Photos by Kristina Gabalski

CLARENDON – Before the Clarendon Town Board members held their regular August meeting at the Historical Society Museum Barn on Tuesday evening, community members enjoyed free hot dogs and drinks, and were treated to a concert by the band, Brick.

The Clarendon Historical Society served up the food provided by the Clarendon Gazebo Committee.

“It’s a very nice event for the town,” Clarendon Town Board member Allen Robinson noted during the meeting, following a comment from a resident praising the annual event as a time for the “small community to come together, sit down and relax.”

During their meeting, board members set workshop dates of Sept. 21 and 22 for budget preparation. The town must have its 2016 tentative budget in place by Sept. 30, officials said.

Grant Moy, left, and Garrett Moy, grandsons of Clarendon Town Supervisor Richard Moy, help out at the grill Tuesday evening outside the Historical Society Museum Barn. The Historical Society served free hot dogs and drinks provided by the Clarendon Gazebo Committee from 5 to 7 p.m., preceding the monthly meeting of the Town Board which was held in the museum. Those attending enjoyed food as well as entertainment provided by the country/oldies/classic rock-n-roll band, Brick.

Brick performs outside the Clarendon Historical Society Museum Barn.

HOLLEY – William Murphy on Sunday submitted his letter of resignation, effective Sept. 1, as chief for the Holley Police Department. Murphy has been the lone full-time officer in the department that includes 10 part-time officers.

Murphy said he wanted to continue as police chief. But he resigned following a decision on the Village Board not to seek a pay waiver for his retirement.

Murphy was retired from the Greece Police Department when he joined Holley as chief 7 ½ years ago. The Village Board needed to seek a waiver from the State Comptroller’s Office for Murphy twice a year because he was paid over the $30,000 limit for retirees receiving a police pension.

The board always sought the waiver until a board meeting on July 30, when the majority of the board opposed seeking the waiver again.

Murphy was paid $42,000 as Holley chief. Without the waiver, his pay would be capped at no more than $30,000. He is already close to that threshold this year, nearing the end of August. Murphy said without the waiver not only is his pay capped at $30,000, but he would see his pension decrease.

Mayor John Kenney said some members of the board are against the waivers. The mayor said Murphy said done a “great job” for the community, running a professional department.

He said village officials will discuss the next steps for finding Murphy’s successor.

Murphy has been out since July 28 due to back surgery. Robert Barton has been serving as officer-in-charge, but he will done in two weeks to return to his full-time teaching position.

Murphy said the department’s part-time officers impressed him with their commitment to the job.

“We were stepping up patrols,” Murphy said. “They are dedicated.”

Murphy, an Albion native, started his law enforcement with Holley in 1985. He also worked at the Albion, Rochester and Greece police departments and then retired. However, he took the chance to return to Holley as police chief.

“The people are the main reason I stayed,” he said. “The residents there are great. They’re like your family.”

Photo by Kristina Gabalski – Holley village officials say some of the sinking bricks in the Public Square are a tripping hazard.

HOLLEY – Members of the Village Board are concerned about the condition of some of the bricks which line the walkways and center of the Public Square.

Board members say they are working the Department of Public Works to begin a program of fixing the problem.

At the Tuesday board meeting, trustees discussed the fact that some of the bricks are sinking and creating a tripping hazard.

“Where the bricks come to the sidewalk, they sink,” Trustee Stanley “Skip” Carpenter said.

He noted that no one has been hurt yet, but trustees decided to inspect the business district and begin the work of leveling the bricks off one section at time around the square.

“It’s an easy thing to do,” Deputy Mayor Brian Sorochty said. He explained that the bricks are set in sand.

Trustee Carpenter said the village encouraged the state Department of Transportation to use stamped cement when the Route 31 reconstruction project was completed about a decade ago. Carpenter said the village might consider eventually replacing the brick with stamped cement.

He explained that the sidewalk area outside Dan and Monica Seeler’s building on the east side of the square should be addressed before their new restaurant opens for business, which is expected to happen at the end of this year.

In other business, Mayor John Kenney, Jr. reported that he has signed the agreement between the village, the Village of Holley Development Corporation and the EPA which will allow the eight “Diaz homes” in the village to become the property of the VHDC. There is no word yet on exactly when the turnover of the properties will occur.

Deputy Mayor Brian Sorochty said the process is now in the hands of officials in Washington, DC.

HOLLEY – In an effort to protect neighborhood property values, prevent damage to the village’s underground infrastructure, and stop the degradation of the aesthetic appearance of residential areas, the Holley Village Board on Tuesday passed a new parking law prohibiting the parking of motor vehicles, water craft, and non-motorized campers or trailers on front yard lawns.

Trustees unanimously adopted Local Law 3 of 2015 during their regular meeting, following a public hearing at which no residents spoke.

Under the “Prohibited Yard Parking Program,” vehicles must be on an approved driveway or parking pad if they are parked in a front yard (defined in the law as between a line drawn parallel to the street from the point of the front line of the structure that is closest to the street and the improved road surface).

Improved parking pads or driveways must be a minimum of 10 feet wide, maintained in safe and sanitary condition, and shall not contribute to soil erosion or tree damage, according to the law.

The law further states that parking spaces and driveways must be built with a hard, all-weather surface, such as asphalt, concrete or brick; grass and dirt areas will not be acceptable for parking spaces and driveways.

Violators are subject to a $250 fine for each violation.

Trustee Stanley “Skip” Carpenter asked village attorney John Sansone if the law affects those in the village with existing gravel/dirt driveways. Sansone responded that the law covers only, “things that are new,” and in the defined “front yard” area of a property.

Village code enforcement will enforce the law, officials said.

Photo by Tom Rivers

HOLLEY – A crew from the State Department of Transportation was out filling cracks and potholes on Route 31 in the Village of Holley today.

The area’s roadways paid a price after the brutally cold winter.