at 5:30 p.m.
The event will start on East Barre Road at the Root Brothers cold storage building. The procession will then proceed on Route 98 to the Barre Presbyterian Church.
There the community is welcome to join in for Christmas carols, hot cocoa, cider and cookies.
“It’s just to get together to enjoy each other’s company,” Barre Town Supervisor Sean Pogue said on Wednesday during the Town Board meeting.
Th Betterment Committee formed after this summer’s Barre Bicentennial Celebration. The group wants to have more community events.
The committee welcomes participants to light up their tractors for the parade. Residents are also invited to be part of the Betterment Committee.
Kelly Dudley and Cyndy Van Lie Shout are heading the parade. For more information, contact Dudley at 746-1677 or Van Lie Shout at 590-7503
The Barre Betterment Committee has its next meeting at 7 p.m. on Nov. 20 at Van Lie Shout’s house on Route 98.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 November 2018 at 9:05 am
Richard DeCarlo resigned from post after moving to Carlton
BARRE – The Town Board has appointed Rick Root to fill a vacant town justice position.
Root was appointed to a one-year term during a meeting last week. He will begin serving as judge on Jan. 1 in a term that lasts until Dec. 31, 2019. The position will be on the ballot next November.
The board interviewed three applicants for judge. The position was vacated with the resignation of Richard DeCarlo Jr. He resigned on Oct. 1 after moving to Carlton in Orleans County.
That resignation came too late in the election schedule to have the position on the Nov. 6 ballot.
DeCarlo, a Republican, was first elected in November 2013. He won a close election, 213-207, over Root, who ran as a Democrat. Sean Pogue, the current Barre Town Supervisor, also ran for justice in that election and received 122 votes on the Conservative line.
Pogue said Root is now retired after a career in the railroad industry. Root’s late father, Pierson, also was a Bare town justice.
Root resigned as an alternate on the Zoning Board of Appeals to take the position as town justice.
