By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 August 2022 at 8:20 am
ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature has renewed agreements with the Lyndonville and Kendall school districts to have an Orleans County Sheriff’s deputy assigned to each school district.
The agreements are both for two school years and run from Sept. 1, 2022 to June 30, 2024. The agreements call for Lyndonville and Kendall to pay the county at $501.10 per day in the 2022-23 school year and $510.26 in the 2023-24 school year.
Any additional time for after-school events will be billed at $61.05 per hour in 2022-23 and $62.53 the second school year.
The agreement also matches the terms between the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office and the Albion School District. When that agreement was approved by the Albion Board of Education on Aug. 1, district superintendent Mickey Edwards said the annual cost to the school district in the first year would be about $91,000.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 July 2022 at 12:13 pm
Provided photos
KENDALL – John Patt, a member of Troop 94 in Kendall, celebrates becoming an Eagle Scout during a ceremony on Monday.
Patt earned 51 merit badges. He also earned two Silver Palms, the highest of the three Palms available. One Silver Palm is for each additional merit badge above the required 21.
Patt took his Eagle Scout oath at a Court of Honor at the pavilion he built for his Eagle Scout project by the Erie Canal in the Holley Canal Park.
He plans on staying active with his Troop and Scouting so he can share his experiences and knowledge with the younger boys.
Many Eagle Scouts were in attendance to support Patt as he joined the exclusive rank. He also was joined by many family, friends, community members and current and former scouts.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 16 July 2022 at 10:18 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
KENDALL – Jack L. Hall of Brockport waves to the crowd while he drives a 1953 Massey-Harris tractor during Friday’s Kendall Firemen’s Carnival parade.
Hall also participated in the Hilton parade on Thursday. “I have antique tractors and I enjoy showing them,” he said.
Betty Wilson is celebrated as Kendall’s most senior resident at age 102. She gave enthusiastic greetings to the crowd.
She is also known as “Grandma Buttons” and the “Peanut Butterball Queen.”
The Alexander Firemen’s Band makes its way down Kendall Road in Friday night’s Kendall Firemen’s Carnival parade.
People were lined up on both sides of the street for the parade.
A member of the Alexander band focuses on his music while marching and playing the trombone.
A Kendall fire truck makes its way down the parade route. Many children eagerly looked for candy to be tossed their way.
These members of Lone Oak Stables in Kendall ride horses in Friday night’s Kendall Firemen’s Carnival parade.
This boy keeps a smile despite being on the cleanup crew following the horses.
Hamlin firefighters ride on old Ward LaFrance fire truck in the parade.
La’Ron Singletary, a former Rochester police chief, marched in the parade. He is running for Congress as a Republican in a newly drawn 25th Congressional District.
Assemblyman Steve Hawley tosses small frisbees to kids along the parade route.
Raymond McMillion and firefighters in the Murray Joint Fire District make a dignified procession in the parade.
The Gates Police Pipe & Drum Band performed in the parade.
Warren Kruger, the Kendall highway superintendent, rides in his 1929 Ford pickup.
Kendall Town Councilwoman Margaret Lynn Szozda gets a ride in a 1959 Thunderbird with former Town Supervisor Jack Gilman.
Today’s schedule at the carnival includes a corn hole tournament starting at noon, lawn mower pulls at noon, a ride matinee from 1 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 10 p.m., a chicken barbecue at 4 p.m., the community band at 5 p.m., music by Highway 31 at 9 p.m., fireworks at dusk and a $1,500 giveaway after the fireworks. (There is also a car cruise in from 4 to 7 p.m. with best of show award and door prizes for cruise participants.)
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 July 2022 at 10:41 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
KENDALL – The Kendall Firemen’s Carnival returned today for another three-day run of fun. The top photo shows people riding the Super Trooper, one of several classic midway rides. They are set up at the Kendall Fire Department’s grounds on Kendall Road behind the fire hall.
The annual carnival is a big fundraiser for the fire department with proceeds paying the department’s bills, including buying EMS equipment and materials for the ambulance and other expenses.
“we look forward to it every year,” said Kendall Fire Chief Dan Schultz. “We appreciating the community spending their money and supporting us.”
A big group of volunteers, including many from outside the fire department, put on the annual event.
Vinnie D’Agostino, center, tries a ring toss game. He was joined by several of his teammates on Kendall’s U15 baseball team. They won their game before heading to the carnival.
Kaylynn Villane, 7, of Brockport rides the Sky Fighter, a ride that resembles an old fighter plane.
Julie Kludt, right and Stephanie Holland make waffles that would be covered in powered sugar. Kludt has been working in the booth for at least 20 years.
“We can’t keep up with them,” she said about the waffle demand. “We go through a lot of batter.”
Troy Legault, 16, of Brockport, left, and Gabe Loran of Kendall serve up an order of a dozen steamed clams. Troy’s mother is a teacher at Kendall. Gabe is an incoming high school senior working on his community service for the school.
Kendall has 1,200 dozen of the steamed clams ready for the carnival.
The Who Dats performed tonight at the carnival. John Borello plays the guitar at left and Lonnie Froman is the lead singer. Other band members include Alona Kuhns on guitar, Ed Hilfiker on guitar and Alex DeSmit on drums.
Alex DeSmit performs with the Who Dats.
Friday’s schedule is highlighted by a parade at 7 p.m., a ride matinee from 6 to 10 p.m. and the band 7th Heaven from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.
Saturday’s schedule includes a corn hole tournament starting at noon, lawn mower pulls at noon, a ride matinee from 1 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 10 p.m., a chicken barbecue at 4 p.m., the community band at 5 p.m., music by Highway 31 at 9 p.m., fireworks at dusk and a $1,500 giveaway after the fireworks. (There is also a car cruise in from 4 to 7 p.m. with best of show award and door prizes for cruise participants.)
Troutburg’s popular Ontario House Hotel is shown in the late 1800s.
By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian
Illuminating Orleans – Vol. 2, No. 23
KENDALL – The cooling breezes off Lake Ontario are refreshing on hot summer days. In the years after the Civil War, shoreline resorts sprang up to accommodate the “summer people.” Constricted by layers of clothing and lacking air conditioning, it is not surprising that city and suburban residents sought relief from the heat.
Troutburg, on the eastern end of the Town of Kendall, was a popular destination for several decades after the Civil War. Named for its once abundant trout supply, this hamlet which straddles the Orleans/Monroe County line was the site of a fishing station in the 1840s, with a pier for fishing boats. Trout and sturgeon were packed in ice and shipped to New York City. Hiram Redmond ran a fishing station and built a hotel for fishermen.
Mrs. Sara J. Lee developed the first resort area in Troutburg in the 1860s. Originally known as The Lee House or “Mrs. Lee’s Hotel” and later, the Ontario House, it comprised a large house, picnic grounds and a stable large enough for sixty horses. The following notice published in the Saturday, July 7, 1888, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle described its attractions:
The Ontario House was destroyed by fire in November 1890. A much larger hotel of the same name, which included a dance pavilion, was ready to welcome guests by June 1891.
Crowds flocked to the area. The Cady House on the east side of County Line Road also catered to guests. Summer cottages were built in the vicinity. The Democrat and Chronicle of August 13, 1898, reported that the season at Troutburg was unusually lively. All the hotels and a score of the cottages were occupied, and the population had swelled to 2,000.
Troutburg guests were hearty eaters. In September 1895, members of the Ontario Gun Club attended a clam bake at the Ontario House, following a day of contests. Though the crowd was smaller than anticipated, they nevertheless consumed ten bushels of clams, ten bushels of corn, sweet potatoes, chicken and blue-fish “which were cooked in the big box with steam from a ten-horsepower threshing engine.” (D&C, 9/20/1895)
Dance parties were popular in the 1920s but the effects of the Depression led to a decline in business. The Ontario House was again destroyed by fire on May 4, 1943, and the location of so much jollity is now well underwater due to lakeshore erosion.
The former Ontario House Hotel in Troutburg. The structure was ruined by fire.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 17 May 2022 at 10:05 pm
Voters in Holley, Kendall and Lyndonville approved their school budgets today.
Holley’s proposed $26,982,000 budget passed with a 235-130 vote.
The budget increases taxes by 1.95 percent. The budget maintains all current educational programs and represents a 3.18 percent budget-to-budget increase.
Other Holley propositions also were approved by voters:
Capital improvements reserve fund at a maximum of $6 million – 233 yes votes, 138 no votes
Proposition to purchase new school buses as a maximum of $334,000 – 232 yes votes, 139 no votes
Proposition to collect $194,966 for Community Free Library – 274 yes votes, 100 no votes
Two candidates for two three-year terms on the Board of Education were elected. Tracy Van Ameron received 287 votes and Anne Winkley was backed by 281 voters.
In Kendall, the $19,822,921 budget was approved with a 123-26 vote.
The budget keeps the tax levy at $4,964,656, and decreases spending by $157,808 to $19,822,921.
Other propositions include:
Authorize $250,000 from a Transportation Bus Reserve Fund to replace transportation vehicles of the district – 130 yes votes, 19 no votes
Establish a capital reserve fund for up to $5 million for a future capital project – 129 yes votes, 19 no votes
Lisa Levett, current president of the Board of Education, received 137 votes for another five-year term. She was unopposed.
In Lyndonville, the $15,704,953 budget passed, 226-76. That’s 74.8 percent in favor.
The budget calls for a 2 percent tax increase, or by $90,564 to $4,618,740 for the tax levy. The budget maintains all current programs, including music, athletics and extracurriculars, and also keeps a school resource officer and on-campus space for a mental health counselor.
The district had a very close four-way battle for three seats on the Board of Education. The incumbents all won with Vern Fonda at 185 votes, Harold Suhr at 178, Kristin Nicholson at 171, and James Houseman at 168. The positions are for three-year terms that start July 1.
Other propositions include:
Collecting $119,183 for the Yates Community Free Library – 199 yes votes, 104 no votes
Authorization to spend up to $145,000 for a 64-seat passenger bus – 248 yes votes, 57 no votes.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 May 2022 at 4:33 pm
Photos courtesy of Kendall Lions Club
HAMLIN – Soon-to-graduate Kendall seniors were retaed to breakfast on Friday at the Hamlin VFW.
The annual tradition by the Lions used to be held at The Village inn. With that restaurant now closed, the breakfast moved to the Hamlin VFW.
Kendall Lion Tony Cammarata served as MC for the morning. He is shown with Chet Fery of Brockport, a retired school administrator known as “The Bread Man.” Fery baked a loaf of bread for each student and shared a message about the importance of kindness. Fery shared about 100 loaves of bread, enough for the students and other guests.
About 60 Kendall seniors attended the breakfast. The event returned last year after being cancelled in 2020 due to Covid restrictions.
The breakfast buffet was catered by The Farmers Table Restaurant in Hamlin. Pictured from left include Zina Cappotelli, Lora Partyka and Jeff Partyka from The Farmers Table.
The Senior Recognition Banquet at The Hamlin VFW was hosted by VFW President Willie Weir and Event Planner Patty Urquhart.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 11 May 2022 at 8:43 am
Provided photo
KENDALL – Kendall Lions Club member Gary Crawford presents a check for $6,000 to Kendall Central School. He is giving the check to Nick Picardo, the district superintendent.
The money is from the proceeds of a chicken barbecue. The funds will assist students to more fully participate in special events and activities at both school buildings, covering costs for students in financial stress. The money could be used for field trips and any other area deemed appropriate by the district.
Picardo and Chris Nasella, the district’s business administrator, attended the Lions Club meeting to go over Kendall’s proposed budget which will be voted on by residents on May 17.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 5 May 2022 at 8:19 am
Photos courtesy of Kevin Watson, Kendall Middle School principal
A group of about 50 Kendall eighth-graders, teachers and chaperones have been visiting Gettysburg and Washington, DC.
The group is shown in the top photo in front of the Lincoln Memorial.
The class departed by bus on Tuesday morning in the return of the eighth-grade trip. The outing was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to Covid restrictions and concerns. The trip was reduced from four days and two overnights to three days and overnight stays.
Kendall students applaud and give a standing ovation for a veteran who was on the Honor Flight on Wednesday, visiting memorials in the nation’s capital.
Kendall students high five this veteran. The Honor Flight included 86 veterans from the Vietnam War, one from World War II and two women who served as Rosie the Riveters, working in manufacturing plants.
The Kendall students on Wednesday night visited the memorial for Martin Luther King Jr., the famed civil rights leader.
The students also saw the Supreme Court, White House, Capitol, Jefferson Memorial, World War I Memorial and other national landmarks in Washington, DC. Today the group is headed to Arlington National Cemetery.
The students visited the Civil War battlefield sites at Gettysburg, including Little Round Top on a rocky hill. This is the spot where Union soldiers pushed back an assault by Confederate troops on July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg.
Kevin Watson, the Kendall Middle School principal, said he is grateful the middle school trips have resumed after being cancelled the previous two years.
Next week, Kendall seventh graders will take a day-long trip to Howe Caverns followed by a tour of Albany and the Governor’s Building. The fifth grade team also has brought back its annual trip to Old Fort Niagara.
KENDALL – The Kendall Lions Club picked up trash along the roadsides on Saturday for the annual Environmental Cleanup Day.
The top photo shows Lion Club member Steve Giverson in the foreground and Lion President Gary Crawford in the background on the right.
Lion Club members and other residents met at the town highway department and received a safety vest, trash bags and a route for area roadways to clean. They collected 3 cubic yards of trash. Lion Eric Maxon chaired the event for the Lions.
Community member Lisa Zittel joined Kendall Lion Jim Rayburn in the trash pickup.
Kendall Lions distributed trees to fourth-grade students on Monday. Lion Club President Gary Crawford, left, and Lion Mike Cusimano speak to the students as part of an Earth Day celebration.
Each student was presented with a tree for planting. Trees were donated by Flower City Tree.
The Lions Club has been participating in the 4th grade Foresters program for over 12 years.
Crawford and Cusimano shared that one of Lions International global areas of service is the environment. Sharing trees with the students is one of the club’s ways to improve our environment.
The presentation of trees enhances the ecology lessons and activities done in the classroom. The Lions Club look forward to the students’ notes sharing their plans for the trees.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 25 April 2022 at 4:11 pm
Photos by Ginny Kropf: Michael Clark saws a board under the watchful eye of his father, Jason Clark, on Saturday morning. Jason and other helpers, including a crane operator, an electrician and several other workers were recruited by Michael to help him complete his Eagle Scout project.
KNOWLESVILLE – Michael Clark, 17, has had two favorite activities since he was a small boy – Scouting and 4-H.
Michael, a son of Jason and Christina Clark of Kendall and a senior at Kendall High School, started as a Cub Scout at the age of 5 and joined 4-H when he was 7. So when it was time to work on a project for his Eagle Scout badge, Michael knew just what he wanted to do – build a 24’ by 40’ pavilion next to the rabbit and poultry barn.
Michael Clark poses on a ladder leading up to the roof of the pavilion family and friends helped him build on Saturday at the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds. A member of Troop 94 in Kendall, Michael’s project will fulfill his requirements to become an Eagle Scout. The project will serve two of his favorite activities – Scouting and 4-H.
Last fall he attended a meeting at the fairgrounds and presented his idea to the property committee and fair board, said Robert Batt, director of Cornell Cooperative Extension.
“Michael used to show rabbits in the tent we had to put up every year,” Batt said. “This pavilion will save us the time and trouble of putting up a tent, and it won’t blow away. The tent was never a good thing.”
Batt said about 50 exhibitors are involved in the pavilion, which is used for rabbits and poultry, so this permanent structure will be a great addition to the fairgrounds for years to come.
Michael then had to raise the money for materials. Initially, the estimate was $10,000, but with increasing prices, it was closer to $12,000. In the end, with Stockham Lumber in Holley giving him materials at cost, donation of the 6 x 6s and Keeler Construction donating the stone, his final cost was back to $10,000. He is currently about $3,000 short, which will pay for the metal roof.
“This was a difficult time to raise $11,000, with rising costs and Covid,” Jason Clark said.
On Saturday morning, Michael’s dad and other helpers dug the holes for the poles and completed building the frame and trusses. One volunteer was Mike Markel, who works in construction and had his boys in Scouts.
Michael’s project will not only fulfill his Eagle Scout requirements, but will give back to his 4-H family, he said.
His goal was to have the pavilion completed by the beginning of June, but they got it nearly completed on Saturday and planned to return to finish it up Sunday, except for the tin roof, which will be done professionally.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 21 April 2022 at 4:28 pm
KENDALL – The Board of Education and school administrators have put together a $19,822,921 budget for 2022-23 that doesn’t increase taxes.
The budget goes before voters on May 17 with a public hearing on at 6:30 p.m. on May 4 at the Kendall Junior-Senior High School Library.
The budget keeps the tax levy at $4,964,656. The budget decreases spending by $157,808 to $19,822,921.
There will be four propositions on the ballot on May 17. The budget is proposition one.
Proposition two is to spend up to $250,000 from a Transportation Bus Reserve Fund to replace transportation vehicles of the district.
Proposition three establish a Capital Reserve Fund for up to $5 million for a future capital project.
Proposition four is electing a member to the Board of Education for a five-year term. Current board member Lisa Levett, who is the board president, is running unopposed.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 16 April 2022 at 10:53 am
The towns of Carlton ad Kendall will wait a year for town-wide reassessments to see if the market settles down and the impact of inflation.
Lisa Hewitt, the assessor for both towns, made the announcement about the postponement.
“It has been decided that additional time is needed to responsibly inform property owners of assessment changes and the potential impact to taxes,” Hewitt said in a public notice. “Both towns have agreed, that given the recent rise in inflation across the area, that they do not want the changes in assessment adding extra stress to property owners.”
Many towns in Orleans County and in the region are doing reassessments and the numbers have been a shock to property owners with a wild real estate market pushing housing values up significantly.
In Clarendon, for example, the average assessment for the 1,000 properties in the town increased 25 percent since the last reassessment in 2019.
The median price for homes in Orleans County is up 68.5 percent in four years, jumping from $81,000 in 2017 to $136,500 in 2021, according to data from the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors.
Tony Cammarata, the Kendall town supervisor, said he supports olding off on a town-wide reassessment for a year.
“To do a re-val this year would create a lot of uncertainty and that’s not the objective of the town,” Cammarata said. “We want to work with factual data and the factual data we don’t have.”
Cammarata said he expects the real estate prices will come down now that interest rates are going up.
“Let’s see how the market changes,” Cammarata said. “And it’s changes. In order to do a fair assessment of the situation, it is in the best interest to hold off and see how the market levels off. Hopefully the market will calm itself down and hopefully it will be better to residents.”
Cammarata said he expects the Town Board will approve a resolution of support of the assessor’s decision during its meeting on Tuesday.
Photo by Tom Rivers: This photo from May 2017 shows sandbags stacked by the shoreline in Kendall.
Press Release, International Joint Commission
The International Joint Commission released for public comment the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Adaptive Management Committee’s (GLAM Committee) report “ Expedited Review of Plan 2014, Phase 1: Informing Plan 2014 Deviation Decisions Under Extreme Conditions.”
The IJC directed the GLAM Committee to conduct the Expedited Review of Plan 2014, the plan for regulating Lake Ontario outflows, in response to public concerns over Plan 2014 following the extreme wet conditions that caused record floods in 2017 and in 2019. The purpose of this two-phased review is to investigate possible improvements that could be made to Lake Ontario outflow regulation activities.
The GLAM Committee has concluded Phase 1 of the Expedited Review of Plan 2014 which focused on providing additional information to help inform the critical decisions made by the IJC’s International Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board (ILOSLRB) to best manage Lake Ontario outflows under extreme conditions.
Phase 1 also focused on collecting and analyzing data on high-water impacts on interests, including but not limited to shoreline homes, marinas and commercial shippers. This research led to creation of a decision support tool that informs the Board about the real-world impacts of its decisions and provides insight into how different deviations would perform under various future water supply conditions.
Phase 2 of the Expedited Review will look at how Plan 2014 addresses extreme high and low water levels and explore possible adjustments to the regulation plan. Currently underway, Phase 2 is tentatively scheduled to conclude in late 2024.
The GLAM Committee’s report on the Phase 1 of the Expedited Review of Plan 2014 is available for public comment until Monday, April 18, 2022.
The feedback received during the public comment period will be considered by the IJC and will inform its own findings that will be submitted to the governments of Canada and the United States.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 7 January 2022 at 1:19 pm
After service in WWII, ‘Wally’ Higgins worked as professor at Alfred University and was advocate for senior citizens in his retirement
File photo: Wallace “Wally” Higgins addresses the Kendall Lions Club in June 2015. He was a member of the Alfred Lions Club for more than 50 years.
ALFRED – A Kendall native who served during World War II with the Tuskegee Airman has been honored by the Allegany County Office for the Aging for his advocacy on behalf of senior citizens in his retirement.
Wallace “Wally” Higgins was born in Kendall. He joined the U.S. Army on Dec. 10, 1943, before finishing high school. He served until March of 1947. He was assigned to the Army Air Corps and trained with the famed Tuskegee Airmen.
During a presentation to the Kendall Lions Club in June 2015, Higgins talked about encountering racial segregation and discrimination for the first time after entering the service and training in Pre-Flight at the Tuskegee Institute.
As soon as he turned 18, Higgins enlisted in the Air Corps. Having already attended Civil Air Patrol classes in Rochester during his senior year of high school, Higgins was interested in pursuing aviation.
After initially reporting to Fort Dix, New Jersey, Higgins was sent to Biloxi, Mississippi for basic training and aptitude testing. As a result of his skin color and proficiencies, Higgins was selected to be part of the Tuskegee Airmen experiment in Alabama, where he trained in Pre-Flight and Primary Flight training, including solo runs in the P-17 Stearman.
Following 11 months at Tuskegee, a downturn in the war in Europe resulted in less pilot training and Higgins was transferred to the 1909th Engineers Aviation Battalion. Severe illness also prevented him from completing his training and with the conclusion of the war in Europe, he was transferred to the Pacific Theatre.
A sergeant in charge of an all-black, 30-man platoon, Higgins served in Saipan and Okinawa building roads, airfields and ammunition storage buildings.
After being honorably discharged on March 17, 1947, attended the NYS College of Ceramics at Alfred University. While a student there, he met and married Norma Miller. They were married 64 years and raised four children. She passed away on Dec. 24, 2015.
The husband and wife stayed in Alfred. Mr. Higgins went on to become an Associate Professor at the university, retiring in 1985.
Higgins passed away on Aug. 22, 2018 at age 92.
Higgins was active with the Alfred community. He served in the Alfred Lions Club for more than 50 years.
In 2003 he helped found the Allegany Senior Foundation to raise funding for the Office for Aging. That group has raised more $500,000 in nearly 20 years to support Meals on Wheels and other programming for seniors.
Higgins helped develop the Foundation’s mission: “Our mission is to identify gaps in services, find programs to fill those gaps and fund those programs. We want to be sure that Allegany County remains a wonderful place to grow up and grow old.”
The OFA on Wednesday dedicated “Wally’s Wall” in the entrance of the Allegany County Office for the Aging at Crossroads in Belmont. That wall includes many memorial bricks. Allegany County officials on Wednesday said Higgins was instrumental in the site and was a strong advocate for local senior citizens.
