Photo by Tom Rivers: A developer wants to knock down the Crosby-Whipple building at 30 North Main St. and replace it with a 7,200-square-foot Dollar General with 29 parking spaces. This photo was taken in December.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 22 March 2021 at 12:50 pm
LYNDONVILLE – The Orleans County Planning Board on Thursday will review an application for a new Dollar General store on Main Street.
The Broadway Group, a commercial real estate developer from Huntsville, Alabama, is proposing to demolish and remove the Crosby-Whipple building at 30 North Main St. It would be replaced with a 7,200-square-foot Dollar General with 29 parking spaces.
The site is in a historic district and the building needs a “certificate of appropriateness” from the Village Planning Board.
Tara Mathias, development manager, met in December with Village of Lyndonville Planning Board members through Zoom video conferencing. She said the store can be designed in a way that fits in with the other buildings in the district.
She said the new store would revitalize the downtown and be convenient to the local residents.
The building is on a 1-acre site and will need variances for setback distance. The store is the smallest building offered by Dollar General at 7,200 square feet. Most of the stores are over 9,000 square feet.
The village sent a referral to the Orleans County Planning Board for its review of the project. County planners review projects and offer a recommendation to municipalities. Those recommendations can be rejected with a super-majority vote at the town or village level.
Lyndonville village officials are asking the County Planning Board for its recommendation on whether a variance and the site plan should be approved for the project at 30 North Main St., which is in the Central Business District.
Thursday’s meeting starts at 7 p.m. and will be virtual. For more information, check the Orleans County Planning Board website by clicking here.
The Planning Board will also review two other projects:
• In Shelby there is a referral to the County Planning Board to review the site plan and a special use permit for an outdoor recreation facility at 11380 Main St. in Shelby Center.
• In Albion, the Planning Board will be asked to review the site plan and a special use permit for addition to an existing auto dealership at 4048 Oak Orchard Rd.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 21 March 2021 at 7:19 pm
Performance will be shown virtually with no in-person crowd
Photos courtesy of Lyndonville school district: Alissa Klinetob (a Lyndonville senior) is Marmee and Seagan Majchrzak (a Medina sophomore) portrays Beth in Lyndonville/Medina’s production of Little Women.
LYNDONVILLE – It was just over a year ago when Lyndonville and Medina drama students experienced the disappointment of having their show, Mama Mia, cancelled after months of rehearsals. The Covid-19 pandemic closed the curtain on high school musicals shows throughout New York State.
Lyndonville and Medina, which work together on a musical, are back with a new show. They have Covid safeguards in place, including no in-person audience. The show has been filmed and will go “live” online Friday until next Sunday, March 28.
Qasim Huzair (a Lyndonville senior) portrays Professor Bhaer and Sophia Cardone (Medina senior) stars as Jo.
The leads in the shows are wearing clear masks, which won’t conceal their facial expressions, which was important to director Jennifer Trupo.
“Last year was so heartbreaking,” Trupo said about the show being canceled. “A bunch of our seniors never got to make their last bow.”
This year Lyndonville and Medina are performing Little Women. The cast is smaller than recent Lyndonville/Medina musicals, but the show includes a full ensemble and band. There are 23 student sin the cast, and five more students as assistants.
Trupo and the students saw a video of a Buffalo school performing a musical with the clear masks. Trupo wanted similar masks for her students.
“The clear masks make all the difference because this is a very emotional show,” she said. “With fabric masks we couldn’t see facial expressions.”
The musical is based on the novel by Louisa May Alcott, a coming-of-age story set after the Civil War. The plot focuses on the four March sisters— traditional Meg, wild and aspiring writer Jo, timid Beth and romantic Amy.
To ensure the safety of the students and staff, auditions were held online and many of the initial rehearsals were done through Google Meets. The cast and crew transitioned to the stage with safeguards in place to finalize and record the production.
Trupo said she is grateful the two schools are all to put on a full show, even if it won’t be in front of a cheering audience.
“We’re so thankful we have our ensembles, and to have a musical,” Trupo said. “We’re so thankful our administration has allowed us to do this and our community is supporting us and that we have this outlet for the kids.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 8 March 2021 at 2:57 pm
Photos by Ginny Kropf
LYNDONVILLE – Art Hill Excavating of Medina started taking down the Lyndonville Pennysaver Market building at about 8:30 this morning and by 1 p.m. the building was nearly down.
The roof of the building collapsed on Feb. 22 with heavy snow and ice on the roof. The building from 1899 also had suffered deterioration with its support beams.
The Village Board met on Feb. 22 and declared the structure unsafe after an engineer’s inspection.
Aaron Young of AGC Construction in Holley assists his father-in-law Art Hill with the building’s demolition. Young is shown preparing to hook a strap on the teeth of the excavator to pull the front section of the building at Main and Eagle into the rubble, so it wouldn’t fall on Main Street.
Art Hill Excavating owner Jennifer Hill-Young expects the company will be on site most of this week, hauling the demolition debris to a landfill.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 8 March 2021 at 10:24 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
LYNDONVILLE – Art Hill Excavating begins taking down the Lyndonville Pennysaver Market building this morning.
Art Hill is operating the excavator. His son-in-law, Aaron Young of AGC Construction in Holley, is in the lift as a guide and to keep an eye on the demolition. (Click here to see a video of some of the demolition.)
Hill started in the back of the building and plans to slowly work through the site, a dominant structure at the corner of Main and Eagle streets in the village.
The Village Board declared the site an unsafe structure after the roof collapsed on Feb. 22.
The support beams in the back of the building were badly decayed, Hill said.
“They were like powder,” he said.
Hill’s daughter Jennifer Hill-Young is the owner of Art Hill Excavating and her father is the vice president. They said the demolition of the building is planned to take five days. The building should be knocked down by later this afternoon. Hill will then work to remove the materials the rest of the week.
Hill-Young said it is a delicate demolition because of the presence of Main Street in the front of the building, power lines on two sides and a neighboring, adjoining structure.
Before the demolition started, her husband, Aaron Young, went inside the building on the second floor and put in straps to pull the walls in as the excavator worked through the structure.
Robert Smith, a Lyndonville native who now lives in California, owns the building and three others on Main Street. He had grand plans for the Pennysaver site with hotel rooms and retail space. He has been working to transform the block of four structures.
The Pennysaver Market closed in April 2013 after 35 years in business by Sharon Gray. She offered grocery items, hardware, videos, a deli, finger foods and pizza. The market was the first job for many teen-agers in the Lyndonville community.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 8 March 2021 at 8:07 am
LYNDONVILLE – A part of Lyndonville’s Main Street for more than a century is expected to be knocked down today.
The roof on the Pennysaver building collapsed on the morning of Feb. 22, making the building an unsafe structure, village officials said.
The Village Board met Feb. 22 and declared the building an emergency and a threat to the community.
“It’s a bad situation in a bad spot,” Mayor John Belson said at the meeting.
The village has worked with the building owner, Robert Smith, on a demolition plan. Smith owns the Pennysaver site and three others on Main Street.
The area near the Pennysaver has been blocked off to pedestrians and traffic. The village cordoned off the area in front of the building and part of Eagle Street near Main Street.
The demolition is expected to start around 8:30 this morning.
The building was last used by the Pennysaver Market. It closed in April 2013 after 35 years in business by Sharon Gray. She initially offered grocery items and then expanded to hardware, videos, a deli, finger foods and pizza.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 February 2021 at 9:45 am
No chokeholds and no bias-based profiling among the standards
Photos by Tom Rivers: Lyndonville Village Trustee Darren Wilson, right, and Mayor John Belson discuss policies for the Lyndonville Police Department on Monday. The village will have a 6 p.m. public hearing on March 29 for the community to comment on the new policies.
LYNDONVILLE – The village, which only has one part-time police officer, is working to adopt policies for the department to be in line with an executive order from Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
All law enforcement s agencies in the state, regardless of size, need to submit a plan to the state by April 1. That plan needs to include the department’s use of firearms and force, efforts to build community relationships, a policy against bias-based profiling and how the departments investigate hate crimes.
Lyndonville currently doesn’t have those policies on the books but will be adding them to meet the state deadline. The Village Board discussed the policies on Monday afternoon and will continue the discussion during its March 1 board meeting. The village will have a 6 p.m. public hearing on March 29 to take comments form the community. Residents can also submit written comments online through the village website. (Click here for more information.)
The police patrol car is pictured on Monday afternoon outside the Village Hall on Main Street. The village has one part-time officer.
Bill Larkin has served as the village’s part-time officer since 2006. The mayor, currently John Belson, oversees the department. The officer does road patrol, and enforces local and state laws in a village of 838 residents in 1 square mile.
The officer investigates criminal and civil complaints, as well as domestic disputes and family matters. The officer responds to intrusion alarms and motor vehicle accidents.
Lyndonville is using the policies from the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office as a model to meet the state requirements. Drafts of those policies can be reviewed by clicking here.
Some highlights of the proposed policies include:
Community Relations: Police officers shall be courteous, furnish their name and badge number, and “must treat persons with as much respect as that person will allow. They also must be mindful that the people with whom they are dealing are individuals, with human emotions and needs.”
The Police Department participates in many community events, including the Fourth of July celebration, Halloween, Christmas in Lyndonville celebration, Memorial Day and also events at the school district. The department “is committed to building a stronger community by building trust and relationships through community policing,” the policy states.
Use of Force: The Lyndonville PD bans use of chokeholds.
Police officers, after completing firearms training, shall carry a firearm while on duty. After the required training, sworn officers will carry OC (oleoresin capsicum) spray, a baton or ASP (Armament Systems and Procedures) and an EMD (Electro-Muscular Disruption) system, commonly referred to as an X-26 Taser, the policy states.
Police officers, in the performance of their duties, as authorized to use reasonable and legitimate force in specific cases. This policy, founded in the standards of federal constitutional requirements and state statutes, provides guidance regarding the use and justification for the use of force, including deadly physical force.
Use of Deadly Force: The Lyndonville Village Police Department personnel may use deadly physical force under the following circumstances, and then only when no other reasonable alternative is available:
A. To defend himself or another person when the officer has reasonable cause to believe there is imminent danger of death or serious physical injury to himself or another;
B. To apprehend a resisting person who is committing or has committed a crime in which deadly physical force is being used or threatened and the officer has reasonable cause to believe that such person will cause death or serious injury unless immediately apprehended;
C. To kill a dangerous animal or an animal so badly injured that humanity requires that it be removed from further suffering. In the case of an injured animal, permission of the owner should be obtained, whenever possible. Care should be taken to protect bystanders from a ricocheting bullet and, if possible, avoid killing of an animal in the presence of children.
D. Members of the Lyndonville Village Police Department shall only fire their weapons at a person to stop and neutralize an assailant to prevent him/her from completing a potentially deadly aggressive act or in the instances as described in this section. For maximum stopping effectiveness and minimal danger to innocent bystanders, the officer should shoot at “available target center mass”. The officer’s intent and purpose is only to stop the deadly aggression or prevent the escape of the subject.
E. No distinction shall be made relative to the age or gender of the intended target of deadly physical force.
F. Self-defense and imminent threat of deadly physical force/serious physical injury shall be the guideline for employing deadly force.
Bias-Based Profiling: The village explicitly states that any racial or ethnic profiling by members of the Police Department is strictly prohibited.
“It is the policy of the Lyndonville Village Police Department that all members will not affect a stop, detention, or search of any person which is motivated by race, color, ethnicity, age, gender or sexual orientation,” the policy states.
Investigation of Hate Crimes: Lyndonville will seek to identify and investigate hate crimes in accordance with the Hate Crimes Act of 2000.
“Any acts or threats of violence, property damage, harassment, intimidation, or other crimes motivated by hate and bias and designed to infringe upon the rights of individuals are viewed very seriously by this agency and shall be given high priority,” the policy states. “This agency shall employ necessary law enforcement resources to identify and arrest hate crime perpetrators. Also, recognizing the particular fears and distress typically suffered by victims, the potential for reprisal and escalation of violence, and the far-reaching negative consequences on the community.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 22 February 2021 at 5:54 pm
Main Street site will be torn down due to danger to public
Photos by Tom Rivers: The roof on the Pennysaver building at the corner of Main and Eagle streets in Lyndonville collapsed at about 7:45 this morning.
LYNDONVILLE – The Pennysaver building, a dominant structure on Main Street for more than a century, could be gone in the next 24 to 48 hours after the roof collapsed on the building this morning.
The Village Board met this afternoon and declared the building an emergency and a threat to the community.
“It’s a bad situation in a bad spot,” said Mayor John Belson.
The village has contacted the building owner. Robert Smith, a Lyndonville native who now lives in California, owns the building and three others on Main Street. He is working with his insurance company to determine if insurance will cover any of the knockdown and removal of the Pennysaver building.
The area near the building is blocked off to pedestrians and traffic.
Belson said the takedown is the responsibility of the owner and the mayor doesn’t want to wait long to have the building at least knocked in so it’s not in danger of toppling into the street. The village has cordoned off the area in front of the building and part of Eagle Street near Main Street.
The heavy snow and ice is the assumed cause of the roof collapse, but the site also had structural issues. Smith had grand plans for building with hotel rooms and retail space. He has been working to transform the block of four structures.
The building was last used by the Pennysaver Market. It closed in April 2013 after 35 years in business by Sharon Gray. She initially offered grocery items and then expanded to hardware, videos, a deli, finger foods and pizza.
Provided photo: This photo from the inside shows the collapsed roof on the second floor. The roof didn’t fall all the way to the first floor.
Lyndonville had its engineering firm, the MRB Group, come out this afternoon to inspect the building. The firm said it was an unsafe structure. Belson wants quick action by Smith and the insurance company.
The mayor said the building won’t be up for very long.
“In the next 24 to 48 hours that property will be in the ground,” he said.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 13 February 2021 at 5:01 pm
File photo by Tom Rivers: The Yates Town Park is located off Morrison Road, northeast of the Village of Lyndonville. A big upgrade to the park may coincide with the town bicentennial in 2022.
YATES – The Town Board expects to form a committee next month to begin work on celebrating the town’s 200th anniversary in 2022.
Each of the Town Board members – Town Supervisor Jim Simon, Harold Suhr, Susan Hrovat, John Riggi and Jim Whipple – have been asked to name two members to the committee, with the town to formally approve the group in March.
That committee will then be tasked with activities and perhaps mementoes to celebrate the Yates bicentennial.
There is already one big goal to coincide with the bicentennial. Town officials are pushing to have the expansion of the Yates Town Park done next year.
The $2.5 million town park upgrade will be funded 95 percent by the state. It is part of $300 million in state funding for projects along the southshore of Lake Ontario through the Resiliency and Economic Development Initiative (REDI) Commission.
The local share of the Yates project – $126,550 – will be covered with in-kind services by the town Highway Department and also funding by the Lyndonville Area Foundation.
Some highlights of the Yates project include an L-shaped breakwater; pavilion with bathroom and fire place; park activities (kayak boat launch, dock ramp, ADA complaint playground); road, parking, pavement; stone dust trail with benches, garbage can, bike rack and plantings; stormwater; erosion control; sanitary/leach field and water service.
LYNDONVILLE – Do you know of a Lyndonville educator or staff member who is exceptionally dedicated, knowledgeable and has inspired you or your child?
If so, please consider nominating them for Lyndonville Central School’s 2021 Educators or Staff Member of the Year.
This year Lyndonville will be selecting two educators for this award, one from elementary (Pre-K through 6) and another from secondary (grades 7-12). The district will also select one staff member of the year. The nominated educators and staff members must meet eligibility requirements as outlined in the 2020-21 Nomination Information Packets. (Click here for links to those packets.)
Three finalists will be selected from the pool of nominations. Upon verification that the nominated individuals meet the required criteria, the nominators (with help from school administration if requested) must submit two additional letters of support to complete the nomination process. An impartial committee will select the educators and staff member of the year from those nominated.
Winners will be announced in June at the Board of Education meeting. The winning educators will each receive a $1,000 district grant and the winning staff member a $500 district grant. The grant may be used for any educational initiative or project within the recipient’s school, classroom, program or department. All will receive a plaque commemorating their achievement.
Deadline for nomination submission is March 12. Nomination forms can be completed and mailed to the district or emailed to Llamay@lcsdk12.org.
LYNDONVILLE – The school district has earned the College Board AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award for achieving high female representation in its AP Computer Science Principles course. Schools honored with this award have expanded access to females in select computer science courses.
Out of the 20,000 institutions that offer AP courses, 1,119 achieved either 50% or higher female representation in one of the two AP Computer Science courses, or a percentage of the female computer science examinees meet or exceeded the school’s female population during the 2019- 2020 academic year.
Last year 818 schools were recognized. The almost 37% increase shows a positive trend in encouraging females to explore the computer science path.
Lyndonville Central School would like to commend high school science teacher, Jeff Qamoos, for actively engaging his students in the AP Computer Science course and school counselor, Jeff Kingsbury, for effectively marketing the course and generating interest. The district would also like to commend Dan Dragula for his high female enrollment in his Physics, AP Physics and ACE Astronomy.
Providing female students with access to computer science courses is critical to ensuring gender parity in the industry’s high-paying jobs and drives innovation, creativity and representation. Lyndonville Central School District is proud of achieving this award and will continue its efforts to encourage female students to explore their academic interests and excel in the courses they take.
“Female students need the power to shape technology, not just cope with it,” says Stefanie Sanford, College Board Chief of Global Policy and External Relations. “Young women deserve an equal opportunity to become the next generation of entrepreneurs, engineers and tech leaders. Closing the gap in computer science education empowers young women to build the future they want.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 February 2021 at 9:39 am
Planning Board also supports 6-month moratorium in Gaines on battery storage systems
LYNDONVILLE – The Orleans County Planning Board has recommended the Village of Lyndonville approve the site plan for a 340-kilowatt solar energy system for Panek Farms at Lynwood Drive.
The project would be ground-mounted in an Agricultural-Residential District in the northeast corner of the village. The panels would be installed along the right-of-way for the former Hojack railroad line on land that isn’t good farmland, Jim Panek, one of the farm owners, told the Planning Board on Thursday.
The land currently isn’t being farmed. The spot is out of sight for most residents and will include a fence, Panek said.
The system would include 960 ground-mounted solar modules.
This is the second solar project on Panek land. The farm also has one on Eagle Harbor Road in Albion at a former harness racing training track. That land also wasn’t good for growing crops.
The two projects will generate enough electricity for the farm’s use, Panek said.
In other referrals, the Planning Board:
• Recommended the Town of Barre approve the site plan and a special use permit for Joshua Watkins to operate a diesel/gas powered vehicle repair shop at 4227 Oak Orchard Rd., about 2,000 feet south of the Route 31A and Route 98 intersection.
Watkins plans to work on over-the-road semi-trucks, farm equipment and other large vehicles. A garage is already built for most of the repairs to be done. Some repairs may be done outside in a fenced-in area if the trailers are too big for the garage.
The site will have employee parking and a customer waiting area. It will be open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The site is in Barre’s General Business District.
• Backed the Town of Gaines which wants a six-month moratorium on all battery and energy storage systems for six months.
The moratorium will give the town time to research the new uses of battery and energy storage systems and their potential impacts upon the community.
The town is encouraged to explore the impact of battery and energy storage systems near occupied neighboring structures, the proper emergency response protocols for the systems’ malfunctions such as fires, and the proper disposal of systems at the end of their life cycles.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 January 2021 at 12:21 pm
LYNDONVILLE – The school district will hold a virtual forum on Jan. 19 to hear from parents about the district’s plan for spending the remaining $25,000 from the Smart Schools Bond Act.
Lyndonville school officials want to use the $25,000 to create a replacement cycle for Chromebooks.
The forum will be from 5 to 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 19. To sign up for this virtual forum on Google Meets, email aslack@lcsdk12.org to confirm your participation.
Lyndonville was approved for $733,151 as part of a $2 billion Smart Schools Bond Act, which was passed by NY voters in 2014. (In Orleans County, the five school districts were approved for about $7 million combined in technology aid with $2,238,441 for Albion; $1,311,463 for Holley; $967,959 for Kendall; $733,151 for Lyndonville; and $2,000,222 for Medina.)
The state has approved several projects for Lyndonville as part of the Smart Schools Bond Act, including $89,900 in February 2020 for classroom technology. The state approved $315,600 in July 2017 for “connectivity” with new routers, network improvements, switches, wireless access points, and classrooms hardwired for computers. Those improvements put in computer infrastructure to allow Lyndonville to add laptops, desktop computers, computer servers and more white boards.
The state Education Department in August 2016 also approved $165,000 for Lyndonville with classroom technology, including interactive white boards, said Jason Smith, the school district superintendent.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 9 January 2021 at 5:23 pm
Districts will perform musical, Little Women, after last year’s show cancelled due to Covid-19
File photo by Tom Rivers: Layna Viloria, second from right, portrayed Deloris Van Cartier in Sister Act, which was performed in Lyndonville in March 2019. It’s the last show performed by the combined drama program of Lyndonville and Medina. Last spring’s show was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
LYNDONVILLE – The combined Lyndonville and Medina high school drama program will perform a musical this spring.
It will be a much different experience for the cast, with rehearsals and the performance, director Jennifer Trupo said.
Last year’s school musical was cancelled in the spring due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the Covid caseload remains high with restrictions still in place on crowd sizes.
Lyndonville and Medina plan to put on the show, Little Women. Trupo said that show doesn’t have a large cast ensemble and there “isn’t a ton of dancing.”
There will still be solos, duets and some songs with the entire cast. They won’t be performing in front of a live audience. The performance will be recorded and then made available by streaming online, with tickets to be purchased online, Trupo said.
Most of the rehearsals will be online with the students not together in-person as a group. As the spring show gets closer, there will be some group rehearsals, blocking and vocals – “just not as much as we are used to in the past,” Trupo said.
Friday was the deadline for students to audition for the show. Trupo said Little Women will be an opportunity for students to shine on stage.
“There are several great roles in this production and we will be doing it with an expanded cast,” Trupo said in her message. “I love you and I miss you and I can’t wait to see you, online.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 22 December 2020 at 12:37 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
LYNDONVILLE – There are 79 Christmas trees decorated at Veterans Park in Lyndonville in the annual display for the holidays. That is the most since Lyndonville started festive tradition in 2013 with 26 trees. The effort has grown each year since then.
In the top photo, the tree with an angel on top was decorated by the Duncanson family in memory of Megan Dix.
The trees are dedicated by community organizations and families. The tree at the corner in this photo is in memory of Alan J. Goda.
The trees were available for $30 each, and then needed to be decorated. Lyndonville turned on electricity to light the trees on Dec. 5. They will stay lighted up through Jan. 1
This year there wasn’t a festival or big bash when the lights are turned on for the first time for the collection of trees, like there has been in years past, due to Covid-19 concerns.
People are welcome to stop by and see the trees and get their photo taken with the Santa cutout.
