Provided photo
HOLLEY – Holley Police Chief Bob Barton swears in Steve Mesiti on Friday as a new part-time police officer for the Holley Police Department. Mesiti is joined by his two children during the swearing in.
Mesiti worked 20 years for the Brockport Police Department, retiring as lieutenant.
Photos by Tom Rivers: Dale and Carol Strong look at a map showing the agricultural parcels in the Town of Murray. The town held a public forum on Thursday evening to discuss a farmland protection plan.
MURRAY – Town officials want to assist local farmers in boosting the profitability of their operations, to help ensure a strong agricultural sector. That includes farms of all sizes, from people with part-time ventures to large operations that are hundreds and thousands of acres.
Murray is working to develop the first farmland protection plan in Orleans County, an effort funded through a $25,000 state grant. Town officials and members of the a steering committee working on the plan held a public forum on Thursday.
They are hoping to develop a draft of the plan soon with a public hearing to follow. A final plan would then be referred to the Orleans County Farmland Protection Board for review and then be adopted by the Town Board. The state Department of Ag & Markets gives the plan the last review.
Town Supervisor Joe Sidonio said a farmland protection plan doesn’t put new restrictions on farmers. It will help them access resources and also help the town set policies to support agriculture, Sidonio told about 30 people at the public forum.
Barbara Johnston, a planner with Labella Associates, has served as consultant for the town on the project. She said Murray is blessed with very productive soils.
“You really have a high quality resource,” she said.
Despite those high-quality soils, Johnston said much of the farmland in Murray is not included in an ag district. She said an ag district offers many benefits for the farmers, including protections from nuisance lawsuits when people sue other normal farm operations, which could be odors or mud on roads. The districts also can give farmers exemptions from paying towards water districts, and also provide more protection from eminent domain where private land can be taken for projects deemed in the public good.
Katie Sommerfeldt, manager of the Orleans County Soil & Water Conservation District, also shared how Soil & Water can assist land owners in grants for many conservation projects. Soil & Water also provides engineering expertise for drainage tiling and projects to help move water on properties.
That agency does agricultural value assessments which can save land owners’ money by paying less in taxes for less profitable acreage.
Sommerfeldt urged farmers and landowners to reach out to the office, especially if they see creeks or ditches clogged. That is becoming an issue with many dead ash trees falling into waterways.
Robert Batt, executive director of the Cornell Cooperative Extension in Orleans County, said there are programs through the Extension to assist farm operations of all sizes, including specialized teams for fruits, vegetables and livestock. Cornell also has many programs for smaller farms. There also is the Farm Net program to assist farmers with business consulting, family dynamics, mental health and business transfers.
Robert Batt of the Cornell Cooperative Extension said there are specialized teams to help farmers boost their profitability and avoid pitfalls.
Batt also touted a commercial kitchen in the Trolley Building at the 4-H Fairgrounds that is available to be rented out to help farmers with value-added products.
Batt is on the steering committee working on the farmland protection plan for Murray. Other members include Town Councilman Michael Mele (owner of a garlic farm), Alex Penna (owner of Rockin P Farm and Dam Farms), Amy Machamer (owner of Hurd Orchards and member of NYS Governor’s Ag Advisory Committee), Robert Batt (Cornell Cooperative Extension of Orleans County) and James Bensley (Orleans County Planning Director).
Johnston, the planning consultant, led the group in a SWOT analysis to determine strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to agriculture in Murray.
Some strengths listed include the productive soils, access to canal water for irrigation, good road infrastructure for east-west transport, close proximity to Lake Ontario allowing for microclimate to grow fruit, close access to major population centers to sell farm products, Right to Farm law in place in Murray.
Weaknesses identified include high cost of business with taxes, rising wages and state regulations. New York has a higher minimum wage and has enacted an overtime threshold in agriculture that puts local operations at a competitive disadvantage with many other states. There are also fewer processing plants, such as Duffy Motts and Hunts which used to have a local presence.
Opportunities for farmers could be tapping into agri-tourism, including setting up markets by the canal and at local RV parks. Smaller farm operations could produce honey or grow flowers.
Solar projects – big and small – were identified as a big threat to local farmland.
The steering committee will work to recommend strategies and goals to help foster a stronger ag sector in Murray. Johnston said she expects the plan will be finalized this summer.
Sidonio said he is hopeful the plan could become a model for the rest of the county to make the county’s leading industry even more vibrant.
“I’d like to thank all of the farmers in our county for providing the beautiful landscape we enjoy and often take for granted, said Sidonio, who is married to Machamer of Hurd Orchards. “It os the farmer who provides the fabric that binds us together and allows us to proudly claim we live in rural America. So thank you to all of our farmers and farm families.”
Courtesy of Orleans County Department of Planning & Development: This map shows the zoning districts in the Village of Holley.
HOLLEY – The Village of Holley is looking to update its zoning map, including a large parcel of land on Bennetts Corners Road as commercial, an expansion of the light industrial zone going south of the railroad tracks, and more land designated as conservation near the Holley Waterfalls.
The Orleans County Planning Board recommended against the changes right now, saying the village first needs to update the comprehensive plan and zoning texts. Changing the map is the last step in the process, Planning Board members said during their meeting last Thursday.
Holley hasn’t updated the map since 2008. The village is working to update the comprehensive plan.
Jeff Martin, a local attorney and Holley resident, said the village has the steps in the process out of order. He said the village also needs to do a “type 1 action” or the longer environmental impact study because more than 25 acres are being rezoned.
Martin said about 40 percent of the total village acreage would be rezoned as part of the updated zoning map.
He is most concerned with rezoning 60 acres on Bennetts Corners Road near Route 31. A developer from Chicago wants to develop that agricultural land into a banquet facility with 100 parking spaces. Martin and another neighbor, Roger Passarell, would have that facility within view of their backyards. They both attended Thursday’s Planning Board meeting.
Martin said the zoning map change appears to be an effort “to legitimize this for the developer without going through the normal process of comprehensive plan and zoning amendments.”
Mylynda Kuba, Holley’s former code enforcement officer, said the village has already passed local laws for some of the zoning map changes, especially in the downtown business district.
“There are currently a lot of open zoning areas,” she said. “The current map doesn’t work. There’s a lot that needs to be done in the Village of Holley.”
Photo by Tom Rivers: This pumper-tanker was moved out of the Holley fire hall this evening for a special election. The fire truck is one of two that will be sold and replaced with one new pumper-tanker and a rescue truck that will be refurbished into a mini-pumper.
MURRAY – Voters in the Murray Joint Fire District approved spending up to $900,000 for a new pumper-tanker fire truck and a refurbished rescue truck that will serve as a mini-pumper.
There was a special election this evening from 6 to 9 p.m. and the expenditures were approved by a 66-45 vote.
The Murray Joint Fire District will be replacing two pumper-tankers that are each about 25 years old. One is based at the Holley fire hall and the other at the Fancher-Hulberton-Murray hall. They each can carry 1,000 gallons of water.
They will be replaced with a new pumper-tanker at a cost of $680,000. Fire district leaders also will convert a rescue truck into a mini-pumper at a cost of $220,000.
The district leaders opted to do the smaller mini-pumper rather than buy two new pumper-tankers to try to reduce the costs to the fire district, said Mark Porter, chairman of the commissioners.
Refurbishing the rescue truck into a mini-pumper also will be easier to get the vehicle into tight driveways and on laneways, Porter said.
The fire district will pursue financing through serial bonds or statutory installment bonds up to 20 years, and may utilize bond anticipation notes for up to five years for the $680,000. For the $220,000, the financing would be for up to 15 years.
Press Release, Town of Murray
MURRAY – The Town of Murray will hold a public forum on Thursday, March 2, at 7 p.m. at the Town Hall, 3840 Fancher Rd. as part of the Town of Murray Agricultural and Farmland Protection Plan.
Farmers, farmland owners, residents and others interested in the future of farming and farmland in the Town of Murray are invited to attend.
The program on March 2 will include an overview of the town’s agricultural resources and the Agricultural & Farmland Protection Plan as well as presentations on the following topics:
The Town’s Agricultural & Farmland Protection Plan will recommend strategies to increase economic opportunities for farms, retain high quality farmland for continued agricultural production and support the contributions of agriculture to the regional economy.
A survey of farmers and farmland owners is underway. The Town expects to complete the Agricultural & Farmland Protection Plan by Fall 2023.
A Steering Committee comprised of Michael Mele, Alex Penna, Amy Machamer, Robert Batt (Cornell Cooperative Extension of Orleans County) and James Bensley (Orleans County Planning Director) is working with the Town’s planning consultant (LaBella Associates) to prepare the Town’s Agricultural & Farmland Protection Plan.
For more information, please contact one of the Steering Committee members or planning consultant Barbara Johnston at (585) 295-6636.
Photos by Tom Rivers: Rollin Hellner, founder and CEO of Hellner Development Company, is pictured Saturday outside The Walsh at 525 West Ave. in Medina. He purchased the building last Wednesday from Tim Cooper.
MEDINA – A Medina man with a real estate development business has acquired The Walsh and soon will buy the Holley Hotel.
Rollin Hellner, founder and CEO of Hellner Development Company, is only 29. He already has a real estate portfolio of several hundred thousand square feet with commercial and residential sites in Orleans, Niagara and Erie counties. He focuses on what he said are typically distressed properties.
Hellner lives in Medina in the Maple Crest, a 5,500-square-foot home that he renovated last year.
He had lived in Medina from 2015 to 2020 and was happy to come back to the village last year.
He has been friends with Tim Cooper for several years. Cooper bought The Walsh and worked three years on the first floor of the site. He opened a barroom and second tap room last summer.
Cooper had plans for the second and third floors, but will hand off the project to Hellner who is planning to make second floor apartments and third floor hotel rooms at The Walsh.
“He has a lot of energy and a lot of talent,” Cooper said about Hellner.
The new owner praised Cooper for his work at The Walsh, turning it into a popular gathering place for the community at 525 West Ave.
“Tim did a fantastic job with it,” Hellner said Saturday at The Walsh, as many people were coming into the tap room as part of the Wine About Winter event, with 800 people enjoying wine-tastings at 22 spots in Medina.
Cooper will stay on at The Walsh, managing the tap room.
“He did a lot of improvements that that brought back the original historic character,” Hellner said.
He also praised Cooper for creating a vibe at The Walsh that is focused on conversation and connecting with other people.
“We want it to continue to be a place where Medina residents feel comfortable,” Hellner said.
Rollin Hellner is his company will go through and renovate each of the 40 units at the Holley Hotel.
He also will close on buying the Holley Hotel on March 1. He has an agreement to start work on the site this week. There are some code violations that need to be resolved before people can move back into the building.
Residents in apartments at the Holley Hotel were forced to leave the site on Aug. 24 after the village code enforcement officer deemed the building was unsafe and unsanitary on Aug. 3. Residents were given three weeks to find alternative housing.
Some of the issues have been addressed, and Hellner and his team will work to get the site up to code. He said there will be a rebranding of the site, which will continue to be called the Holley Hotel. There are about 40 units in the Medina sandstone structure at the corner of Route 31 and Thomas Street.
There will be a screening process for tenants in the apartments, and he would like to offer hotel rooms. Initially, the units will be mostly apartments, but long-term he would like about half of the units to be hotel rooms. The building also includes two storefronts.
He said his development company will work on some parts of the outside of the building and go unit by unit inside, renovating the spaces.
“It’s a beautiful building,” Hellner said. “It’s very important piece of the Public Square.”
Mayor Mark Bower said he is very encouraged to see Hellner will be acquiring the site and putting resources into the building and giving it a new image in the community.
Hellner said he sees a lot of potential with Holley with its unique Public Square and its tourist attraction with the Holley Waterfalls.
His projects in Medina, Holley. Middleport, Lockport, Buffalo and Newfane are ambitious efforts, but Hellner said he sees the area as a good investment.
The properties in the villages are more affordable than in the suburbs, and he said he has a dedicated team that knows how to make the properties attractive for residents and businesses.
“I feel very good about a lot of the communities in Niagara and Orleans,” Hellner said. “We offer clean and affordable housing and real estate. I think there’s deals to be made here.”
MURRAY – The Town of Murray’s proposed solar law includes four tiers for projects which differs from most of the local towns which divvy the projects into two tiers.
Murray officials have been working on the proposed law for about a year, code enforcement officer Mylynda Kuba said during last week’s Orleans County Planning Board meeting.
Murray is proposing the following tiers:
• Tier 1 (Capacity up to 25 kW) – Permitted in all zoning districts and exempt from site plan review. They could be roof mounted or ground mounted.
• Tier 2 (Capacity up to 1 megawatt and which generate no more than 100 percent of the electricity consumed on the site over the previous 12 months) – Permitted in all zoning districts as accessory structures and subject to site plan review; view minimized from adjacent properties; requires a landscape plan.
• Tier 3 (Capacity up to 5 megawatts and up to 40 acres in size) – Issuance of special use permit and site plan review, and permitted in residential/agricultural and industrial zones; must complete a study to be submitted to local airports for encroachment issues; shall be screened from adjoining uses and any roadway.
• Tier 4 (projects not included in tiers 1, 2 or 3) – Issuance of special use permit and site plan review, and permitted in residential/agricultural and industrial zones; eligible for solar systems PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) and will require a host community agreement fee; same restrictions and requirements as a tier 3 system but with additional requirements including an agricultural impact statement to determine impact on agriculture in town and community; economic impact study to determine economic impact of project on town; and proposal for host community agreement that reflect large-scale impacts of the project.
Kuba, the town’s code officer, said no current solar projects have been submitted to the town, but she said many farmers are being approached about projects.
The town’s proposed code establishes regulations and an application process for projects of all sizes. Kuba said the rules from the town give farmers and larger land owners options to host projects with fewer regulations than going through the state process.
Murray’s law doesn’t address larger battery storage systems for solar. Kuba said town officials want more information on large battery storage projects before establishing regulations.
The town’s law also addresses solar projects that are abandoned or deemed inoperative. Those systems, regardless of size, shall be decommissioned and removed at the owner’s expense.
The County Planning Board recommending Murray approve the proposed regulations.
ALBION – The Orleans County Planning Board is recommending the Town of Murray approve a special use permit and the site plan for a landscaping business in a residential-agriculture district at 3733 Hulberton Rd.
Nicholas Bell and Hannah Beall own and operate Bell Design & Landscape. They plan to run the business from their property using 1.3 acres of a 14.1 acre site for the business.
Their plan includes construction of a 40-by-70-foot barn with the potential of a 40-by-30-foot addition in the future.
There would also be a 20-by-70-foot lean-to off to the south of the newly constructed barn. There would also be two greenhouses at 65 by 32 feet, and a 45-by-20-foot office attached to the north of the barn.
The business currently has three employees. Most of the coming and going from the site would be in the morning and late afternoons.
Planners recommended approval of storage and sale of topsoil, mulch, wood chips and similar products as long as they are stored at least 300 feet from any residential structure and 50 feet from any property line. Any piles of those products should not exceed 25 feet in height.
Any repairs to construction equipment for the business also should be done inside a building, planners said.
• In the meeting last Thursday evening, the County Planning Board also recommended the Town of Albion amend its zoning map from residential-agriculture to general commercial for land at 14530 East Lee Rd. owned by Land Pro Equipment, and 14846 East Lee Rd. owned by Henry Haines. The two sites are 3.3 acres.
The Land Pro site is for sale. Frontier Heating & AC Service is looking to acquire it. The spot used to be used as a cabbage storage facility and more recently by BCA Ag technologies. Land Pro is combining its Oakfield and Albion locations with a new site in Batavia.
The property next door owned by Haines has been used for auto repairs.
Press Release, Holley Central School
HOLLEY – The school district’s Pre-K and kindergarten registration will be on Wednesday, March 15, from 1 to 5 p.m.
Registration will be held in the Elementary Library Classroom. Please bring the following original documents to register your child: completed registration packet, birth certificate, immunization record and proof of residency (for example, utility bill). Copies will be made during your visit. You will not be able to register without these documents.
To be eligible to register for Pre-K, children must be 4 years old by Dec. 1, 2023. To be eligible to register for kindergarten, children must be 5 years old by Dec. 1, 2023.
Pre-K and kindergarten health physicals are required to be completed by Sept. 1, 2023.
If you need assistance completing the registration packet, we can help you on March 15, when you bring in your packet and other required documents.
To request a registration packet, click here and it can be mailed to you.
If you have any questions, please call Alexa Downey at 585-638-6318, extension 2580.
Provided photos
HOLLEY – Julie Berry of Medina, front, met with Holley 10th graders last Wednesday for a presentation on her book, Lovely War. Berry addressed about 65 students during a presentation, where she also played ragtime music on the piano.
The sophomores are reading the book in their English classes.
Berry in her presentation covered the major themes in the book such as segregation, trench warfare, Greek gods and ragtime music.
Berry, owner of Author’s Note in Medina, also signed copies of the book for students. The book is set in World War I & II.
The book averages a 4.25 star rating out of 5 with 46,070 ratings and 8,862 reviews on Goodreads, the world’s largest site for readers and book recommendations. Click here to see the reviews.
Julie Berry played ragtime music and discussed her book with Holley students last week.
MURRAY – Two resolutions were scheduled for a public vote today for the Murray Joint Fire District. But that special election has been moved back to Feb. 21.
The commissioners for the fire district had set a public vote from 6 to 9 p.m. today at the fire hall at 7 Thomas St. in Holley.
The commissioners are seeking voter approval to spend up to $680,000 to purchase a pumper and up to $220,000 to refurbish a mini-pumper.
The fire district will pursue financing through serial bonds or statutory installment bonds up to 20 years, and may utilize bond anticipation notes for up to five years for the $680,000. For the $220,000, the financing would be for up to 15 years.
Eligible voters must be at least 18 and live in the fire district for at least 30 days prior to the vote on Feb. 21.
Photos courtesy of Murray Joint Fire District
MURRAY – Firefighters were dispatched to a chimney fire at about 10 this morning. The fire at 2925 West Kendall Rd. in Murray spread from the chimney into a partition wall and into the attic, Murray Fire Chief Rick Cary said.
There were three occupants at the house and none of them or any of the responding firefighters were injured, Cary said.
Murray was assisted by the scene by firefighters from Kendall, Albion and Hamlin. The fire was knocked down in about 15 minutes, Cary said.
Orleans County fire investigators also responded to determine the cause.
The residents are currently displaced due to the fire.
HOLLEY – School district residents approved a proposed $18.1 million capital project today with a vote of 192 yes and 46 no.
project will be funded with $14.1 million in state aid and $4 million that is already in a Holley capital reserve fund. School leaders say there won’t be any new taxes on residents with the project.
The proposed project is focused on safety, program improvements and site renovations, according to a newsletter about the project.
The scope of the project includes:
Safety
Program Improvements
Site Renovations
Holley’s last capital vote was in December 2014. The new project will need detailed plans to be prepared by Holley’s architects and construction management team. Those plans will be submitted to the state Education Department for review, a process that typically takes several months.
The district will push to have all the needed approvals and bidding process on schedule for construction to start in the summer of 2024.
Photos by Tom Rivers
HOLLEY – Emelia Logsdon, 2, and her mother Lauren Logsdon visit with Santa in the Holley fire hall this evening after the village’s annual tree-lighting ceremony in the Public Square.
There was a big crowd gathered in the fire hall for snacks while they waited for Santa and Mrs. Claus.
Kelly Marzano, Holley’s high school chorus teacher, leads the group while the sign Christmas carols.
Greyson Thorn, 4, of Holley is happy to meet Santa and Mrs. Claus.
Holley Mayor Mark Bower reads the names of the Holley residents who were remembered with memory bulbs as part of the tree-lighting ceremony. Bower said the holiday season can be difficult for families and friends who are missing loved ones.
Marzano directs the chorus while it sings carols and Christmas songs, including “Silent Night” prior to the tree-lighting.
The tree is lighted up in the Public Square after Mayor Bower read the names of people recognized with memory bulbs.
Photo by Tom Rivers: The Holley Elementary School is pictured recently on North Main Street.
HOLLEY – The school district will present an $18.1 million capital project to the community in a vote on Dec. 13.
Voting will be from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Holley Middle/High School Foyer, 16848 Lynch Rd. Eligible voters must be at least 18, a U.S. citizen and a legal resident of the district for at least 30 days.
The project will be funded with $14.1 million in state aid and $4 million that is already in a Holley capital reserve fund. School leaders say there won’t be any new taxes on residents with the project.
The proposed project is focused on safety, program improvements and site renovations, according to a newsletter about the project.
“We focused on the following three areas: keeping our schools safe, enhancing and increasing educational opportunities for our students, and ensuring our buildings and grounds, including The Woodlands, are in outstanding condition for many years to come,” District Superintendent Brian Bartalo and Board of Education President Robin Silvis wrote in a letter to the community.
The scope of the project includes:
Safety
Program Improvements
Site Renovations
Holley’s last capital vote was in December 2014. The district leaders expect the new project, if approved by voters, would then need detailed plans to be prepared by Holley’s architects and construction management team. Those plans would be submitted to the state Education Department for review, a process that typically takes several months.
Bartalo and Silvis said the district is pushing to have all the needed approvals and bidding process on schedule for construction to start in the summer of 2024.
“The timing of the planning and construction comes when we can maximize state aid dollars to maintain zero tax impact,” Bartalo and Silvis said in their letter.
For more information on the project, click here.
