Photos by Kristina Gabalski: Holley “inbound” exchange student, 15-year old Lara Braun of Switzerland, poses with Nina DiLella, a Holley senior who spent last school year as a Rotary exchange student in Hungary. Lara is also a member of the Holley 2018 Senior Class and is currently staying with the DiLella Family.
By Kristina Gabalski, Correspondent Posted 20 September 2017 at 8:04 pm
Nina DiLella, a senior at Holley, talks about her “memory jacket” from her year in Hungary as a Rotary Youth Exchange student. The students exchange pins as they meet during their travels as well as various souvenirs they collect along the way.
HOLLEY – Nina DiLella, a Holley senior, spoke to members of the Holley School Board of Education Monday evening, giving them details of her experience during last school year as a Rotary Youth Exchange student to Hungary.
DiLella said she learned that, “you can’t stereotype cultures,” and that not all things are black and white – “there is a lot of in between.”
DiLella said she loved her time spent in Europe and attended a language-focused high school while in Hungary. She studied Spanish.
“I had 16 Spanish classes each week all school year,” she said.
She enjoyed sharing her American culture with new friends including carving pumpkins for Halloween and enjoying a Thanksgiving party.
“It was the first time they had snow in 30 years,” she said of the region of Hungary in which she stayed. “I told them I brought the snow with me.”
DiLella said she was about 40 minutes outside Budapest and was able to visit much of Europe as part of her stay including Italy, France and Germany.
Nina DiLella included the Hungarian language with photos of her Rotary Exchange trip to Hungary. She was sponsored by the Holley Rotary Club.
Photos courtesy of Holley Central School: A new bus loop has been added by the elementary school. A new bus loop was created in front of the ES, near the District Office entrance, to separate car traffic from school bus traffic. This helps keep students safe as they get on and off the bus at this entrance.
Posted 20 September 2017 at 6:42 pm
Press Release, Holley Central School
HOLLEY – Holley students are reaping the benefits as final touches are being made to the campus during the last phase of the Capital Project this fall.
The elementary school playground was redone.
A new Pre-K playground added to the elementary school campus. Students will enjoy using brand new equipment on both playgrounds this fall.
New tennis courts were installed at the Middle School/High School while the existing courts were repurposed as tennis, pickleball and basketball courts.
This photo shows the tennis courts being worked on. The transformation adds outdoor physical education stations for students. When school is not in session, all of these areas are available for community use.
Structural changes have been made to both schools, too. Heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) units were replaced in both buildings. The ES also had windows and doors replaced. The new windows allow more light into classrooms. These upgrades allow the district to use their energy more efficiently and save money on utility costs.
By the end of this project, over $30 million of improvements will have been made to the district facilities, at zero impact to local taxpayers.
“The entire project has provided the district with one of the finest facilities in Western New York,” said District Superintendent Robert D’Angelo. “I’m pleased to be able to bring these benefits to our students and community. Our long-term goal for the campus is to maintain it as a state-of-the-art school facility and learning environment. We thank the community for their patience and continued support of this project as we’ve completed each phase.”
Photos by Tom Rivers: Holley firefighters practiced a bail-out drill tonight on Thomas Street across from the fire hall. They used the ladder truck to get to the second floor window.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 19 September 2017 at 11:03 pm
HOLLEY – Voters in the Holley Joint Fire District approved spending up to $950,000 for a new ladder truck this evening.
The vote was from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the fire hall and the resolution passed, 43-2.
The new truck will have a 100-foot ladder. It will replace a truck that is about 20 years old with a 75-foot ladder. Holley bought the current ladder truck as a used fire truck in 2008.
These blueprints show the new fire truck for the Holley Joint Fire District. The new truck would have a 100-foot-long ladder, compared to the 75 feet on the current one.
The truck has been plagued with electrical and hydraulic problems in recent years, as well as rusted structural components, said John Totter, chairman of the Fire District’s board of commissioners.
“We had to put a big chunk of change into it last year to keep it going, to increase the sale-ability and to make it safe,” Totter said about the current ladder truck.
The Fire District is working with the Rosenbauer Group on the new fire truck. The district needs to wait 20 days to make sure no objections are filed with the election. Totter said he is hopeful the district can sign a contract with Rosenbauer before the end of the year. It will take about a year from then for the truck’s delivery. Totter said December 2018 is a reasonable target date for the truck.
The bays in the firehall don’t leave much room to get in a fire truck. The new truck will have to be customized in height and length to fit in the fire hall.
Photo by Kristina Gabalski: Pete Sidari of the Albion Fire Department shows Holley Board of Education members the exterior of the Orleans County Fire Safety Trailer. It will eventually have educational illustrations covering the exterior.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 19 September 2017 at 10:36 am
HOLLEY – Young people across Orleans County will be able to learn the fundamentals of fire safety in a very hands-on way once a new educational trailer and staff are ready.
Peter Sidari of the Albion Fire Department and Dale Banker, director of Orleans County Emergency Management, spoke to members of the Holley School Board of Education Monday night to give them an understanding of the educational opportunities the trailer will provide to elementary students through on-site visits and assemblies at local schools. Sidari is also the fire safety educator for the North Greece Fire District.
The county was able to obtain the trailer through $75,000 in grant funding obtained by State Senator Robert Ortt.
The Fire Safety Trailer (house) was delivered Aug. 24 and its interior is designed to look like a typical home with a kitchen, hallway and bedroom. With special effects, presenters are able to mimic what it would be like to be in a burning building and guide students on the safe way to escape, meet up with other family members outside, and call for help.
“It helps us to teach fire escape planning,” Sidari explained. “It’s a hand-on approach to teaching fire safety. Our hope would be that students take the information home to their families.”
He elaborated on the special effects in the trailer which include smoke alarms, a fog machine (utilizes theater fog), a simulated burning trash can, a hot door (not hot enough to cause injury, Sidari noted) and an exterior phone system which will allow students to call and speak with emergency officials just as if they were reporting a real blaze.
The trailer helps students practice what they would do if they ever found themselves in a burning building. Different styles of windows are also part of the trailer design, allowing students to see how varying styles of windows open.
Sidari said it may take some time to get the program fully up and running. Emergency Management hopes to have the trailer at the Orleans County 4-H Fair in the future as well.
He told Orleans Hub the trailers have been effective teaching tools in other locations and recounted two success stories: a young boy who went through one of the programs was able to save his grandparents during a fire, and a college student was able to safely get out of her housing during a fire by remembering what she had learned from a fire safety trailer program while in grade school.
The fire safety programs will be available at no cost to local school districts, Sidari said.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 18 September 2017 at 10:04 am
MURRAY – Robert Miller was behind Joe Sidonio by 7 votes after the polls closed on Tuesday for the Murray town supervisor. But after the absentee ballots were counted this morning, Miller emerged as the victor for the Republican line.
Miller dominated the absentees, getting 19 to 5 over Sidonio. (There was another absentee that didn’t have a vote for town supervisor.)
Miller was the endorsed Republican candidate, but Sidonio, a frequent critic of the Murray Town Board, forced a primary.
Miller, a retired state trooper, will face Sidonio again in the Nov. 7 general election because Sidonio has the backing of the Conservative and Independence parties.
Miller ended up with 274 Republican votes to 267 for Sidonio. John Morriss, the incumbent town supervisor, isn’t seeking re-election.
The absentee ballots have been under lock and key until they were presented this morning just before 9:15 a.m.
Photos by Kristina Gabalski: Melissa Ierlan, Clarendon town historian, holds a photo of a fox mounted by Carl Akeley taken before its restoration. Heat from being stored in an attic had led to severe deterioration. One eye had fallen out, the tail had "melted," the paws were void of hair and bugs had found their way inside. "It was in bad shape," Ierlan said. "We thought we would have to replace it, but we didn't." The fox is depicted eating a bird it has caught. The paper mache work on the bird included newspaper from the Holley Standard, dated Dec. 4, 1879. Ierlan brought a copy of the original pages to the reception on Saturday.
By Kristina Gabalski, Correspondent Posted 17 September 2017 at 6:13 pm
Cobblestone Museum, Clarendon Historical Society celebrate ‘world-class restoration effort’
CHILDS – Calling it a “world-class restoration effort,” Cobblestone Museum Director Doug Farley opened a reception at the Cobblestone Church on Ridge Road Saturday afternoon to officially welcome home an early example of the work of famed Clarendon taxidermist Carl Akeley. The reception was held in conjunction with members of the Clarendon Historical Society.
The work – a red fox mounted by Akeley in 1879 at the age of 16 – was recently restored by George Dante, a taxidermist and conservator of Wildlife Preservation in New Jersey.
Farley said the restoration resulted from an “amazing grass-roots effort to secure funding” for the project. Private donors, a grant from the Elizabeth Dye Curtis Foundation and a donations from the Orleans County Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Clarendon Historical Society made the project possible, Farley said.
Bill Lattin, retired Orleans County Historian and Cobblestone Museum Director, has a family connection to the fox. He spoke during the reception and explained that his great-grandfather, Francis Harling of Albion, procured the fox for Akeley. Lattin explained that the fox, enclosed in a framed diorama, is a precious artifact.
“In the world of taxidermy, it’s like owning a Rafael,” Lattin said. “It’s very, very special.”
Akeley, (1864-1926), is known as the Father of Modern Taxidermy. He devised a method for fitting an animal’s skin over a meticulously prepared and sculpted form of the animal’s body. The process included the animal’s musculature and details such as wrinkles and veins and produced a very realistic result.
Akeley made many trips to Africa to collect specimens and created the African Hall at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Akeley also liked to place the mounted animals in settings that reflected their native habitat.
Lattin said his great-grandfather wanted the fox diorama to display in the family’s home on East County House Road in Albion.
Harling was a middle-class dirt farmer and blacksmith, Lattin explained, but noted it is interesting that, “common ordinary people (of that time) had a sensitivity for aesthetics.” Harling had gone out of his way to procure the fox, Lattin said, so that something beautiful could be made to decorate the family’s home, “that’s remarkable,” he observed.
Now that the fox – which Lattin said was found to be a vixen during the restoration work – can help people today to, “appreciate what our ancestors saw as beautiful.”
Matthew Ballard (Orleans County Historian), Bill Lattin and Melissa Ierlan (Clarendon town historian) pose with Carl Akeley’s fox diorama. Cobblestone Museum officials said those visiting the Cobblestone Church will be able to see the diorama on the lower level where the Museum gift shop is located.
Ballard, the county historian and former Cobblestone Museum director, explained that the effort to have the fox diorama restored was fueled by a celebration held in 2014 by the Clarendon Historical Society for the 150th anniversary of Akeley’s birth.
Jay Kirk, the author of Kingdom Under Glass about Carl Akeley and his work, attended the celebration as did Akeley expert John Janelli.
“We wanted to bring (the fox) to the attention of people who would appreciate Akeley’s work,” Ballard said. “The fox is part of a transitional phase for Akeley.”
Ballard noted the legwork done by Ierlan, the Clarendon historian, to have the fox restored as well as the local fundraising effort.
“It’s surreal to see it come to fruition,” Ballard said of the restoration project. “It’s a piece of national significance.”
Carl Akeley wrote his name and Clarendon in the bottom left corner of the diorama.
Ierlan discussed Akeley’s life and work from his humble beginnings on Hinds Road in Clarendon to the jungles of Africa.
“He was the original Indiana Jones,” Ierlan said. She noted his early work preserving the pet canary of his aunt, his training in taxidermy by David Bruce in Brockport and his apprenticeship at Ward’s Natural Science Establishment in Rochester.
She explained that the taxidermy work done before Akeley often made animals look like stuffed toys – “freakish and scary…. (Akeley) wanted to make them look as real as possible,” Ierlan said.
In addition to his taxidermy work, Akeley was an accomplished sculptor, biologist, conservationist and inventor with over 29 patents. Akeley improved the motion picture camera for filming animal movement, Ierlan said.
“He had a remarkable life….. he was one of America’s greatest men,” she said.
Melissa Ierlan brought copies of photographs of Akeley’s work including diorama’s from the American Museum of Natural History and the entourage that accompanied Akeley on his African trips to collect specimens (far left), as well as the condition of the fox diorama prior to restoration.
Staff Reports Posted 12 September 2017 at 10:01 pm
Sean Pogue wins primary for Barre Town Supervisor
MURRAY –It’s too close to call for Town Supervisor in Murray. Joe Sidonio has a 7-vote lead over Robert Miller, the Republican-endorsed candidate.
Sidonio has 262 votes to 255 for Miller. There are 23 absentee ballots out. They will be counted on Sept. 18 at the Orleans County Board of Elections in Albion.
Supporters of Sidonio gathered at Holley Middle School/High School Tuesday evening to hear the results of the vote.
Sidonio said both he and opponent Miller have the best interests of the Murray community in mind.
“We still need to come together as a community and work for the common ground,” Sidonio said. He is hopeful that he will prevail when the final votes are counted.
The campaign has been contentious. Sidonio called it, “heated and nasty.”
Turnout for the primary was impressive with 520 ballots cast. Party officials said there are 1,240 registered Republicans in the Town of Murray.
Sidonio noted that the interest in the race and the closeness of the vote shows that, “change is what is needed…. we need a clean slate change” in the town. He said he is grateful for the support of his family including his wife Amy and daughter Amelia, as well as friends and community members.
“I thank all supporters in the community for their interest in this election,” he said.
In Barre, Sean Pogue won the Republican Primary, getting 141 votes to 87 for Robin Nacca. The two will square off again in November because Nacca has been endorsed by the Conservative Party. (Pogue also won the Independence primary, 10-7, versus Nacca.)
HOLLEY – Firefighters responded to a vehicle that burst into flames just before 1 p.m. today on Bennetts Corners Road near the intersection with Taylor Road.
Holley and Clarendon firefighters worked to put out the fire. The vehicle was being towed to a scrap yard. No one was injured.
Photos by Kristina Gabalski: Holley Elementary School teachers line up in teams by grade level during Tuesday evening's Back to School Night assembly in the intermediate gym.
By Kristina Gabalski, Correspondent Posted 5 September 2017 at 11:10 pm
HOLLEY – Parents, students, teachers, staff and administrators gathered Tuesday evening at Holley Central Elementary School and Middle School/High School for Back to School Night.
The evening provided an opportunity for students to drop off their supplies and meet with teachers the evening before the first day of school.
The Elementary School held a special assembly/pep rally at 5:30 pm which included “star teacher” performances by teaching teams from all grade levels.
“We are thrilled to have you back with us, it’s been a long boring summer,” Elementary Principal Karri Schiavone said.
She invited families to get a first-hand look at new windows and playgrounds which were installed over the summer as part of the capital improvement project.
Schiavone told students that the school would be looking for “star students” all year long – students who show exemplary character traits.
Each grade level teaching team performed a short number as part of the “star teacher” search. Here, the 1st Grade teachers get down as the “Dancing Grannies.”
Holley Elementary Assistant Principal Tim Artessa acted as master of ceremonies. Here, he oversees the volunteer student panel of judges for the “star teacher” competition. The students provided a “thumbs-up” or “thumbs-down” for each performance. Artessa said the assembly showed the students were excited to start a new school year. “The students were super respectful, even though there were some technical difficulties,” Artessa said. “They are ready to have the school year start on a positive note.”
4th grade teachers made crowns out of balloons and passed out balloon sculptures to students.
4th grade teacher Karin Richards hands out balloon animal sculptures to students.
6th grade teachers got the gym rockin’ with an air band performance of music by Journey.
The largest group of faculty and staff included music, art, and phys. ed. teachers as well as librarian Julie Bader. They performed to “YMCA” by the Village People.
One-half of the kindergarten teaching team performed as the Lullaby League from the Wizard of Oz.
The other half of the Kindergarten teaching team performed as the Lollypop Guild from the Wizard of Oz.
Families attending the Back to School Night at Holley Elementary School were able to see the latest improvements completed as part of the Capital Improvement Project, including the new bus loop.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 3 September 2017 at 3:39 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
HULBERTON – Angelo Fiorucci of Niagara on the Lake in Canada plays in the bocce tournament at the St. Rocco’s Italian Festival in Hulberton. There were 30 teams signed up to play in the tournament, which includes a grand prize of $600.
One of the teams cancelled due to the rain, but everyone else played, despite the rain in the morning. The sun came out later in the morning and the typical big crowd for the festival descended on the small hamlet by the canal in the Town of Murray.
Fiorucci said he has been playing in the tournament for about 20 years.
“We have a good time over here,” he said. “We have made a lot of friends over the years.”
These women helped organize the basket raffle, which includes a record 54 baskets this year. The ladies include, from left: Ann Dellaquila, Joyce Potote, Ingrid Lestorti, Kathy Clarke and Katie Trupo.
The festival goes until 6 p.m. today with the drawing for the baskets at 5 p.m.
Jacob Bower watches his shot in bocce with his father Randy Bower, who organizes the annual bocce tournament.
Elizabeth Jubenville and Luci Welch get fried dough ready for the crowd. The annual festival is a fund-raiser for the Catholic parish in Holley and Kendall, which includes St. Mary’s Church in Holley and St. Mark’s in Kendall.
Maggie Skehan, 10, spins the raffle tickets, which included 1,400 sold as of about noon today. The prizes ranged from $100 to $300.
Rick Gill of Lockport takes his turn in the bocce tournament. Gill has played in the tourney several times.
“It’s good time and it’s good cause,” he said.
Andy Sweeney of Newline measures to see which of the balls is closest to the small ball. The closest one earns that team a point. The games are played to 16.
Sweeney said he competes in bocce tournaments around the country, and was most recently playing in Cleveland.
“This is a very well-run tournament,” he said. “There is great camaraderie and it’s family-oriented with great people.”
A building that was once used by a quarry company turns into a dining hall with an Italian theme for the festival. Volunteers, including Della Morales and Dorothy Morgan (up front), served spaghetti dinners.
The festival has been an annual event for about 40 years.
By Kristina Gabalski, Correspondent Posted 25 August 2017 at 8:36 am
This is one side of a two-sided bookmark created by middle schoolers at Holley. The other side includes a photo of Myron Holley and facts about his life.
HOLLEY – A summer school program for Holley middle schooler help students boost skills that they had struggled to learn during the regular school year, Holley Board of Education members were told this week.
Michelle Roman and Nick D’Amuro, both Holley teachers, shared highlights of the program with the Board of Education.
“For the most part, all showed some growth in skills,” Roman said. “We need to make plans for more support and we will follow-up with students during the school year. We made goals for future summer camps.”
The three-week summer program included a half-dozen 7th and 8th graders who focused on Math, ELA, Science, Social Studies and critical thinking skills.
“I call them self-sufficient skills,” D’Amuro explained. He said students can take the skills they learned during camp and use them to teach themselves new skills in the future.
Roman said summer camp enabled her to uncover reading skills deficiencies in her students. She said the program, “allows us to build relationships and develop a love of learning” with students.
The program also included community service at the Holley Community Free Library, and guest speakers including Clarendon historian Melissa Ierlan and a presentation by GCASA about making better choices.
The students walked to the library from the school campus for their community service work which included devising the most efficient way to clean books in the Children’s section. Students also designed a bookmark which featured information about Myron Holley.
Holley, a Rochester abolitionist who served in the NYS Assembly in 1816, was an Erie Canal Commissioner and founder of the Rochester Freeman, an anti-slavery newspaper which sparked the Underground Railroad in western New York. The Village of Holley is named in Myron Holley’s honor, although he never lived there.
D’Amuro and Roman encouraged Board of Education members to consider requiring students who fail core classes to attend the skill-building summer camps in the future to provide them with an opportunity to receive additional support for academic success.
Board President Brenda Swanger thanked the teachers for their presentation. “The extra caring,” which the summer camp provided, “is what they also need,” she said of students.
Photo by Kristina Gabalski: A new playground at the Holley Elementary School nears completion. It is part of the ongoing Capital Project at the district.
By Kristina Gabalski, Correspondent Posted 22 August 2017 at 9:59 am
HOLLEY – The Holley Board of Education was asked on Monday to approve a resolution to allow for PILOT agreements to be established between the district and commercial solar farm energy systems.
Ron Vendetti, the code enforcement officer for the Town of Murray and Village of Holley, attended the Board of Education meeting.
He said the school district earlier decided to opt out of tax exemptions for commercial solar developments. Without a PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes), Vendetti said the commercial solar projects won’t move forward.
Vendetti has attended several conferences around the state and has worked with developers to better understand how municipalities and school districts are trying to regulate commercial solar farms. He said many developers are now look to construct 2 megawatt or less solar farms on 10 to 12 acre parcels due to the shorter review process by the state. The Town of Murray isn’t considered “a high priority area” by solar developers, but Vendetti said there could still be interest in Murray by developers.
Vendetti and school district attorney Jeff Martin noted the solar farms could increase property assessments significantly – as much as $5 million – and that PILOT agreements would mean the district would be receiving at least something in tax revenue.
“Forty percent value on a PILOT is better than 100 percent of nothing,” Vendetti said.
The Town of Murray recently adopted Local Law No. 3 of 2017 which requires developers of commercial solar farm energy systems to enter into a PILOT agreement with the town. The Board of Education needs only to approve a resolution, Jeff Martin said.
There are no commercial solar farms currently in Orleans County, but developers are showing an interest, Martin and Vendetti said.
The Village of Holley might enact the legislation because the former Diaz Chemical site potentially could be used for a commercial solar farm, Vendetti said.
School Board members took no action on Monday. Board President Brenda Swanger asked Martin to continue to gather information for the board.
School supplies can be costly for parents
In other business, Swanger told Elementary School Principal Karri Schiavone that a parent had expressed concern over the length and expense of items on the school’s supply list for students for the upcoming school year.
“We have pared it down,” Schiavone said. “Teachers get $200 for supplies for the entire school year,” she said, and noted that is not enough to cover student supplies such as pencils, paper and folders.
“We have made (supply lists) consistent across grade levels,” Schiavone said.
Both the Elementary School and Middle School/High School do have supplies available for students who are in need, Schiavone and MS/HS principal Sue Cory said. During the district’s back to school night Sept. 5, tables will be made available for anyone who wishes to donate unused school supplies. Students in need of supplies will be able to take what they need at the same time.
The Holley Rotary Club has donated funds in the past to the district for the purpose of purchasing school supplies and would be donating $300 to $500 again for the coming school year, said Martin, a member of the Rotary Club.
Contractors working to have capital project done by school opening
In his report, District Superintendent Robert D’Angelo re-assured district administrators, teachers and staff that the on-going capital project work would not prevent school from opening on schedule Sept. 6.
“The project has an aggressive schedule,” D’Angelo said, and explained that it is not unusual for school officials to feel anxious when a project nears completion, but, “School will open on time and we will be in good shape. The campus will be safe for occupation.”
D’Angelo said contractors will continue to be present on campus after the first day of school to complete jobs such as painting tennis courts and replanting grass.
“The end product will be something we can all be proud of,” he said.
This rendering shows how the former Holley High School would look after $17 million in renovations.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 27 July 2017 at 10:31 am
ALBION – The clock is ticking and developers of the former Holley High School are trying to line up as much support as possible for a proposed $17 million renovation of the school.
Kim Russell, executive vice president of Home Leasing, met with the Orleans County Legislature on Wednesday, seeking the body’s official support for the project.
The Legislature approved a resolution in support of the effort to turn a building that has been vacant for nearly 30 years into residential apartments and offices that would be used for the village government.
Legislature Chairman David Callard said the project would be transformational for Holley – and the whole county.
“We are so favorably impressed with the presentation put forth,” Callard told Russell. “We give you our full support. It’s dynamic and would help improve the entire county.”
Home Leasing is working along with Edgemere Development, Glasow Simmons Architecture L.L.P. and Marathon Engineering – all Rochester-based firms – on the project.
The developers of the project were denied funding in the form of housing tax credits this spring by the New York State Homes and Community Renewal. Home Leasing is again seeking those tax credits to make the project financially feasible.
It also is seeking grants through the state. The applications for the grants are due on Friday.
Russell said the company is seeking $350,000 through Empire State Development, $300,000 through the Environmental Protection Fund, $150,000 through NYSERDA (New York State Energy Research & Development) and $100,000 through the NY Main Street program.
Russell said the project is costly partly due to the environmental contamination that needs to be cleaned up. If the state grants and tax credits don’t come through, Russell said the project may not work financially. Without a redevelopment, she said the building may need to be torn down.
Callard said the project, at the corner of routes 237 and 31, is ideally located near the downtown and the Public Square. The project would revive a historic landmark in the village center, and would bolster local housing stock for residents, including senior citizens.
The Legislature’s resolution notes the Orleans Economic Development Agency already has a PILOT agreement in place for Home Leasing to pay to support local government services. The EDA also has approved mortgage and sales tax exemptions, purchase contract, and its own resolution of support for the project.
Russell has encouraged community members to send letters of support about the project. Those letters should be dropped off at the Village Office, 72 Public Square. The village will then scan and forward them to Russell for Friday’s deadline.
A tractor-trailer truck struck Grace’s Place Agri-Business Child Development today at about 12:30 p.m., damaging the front façade of the building on Maziarz Drive in the Holley Business Park. The trucker then fled the scene. In the above photo, Holley firefighters Ron Meier, left, and Fran Gaylord inspect the damage to the building.
Holley police are attempting to locate the truck driver. Gaylord said tractor-trailers sometimes make a wrong turn at the business park and go past the child care center. A truck has hit the building once before, he said.
Photo by Kristina Gabalski: The Town Park in Clarendon is pictured on a quiet summer evening
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 20 July 2017 at 7:39 am
CLARENDON – Town Board members have decided to take a “wait and see” approach to a continuing problem of trash being left in the Town Park.
Town Supervisor Dick Moy said he and his wife cleaned-up a recent mess which included toilet paper being strewn about and beer cans being dumped in the toilet.
“It was a disaster,” Moy said.
People who rent the shelter for gatherings are expected to keep the park clean and neat, he said. Town officials noted trash has been left behind both by people renting the shelter and those who have congregated in the park late into the evening.
“There’s always a few that spoil it for someone else,” Town Councilman Paul Nicosia said.
Moy questioned if someone should be appointed to keep an eye on gatherings in the park to help prevent the problems from occurring.
Town Code Enforcement Officer Melissa Ierlan suggested a laminated sign with park rules be placed in a prominent spot where people enter the park.
“Put it where you pull into the parking lot,” Ierlan said.
A fence and gate, which could be closed at night, might be a solution, said Councilman Marc Major.
“People are driving in and using it after hours,” he said.
Following their discussion, board members decided to wait before taking any further action, to see if the problems continue.
