HOLLEY – The Board of Education and the Holley Teachers Association have agreed to a three-year contract giving teachers an average annual salary increase of 3.5 percent.

The contract was approved by the board last month. The contract changes the step salary structure. Not all of the increases for all of the steps are 3.5 percent a year.

The contract is retroactive to July 1, 2019 and continues through June 30, 2022. The agreement includes 105 teachers and eight teaching assistants.

The contract also requires teachers to contribute 12 percent to the health insurance costs for either single or family plans. That is the same rate as in the previous contract.

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HOLLEY – Zack Jacobs sent in this photo he took of a great blue heron looking for fish at the Holley Waterfalls this past weekend.

The weather this week shows highs in the 40s from Monday through Friday, and a high of 50 on Saturday.

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Fire trucks provide escort through Holley on way to hospital

Photos by Tom Rivers

HOLLEY – A Clarendon fire truck has an “Evan Strong” sign in front of the truck during a processional today, when several fire trucks provided an escort through Holley, Clarendon and to Route 531 in Spencerport for Evan Valentine.

Evan, a Holley High School junior battling leukemia, left this morning to go to Golisano Children’s Hospital in Rochester. He is preparing for a final treatment of chemo and then a bone marrow transplant.

Evan Valentine smiles while on a ride through Holley this morning. Many community wore orange shirts in his honor and held up signs with messages of support.

Evan was first diagnosed with leukemia in Oct. 19, 2018. He completed four rounds of chemotherapy and returned to school on April 22, 2019. In January, he received the news the leukemia had returned.

This group stands in the parking lot for the soccer field on High Street. Evan plays soccer and golf for the school, and also performs in the musicals and with the chorus. He also is active with the Boy Scouts and is an altar server at St. Mary’s Catholic Church.

“He is an inspiration to not only all the students and staff at Holley High School, but to the entire Holley community,” said Brian Bartalo, the Holley school district superintendent. “He is an incredible young man with an engaging personality and unwavering spirit that encourages all of us.”

Bartalo was set up on Route 31 near the entrance of Northampton Park in Brockport, to wave to Evan and his family.

“I’m so proud of the response of the Holley Central School District, the Holley, Clarendon and Brockport Fire Departments and the entire Holley community for pulling together, especially during these trying times, to show their support for one of our own,” Bartalo said. “Holley is an incredible community that has a lot of heart, even when faced with challenges, like we’re all dealing with now.”

There were fire trucks from Holley, Clarendon, Fancher-Hulberton-Murray and Brockport in the escort for Valentine.

The community organized the sendoff for Evan this morning at 10 a.m. Due to the restrictions on visitors at the hospital, many of Evan’s friends haven’t been able to visit him while he recovered from chemo and now as he prepares for his bone marrow transplant. Evan’s classmates, teachers and the firefighters wanted to give him a show of support and strength as he prepares for the transplant.

Some classmates and friends stand in front of St. Mary’s Catholic Church and hold up signs and wave to Evan as he rides by this morning.

Evan’s mother Diane Valentine and her son wave to the people gathered in the parking lot on High Street for the soccer field.

To see a video of the fire trucks and Evan passing through the intersection of routes 237 and 31, click here.

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Callie Updike raises nearly $1,400 for childhood cancer research

Provided photos: Callie Updike of Holley reacts after her head was shaved on Saturday in a fundraiser for childhood cancer research. Callie, 15, did the fundraiser for her Holley classmate Evan Valentine, who is currently being treated for leukemia.

HOLLEY – Callie Updike, one of the student leaders at Holley Junior-Senior High School, has a flair for style, including with her hair. She gives her hair a touch of purple, pink or some other color.

Callie, 15, is a junior at Holley. One of her long-time classmates, Evan Valentine, is currently in remission from leukemia for the second time. Callie last month announced she would shave her head on April 11 to raise money for childhood cancer.

Callie Updike

She picked April 11 in honor of my grandmother’s 73rd birthday. Her grandmother passed away to cancer in 2014.

Callie was hoping Evan could personally shave her head this past Saturday. He has been at Golisano Children’s Hospital in Rochester and is currently home in remission, waiting for a bone marrow transplant. Callie instead went with a virtual event with Evan.

She set a $1,000 fundraising goal and passed that with donations averaging about $20. It’s at $1,368 currently. (Click here to contribute.)

Callie said she decided to shave off her hair when Evan lost his thick head of curls. She talked with Evan about her plan, and he suggested St. Baldrick’s, an organization created for the direct purpose of aiding in childhood cancer research.

“Seeing the hurt that Evan and his family had endured as well as the constant love and support that our community provided, I felt compelled to do what I could to help,” Callie said in an email.

Evan was first diagnosed in Oct. 19, 2018. He completed four rounds of chemotherapy and returned to school on April 22, 2019. In January, he received the news the leukemia had returned.

Callie thanked the donors for contributing to the fundraising effort.

“It’s a modest number, just over a grand, but knowing that we could reach so many community members and gather together in such a trying time brings me immeasurable joy,” she said.

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The Holley Village Board met Tuesday evening through Zoom. Pictured from left include Mayor Brian Sorochty, and trustees James DeFilipps, Rochelle Moroz, Connie Nenni and Kevin Lynch.

HOLLEY — The Holley Village Board has approved a tentative budget that would reduce the tax rate from $16.41 to $16.20 per $1,000 of assessed property.

The board held a public hearing on the budget at Tuesday evening. The meeting was done online through Zoom. The Village Office remains closed to the public due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This was the village’s first meeting online.

The budget will be formally adopted later this month. The village fiscal year runs from June 1 to May 31.

Although the tax rate will be going down, the village will be collecting more in property taxes. The tax levy will go up 2.3 percent or by $20,483 from $887,999 to $908,482.

The tax rate will go down because the village’s tax base grew by about $2 million. The village assessed value is up 3.6 percent or $1,967,513, from $54,098,660 to $56,066,173.

The general fund portion of the budget – office, DPW, police, employee benefits and general debt – totals $1,239,434, while the water budget is $436,401 and the sewer budget is $180,338.

Mayor Brian Sorochty said village officials have been working hard on the budget in recent months. He is pleased the tax rate will go down and the budget is under the property tax cap.

However, he said the village will have to be extra careful this coming fiscal year because state and federal funding may change due to the economic strains from Covid-19’s impact on the economy.

“We will really need scrutinize spending given the uncertainty,” Sorochty said.

In other action at Tuesday’s meeting, the Village Board:

• Approving spending $1,500 for the Waste Water Treatment to purchase two submersible pumps from Goodwin and 100 feet of lay flat hose.

• Approved spending $600 for the Police Department’s annual defibrillator certification conducted by Zoll.

• Approved spending $3605.83 for the Water Department to buy a Well Pump from Bailey Electric.

• Authorized spending $3,800 for the Water Department to buy four sampling stations from Blair Supply.

• Approved up to $900 for flowers and mulch for containers on Public Square and Wright Street.

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Provided photos

HOLLEY – The Easter Bunny spent a couple hours greeting people from a Holley fire truck today. The bunny rode with a procession of Holley and Clarendon fire trucks, including Clarendon’s new rescue/pumper.

The parade passed through the Village of Holley, Ridge Mobile Estates, Countyline Trailer Park and Thomas Estates.

The Schutz family waves to the Easter Bunny.

The Strathearn Family provided the Easter Bunny for a couple hours.

“A huge thank you to the community for coming out and waving to the Easter Bunny during this Covid-19 pandemic and social distancing as I’m sure most of these kids would have loved a picture with the bunny,” according to the Holley Fire Department. “This is truly a hard time for all during a holiday.”

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HOLLEY – The federal Environmental Protection Agency is temporarily suspending a $20 million cleanup project at the former Diaz Chemical site in Holley.

The EPA is planning to have about 20 personnel on site for phase 2 of the cleanup on Jackson Street.

The EPA has already spent $12.5 million on the cleanup, using money from the Superfund. The EPA has removed buildings, pipes, drums and tanks. Only two warehouses remain from Diaz, which declared bankruptcy and abandoned the site in 2002. The company operated for about 30 years in Holley.

The next phase – thermal treatment of contaminated soil and groundwater at the site – will cost $20 million, the EPA said.

“As we continue to adjust to the evolving COVID-19 situation, EPA is taking the necessary steps to ensure that decisions about ongoing cleanup activities at Superfund sites are made with the health and safety of communities, EPA staff, state and tribal partners, and contractors as the priority,” the EPA said in a community notice.

Besides EPA staff, the phase 2 includes personnel from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and contractors. They are temporarily suspending bringing equipment and staff to the Superfund site.

“The suspension of work is a temporary measure as we adjust to the ongoing situation with COVID-19,” the EPA said. “We will be periodically reassessing this decision moving forward and are prepared to come back to the site to continue work as soon as possible. The decision to suspend work was made in consultation with, or at the recommendation of, the Village of Holley.”

The EPA has been working on cleaning up the site for nearly 20 years. With phase 2, the EPA will tackle the contaminated soil on the 5-acre site. The soil poses a threat to the groundwater, EPA officials said.

The dirt can’t simply be carted off the premises until it has been treated to remove the contaminants. The EPA and a contractor will drill 600 wells, spaced about 13 to 15 feet apart, and install an underground system where the soil will be heated up. That will remove below-ground contaminates from soil.

Water vapors also will be collected and treated, and then filtered and discharged into the sewer.

Once the contaminant level drops in the soil, about 100 truckloads are expected to be hauled away to a landfill.

The EPA will have 100 truckloads of clean soil brought to the site. Project managers went over the work with the Holley Village Board in February.

The schedule before Covid-19

The schedule before the delay caused by Covid-19 included contractors drilling test wells and crews starting to mobilize this spring, with soil to be excavated in the summer, with drilling and well installation.

The first stage of the thermal treatment system will go in next winter through summer 2021. A second stage of drilling and well installation is planned for the spring-summer 2021 with the second stage of the thermal treatment system to be installed from winter 2021 to summer 2022.

A concrete cover is part of the project during the treatment stage. The concrete will be removed once the treatment is done.

The project will be substantially complete in the winter of 2023, according to the EPA timeline. A final layer of topsoil and grass will be added to complete the project.

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Tenants wait for OK to move in at Holley Gardens

Photos by Tom Rivers

HOLLEY – A worker cleans in the stairwell at the former Holley High School, which is being transformed into 41 senior apartments and the offices for the Village of Holley.

Wednesday was supposed to be the move-in day for several of the tenants but it has been pushed back due to concerns about the coronavirus.

Most of the 41 apartments are complete with additional work needed on the dozen apartments in the basement. The first and second floors are done.

Home Leasing in Rochester, which spearheaded the $17 million project, also is working on the space in the former auditorium, which will become the village offices. The site will be known as the Holley Gardens.

The company is asking state officials for a date for the tenants to start moving in.

This is the hallway on the second floor where the apartments are ready for residential living. Home Leasing started construction in November 2018 on the project. The school was built in 1931 and closed after 1975. It was vacant for more than two decades. It was last used by a manufacturing company, Liftec, which went bankrupt.

The lockers serve a decorative function. Home Leasing sandblasted the locker faces, and gave them new coats of paint. New handrails stretch throughout the hallways.

Carrie Valone is the site manager for Home Leasing. She said there has been a strong response from the community for the apartments. Only four of the 41 are available.

Tours of the building in February were a big seller of the apartments, Valone said.

“People are ecstatic,” she said. “It holds strong memories for the people around here. Plus, it’s brand new and the rents are affordable.”

George DeRue (right), Home Leasing’s vice president of historical preservation, served as the construction manager for the project. He has 30 years with Home Leasing. He shows an apartment to Ron Vendetti, Holley’s code enforcement officer and grants manager. Vendetti graduated from Holley in 1971. He said Home Leasing has done an amazing job with the construction project.

The apartments include one studio, 35 one-bedrooms, and five two-bedroom apartments, most of which are 700 to 800 square feet. This apartment includes an original hardwood floor from the school. The floor was salvageable and in good enough shape for about eight of the apartments.

Most of the apartments have a chalkboard from the old school. George DeRue said the tenants will find the chalkboard useful for writing down appointments and other reminders.

The trophy case used to be at right in the hallway. Now the space can function as a bench.

This view looks out towards Route 31 and the Community Free Library. Home Leasing put in new glass for the windows while refurbishing the window frames.

The rooms all have new doors but Home Leasing was able to keep the transom windows above the doors.

The original wooden railings in the stairwells were saved and are being put back into place. They were sanded and revarnished.

Home Leasing put a small addition on the building (lower left) that serves as an entryway where there are new mailboxes, a phone system and access to an elevator.

To see how the building looked in October, during another tour, click here.

For more information on the project and to contact Home Leasing, click here.

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Press Release, Holley Central School

HOLLEY – If you are interested in enrolling your child in Holley’s universal pre-kindergarten (UPK) or kindergarten program, please complete the form (click here). This enables us to mail you the appropriate registration packet for you to complete.

Please note: If your child currently attends Holley Central’s UPK, you do not need to register for kindergarten. Your student will be automatically enrolled.

Once completed, applications can be mailed back to the school or dropped off by appointment only. Please contact Karen Bower (Kbower@holleycsd.org or 638-6318, ext. 2580) to set up an appointment.

Copies of birth certificates, proof of residency, immunization records and any applicable custodial paperwork will be collected at a later date. The mailing address is Holley Elementary School, 3800 North Main St., Holley, NY 14470.

Screening dates for UPK and kindergarten will be announced at a later date.

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Provided photos

HOLLEY – Many Holley teachers, staff and administrators travelled to neighborhoods in the district today, a caravan of cars to show students they are missed.

The district like others in Orleans County is in its second week of being closed to students due to the health concerns with the coronavirus.

Many students came out of their front porches and yards to wave to the teachers and staff, who put Holley Hawk school colors of red on their vehicles, as well as other messages such as “We Miss You.”

The parade of vehicles started at noon and passed through the Village of Holley, Thomas Estates, Akeley Manor and County Line Mobile Park.

The district also has been celebrating a virtual sprit week, encouraging students to post photos of themselves dressed up in the theme of the day. Those days this week include the following:

• Monday: Superhero Day – Post a photo of yourself dressed like a superhero in honor of all hospital workers, first responders, grocery employees and anyone else considered an essential worker during this time.

• Tuesday: Crazy Hair Day – Post a photo with your craziest hairstyle.

• Wednesday: Pajama Day – Post a photo of yourself in your favorite pajamas.

• Thursday: Jersey Day – Post a photo of yourself in your favorite team jersey in honor of all the athletes whose seasons are on hold right now.

• Friday: School Spirit Day – Post a photo of yourself in your favorite Holley gear of wearing the school color of red.

(Post photos to Twitter: @HolleyCSD and @Holley_MS_HS)

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Children’s Librarian Grace Azzolino reads Bear Sees Colors by Karma Wilson.

HOLLEY – The Community Free Library may be closed to the public during the coronavirus pandemic, but the Wednesday children’s book storytime is continuing.

Grace Azzolino, the children’s librarian, read three books today, sang children’s songs and even taught sing language during a 20-minute video posted on YouTube. Click here to see the video – “Story Hour: March 18th, 2020 (Spring!)”

The Holley library, like most in the area, isn’t allowing patrons inside the building. Azzolino, in her message on YouTube, said she is said the library is closed to the public right now. She encouraged everyone to practice social distancing so the virus doesn’t spread.

She read two books – Bear Sees Colors by Karma Wilson and There is a Bird on Your Head by Mo Willems. She also sang a song about bunnies with a flannel board, and showed children how to do a welcome song with shakers, which can be made using rice, beans or other small items sealed in a jar or cup.

Azzolino ended with a jingle in sign language. She sang, “Goodbye friends, it’s time to say goodbye,” and taught the signs for each word.

She said she will record another storytime next Wednesday.

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