By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 May 2016 at 12:00 am
Provided photos
LYNDONVILLE – Volunteers from the Yates Community Library placed 50 flags on the school grounds near the Johnson Creek dam today. Another 50 flags will be placed on Main Street on Friday morning.
Other Lyndonville residents also purchased Main Street flags that were bought in honor of loved ones. Donors for those flags will get to take the flag home on Monday after the traditional Memorial Day service held at the village park.
Library Trustee Patricia Mumau attaches a flag dedication tag for the flags on the school lawn.
Ginny Hughes did much of the organizing for the flag display. She saw a similar display in Auburn. Kathleen Sillick created laminated dedication tags for each flag with names as specified by the donors. Jim Watson and his son Eric provided rebar and PVC pipe cut to fit for appropriate flag display. Patricia Mumau created an advertising flyer and designed the layout for flag placement. Gail Foss and Herbert Bohnet, also trustees, assisted in driving in the rebar posts and labeling the flags. Mark Hughes and Joy Bohnet, spouses of trustees, also helped.
Library Trustees Ginny Hughes and Gail Foss attach a tag with flag dedication and name of donor. Mark Hughes is in back with the driver device.
The Lyndonville Village Department of Public Works surprised the trustees with a special gift that greatly aided installation: a custom-fabricated driver for pounding in the supporting rebar.
The flags will fly all weekend and will provide a background for the annual Memorial Day service in Veterans Park, downtown Lyndonville, at 9 a.m. on Monday.
After noon on Memorial Day, those who have purchased a flag may pick them up to take home.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 17 May 2016 at 12:00 am
The school budgets and propositions at all five school districts in Orleans County passed by big margins today.Medina and Lyndonville presented budgets that reduced taxes, while Albion and Kendall didn’t raise taxes. Holley will increase taxes by 1.99 percent.
In Albion, the results include:
School budget passed, 444-94;
Authorization to spend up to $460,000 for buses, 452-86;
Approval to collect $687,211 for Hoag Library, 385-153.
Choosing one of four candidates for a five-year term on the Board of Education. Steven LaLonde was elected with 310 votes. Other candidates included Dylan Hellems, 31 votes; Kevin Doherty, 114; and Anitrice Riley, 93.
In Holley, the results include:
School budget passed, 373-207;
Authorization for the purchase of schools buses, 368-213;
Approval to collect $116,061 for Community Free Library, 418-166.
Choosing two 3-year term seats on the School Board. Brenda Swanger, 423 votes, and John Heise, 370, were elected. Christine Klafehn received 266 votes.
In Kendall, the results include:
School budget passed, 282-90;
School Bus Replacement Capital Reserve Fund passed, 294-80;
Voters elected Charles Patt, 218 votes, to another five-year term on the Board of Education. He outpolled Debi Szczepanski, 163 votes.
In Lyndonvile, the budget passed with more than 90 percent approval, 132-11.
Other propositions all passed including:
$91,589 for Yates Community Library, 121-22;
Establish 2016 Transportation Reserve Fund to fund bus and vehicle purchases, not to exceed $720,000 over 8 years, 125-15;
Authorization to purchase one 66-passenger school bus at a maximum estimated cost of $110,000, 124-16;
Three incumbents on the Board of Education – Harold Suhr, Terry Stinson and Rick Mufford – all were re-elected to three-year terms. Mufford received 123 votes, with 118 for Stinson and 116 for Suhr.
In Medina, the budget passed 522-59.
Six people ran for three three-year terms on the Board of Education. Incumbent Board President Wendi Pencille was the top vote-getter with 425, followed by Lori Draper with 384 and Brenda Lindsay with 369. Those three were elected. Other candidates include Timothy Dunham, 181; Virginia Nicholson, 165; and retired Medina school administrator Alberta Suozzi, 160.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 17 May 2016 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers – The walkway to the Albion Middle School is pictured Monday evening while the trees are in bloom in front a Vietnam Memorial.
Voters will go the polls today at the five school districts in Orleans County to decide whether to pass budgets, propositions and elect members to the Board of Education.
Here is a snapshot of each school district:
ALBION – The proposed $33,890,990 school budget keeps taxes at the same amount, $8,355,939, as the 2015-16 budget. The district’s tax rate for the current school year, $16.06 per $1,000 of assessed property, is the lowest of all districts in Orleans, Genesee, Niagara and Monroe counties. The Albion rate is estimated to fall to $15.87 in 2016-17, school officials said.
Other propositions include:
Authorization to spend up to $460,000 for buses;
Approval to collect $687,211 for Hoag Library, which is up 1 percent from the $680,411 for 2015-16.
Choosing one of four candidates for a five-year term on the Board of Education. The candidates include Dylan Hellems, Steven LaLonde, Kevin Doherty and Anitrice Riley.
Voting will be from noon to 8 p.m. at the elementary school, conference room A.
HOLLEY – The proposed $24.4 million budget for 2016-17 includes a 1.99 percent increase in the tax levy. The budget is 4.73 percent higher than the current year budget. The nearly 5 percent budget-to-budget increase is due to the district’s share of the Monroe 2-Orleans BOCES Capital Project, school officials said.
The proposed budget maintains current staffing and programs, and brings the average tax rate to approximately $22.81 per $1,000 of assessed value.
Besides the budget, voters will decide the following: Proposition 2 for the purchase of schools buses – two full-sized and two 30-passenger school buses not to exceed $339,000; Proposition 3 is the budget for the Community Free Library in Holley of $116,061.
Additionally, three candidates are running for two 3-year term seats on the School Board. John Heise and Brenda Swanger are running for re-election, and Christine Klafehn is also running for an open seat.
Voting will be from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the foyer of the Holley Middle School/High School.
KENDALL – The proposed budget increases spending from $15,065,842 to $17,392,234, predominantly due to the debt incurred with the recent capital improvement project. The budget-to-budget increase, however, is completely offset by an increase in state aid from $9,884,890 to $11,855,939, school officials said.
The proposed tax levy remains unchanged in the 2016/17 budget, and the tax rate will be $17.39/$1,000 assessed value for a Kendall resident.
One seat on the School Board of Education is up for election this year. Incumbent Charles Patt is seeking another term. Debra Szczepanski is also seeking a term on the Board. The five-year term will run through June 30, 2021.
Voting is from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Kendall Elementary School Gymnasium.
LYNDONVILLE – The school district is proposing a budget that will reduce taxes by 3.4 percent, continuing a downward trend in the tax burden.
The district is proposing a budget that seeks a tax levy of $4,266,578, which is down from $4,416,578 in 2015-16. The previous year, 2014-15, the district’s tax levy was $4,666,578. Lyndonville has reduced the tax levy by $400,000 in two years, a drop of 8.6 percent.
The district’s $13,254,000 budget is nearly the same in expenditures as in 2015-16. The 2016-17 budget is $108 more than the $13,253,892 in 2015-16.
Other propositions include:
$91,589 for Yates Community Library (up from $90,653).
Establish 2016 Transportation Reserve Fund to fund bus and vehicle purchases, not to exceed $720,000 over 8 years.
Authorization to purchase one 66-passenger school bus at a maximum estimated cost of $110,000. School officials say the bus proposition and Transportation Reserve Fund will not have an impact on the tax levy.
Three incumbents on the Board of Education are all running unopposed for three-year terms. They include Harold Suhr, Terry Stinson and Rick Mufford.
Voting will be from noon to 8 p.m. at the Stroyan Auditorium forum.
MEDINA – The school district’s budget for 2016-17 reduces taxes for the fourth straight year. The $35,825,184 budget is up about $1 million from the $34,802,870 in 2015-16.
The state has boosted aid by nearly $900,000 and Medina is tapping some of its reserve funds to lower taxes in 2016-17, school officials said.
The new state budget boosts aid to Medina from $23,769,997 to $24,860,152. That increase is a big factor in Medina’s ability to cut taxes by 1.3 percent, from $8,774,760 to $8,660,915.
The budget keeps all existing programs and also boosts the gifted and talented offerings.
There are six people running for three three-year terms, including incumbents Lori Draper and Wendi Pencille. Retired Medina school administrator Alberta Suozzi also is running for the board along with Timothy Dunham, Virginia Nicholson and Brenda Lindsay. (Draper and Pencille are seeking re-election and John McCarthy opted against seeking another term.)
Voting will be from noon to 8 p.m. at the District Office.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 12 May 2016 at 12:00 am
LYNDONVILLE – The school district is proposing a budget that will reduce taxes by 3.4 percent, continuing a downward trend in the tax burden.The district is proposing a budget that seeks a tax levy of $4,266,578, which is down from $4,416,578 in 2015-16. The previous year, 2014-15, the district’s tax levy was $4,666,578. Lyndonville has reduced the tax levy by $400,000 in two years, a drop of 8.6 percent.
The district’s $13,254,000 budget is nearly the same in expenditures as in 2015-16. The 2016-17 budget is $108 more than the $13,253,892 in 2015-16.
Lyndonville was able to reduce taxes partly due to a $260,000 increase in state aid. The district also reduced spending by $65,000 for utilities, $45,000 to BOCES, $40,000 in retirement contributions, $40,000 for a building condition survey, $40,000 for Social Security costs, and $25,000 less for unemployment.
District leaders have set aside $100,000 for capital projects, including an estimated $65,000 to $75,000 to remove an underground diesel tank and install above-ground unit, and an estimated $25,000 to $35,000 for LED stage lighting.
Voting on the budget will be Tuesday from noon to 8 p.m. at the Stroyan Auditorium forum.
Other propositions include:
Three incumbents on the Board of Education are all running unopposed for three-year terms. They include Harold Suhr, Terry Stinson and Rick Mufford.
$91,589 for Yates Community Library (up from $90,653).
Establish 2016 Transportation Reserve Fund to fund bus and vehicle purchases, not to exceed $720,000 over 8 years.
Authorization to purchase one 66-passenger school bus at a maximum estimated cost of $110,000.
School officials say the bus proposition and Transportation Reserve Fund will not have an impact on the tax levy.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 April 2016 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers – Gary Daum, a Yates resident and a member of the Orleans County Planning Board, discusses Yates’ proposed moratorium and a updated law on wind energy facilities. The Planning Board supported the proposals by Yates.
YATES – The Orleans County Planning Board is supporting the Town of Yates in revising a nearly decade-old local law on wind energy facilities.
The previous town ordinance from 2008 caps the height of turbines at 420 feet. Apex Clean Energy wants to build up to 71 turbines in Yates and Somerset that would be between 490 to 620 feet in height to the top of the turbine blade.
Yates isn’t proposing a height restriction with the new law, but instead would require setbacks from residences, roads, municipal boundaries and other public use areas 4.5 times the turbine height. With turbines at 620 feet, the setbacks would need to be more than a half mile.
“This would effectively be a ban on turbines,” Dan Fitzgerald, project manager for Apex Clean Energy, told the County Planning Board on Thursday.
Apex submitted 13 pages of comments about the local law.
Jim Simon, the Yates town supervisor, said town officials aren’t trying to ban turbines.
“This law wasn’t written for a developer,” Simon said. “This law is written for our town and for our people.”
Dan Fitzgerald, project manager for Apex Clean Energy, shares his concerns about the Yates proposed law. The meeting on Thursday was held at the Carlton Recreation Hall.
The Planning Board said the new regulations are more rigorous than the 2008 law, as they should be because the latest-generation of utility-scale turbines “rise to much greater heights than those envisioned when Yates’ current law was adopted.”
The bigger turbines involve deeper foundations, longer shadows, farther ice throws, greater visibility, and more reasons to analyze potential impacts on birds and wildlife, the Planning Board said.
“It’s still evolving,” said Planning Board member Gary Daum, a Yates resident. “It’s about people and innovation and new things.”
The revised Yates law expands the findings section from 10 to 24 items, with the developer required to analyze ambient sound, background sound, weighted sound pressures, shadow flicker and tower height, and many other issues.
The town also will require a transportation plan for construction of turbines to assess potential damage to local roads and bridges, and mitigation of traffic congestion with movement of turbine materials.
Yates also will require developers with wind energy facilities to complete reports and analysis from the projects on groundwater, geotechnical, flora/fauna, cultural/historical/architectural/, wildlife, blade throw, stray voltage and aviation.
Planners noted that the strength of the local laws for wind turbines is currently unsettled given that the state leads the process through Article 10, with a state siting board voting on the projects.
Yates also is seeking a six-month moratorium on wind energy conversion systems. That moratorium will give the town time to pass its revised law and also incorporate revisions into the Yates-Carlton-Kendall Local Waterfront Revitalization Plan, as well as the town’s comprehensive plan.
Apex officials said they thought their project should be grandfathered in and not be subject to the moratorium. Apex has been meeting with landowners in Yates about the project for 22 months, said Taylor Quarles, development manager.
Apex hasn’t submitted a formal application for its project. It is seeking a second meteorological tower to assess wind strength. That tower wouldn’t be able to go up until after the moratorium.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 21 April 2016 at 12:00 am
Town also seeks moratorium on turbines until zoning updated
YATES – The Town Board is inviting the public to comment on proposed changes to the local law for wind energy facilities. There will be a 7 p.m. hearing today at Lyndonville High School Auditorium, 77 Housel Avenue.
The town is working to amend its local law from 2008. Since that law was passed, Apex Clean Energy has approached landowners in Yates and neighboring Somerset to construct about 70 wind turbines that would peak at more than 600 feet high.
Yates is also having a hearing this evening at 7 on a proposed moratorium on the wind facilities law. The town seeks a moratorium on wind energy facilities while it updates its zoning regulations, reviews the Yates-Carlton-Kendall Local Waterfront
Revitalization Plan, and also updates the Town Comprehensive Plan.
The revamped wind energy facilities law will promote the public health, safety and welfare through the establishment of standards and review processes that will regulate the installation of wind energy conversion systems in the Town of Yates, town officials said in a notice about the law.
Yates officials are seeking a law that “minimizes adverse impacts on the town’s character, environment, economy and property values.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 4 April 2016 at 12:00 am
James Tuk says voters spoke on March 15 when he lost mayoral election
LYNDONVILLE – James Tuk, the deputy mayor in Lyndonville, resigned on Friday, not long after the March 15 election for mayor when he lost, 92 to 19, to John Belson, the former Yates town supervisor.
Tuk said the defeat was a message from voters that they weren’t pleased with his job performance. Tuk had been leading the village government since Halloween, when Steve McAvoy resigned due to the demands of his full-time job.
“I made quite a few adversaries over time and they wanted a different person as mayor,” Tuk said. “Somebody didn’t like the way I did things. I’ve made peace with all of this.”
Tuk was a member of the Village Board for five years. He said the village has projects in the pipeline, including efforts to make the Lyndonville Dam more accessible to the public and to improve the mechanicals at the scenic site.
The village also wants to redesign Veterans Park next to the Dam. The park with some improvements could help bring more people downtown, Tuk said.
“These are in the infancy stage,” Tuk said. “The challenge is to find the money to pay for it.”
Tuk said serving on the board was “very interesting and very constructive.” He only missed two meetings in 5 years. He missed those two because in December 2013 he suffered a stroke which paralyzed his left side.
“I returned to meetings in February 2014 because I was elected to do so and the challenge of the position aided my recovery,” Tuk said. “I am not yet 100 percent but continue to work towards being that.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 23 March 2016 at 12:00 am
File photo by Tom Rivers – Jonathan Oakes is interviewed during the ice wine harvest in January 2015. There needs to be a deep freeze to harvest frozen grapes for ice wine. Oakes will be featured April 9 at an event in Canandaigua.
CANANDAIGUA – The New York Wine and Culinary Center will host Leonard Oakes Estate Winery on April 9 during a winemaker dinner.
The center in Canandaigua has featured Leonard Oakes at many events before, but this is the first time the winery on Ridge Road in Medina has an event exclusively for their products, said Jordyn Gould, the PR and marketing coordinator for the Wine and Culinary Center.
“They’ve been a good partner and this is an opportunity for a larger event to be focused on them,” Gould said.
The event will showcase wine and Steampunk Hard Apple Cider from Leonard Oakes and includes a seven-course meal of local foods. (For more information on tickets, click here.)
While guests enjoy food, winemaker Jonathan Oakes will share stories and insider information on his beverages. Oakes helped develop the winery a decade ago, first planting vineyards in Lyndonville.
Oakes and his cousin Jerod Thurber attend many of the New York Wine and Culinary Center events and the two have engaging personalities, Gould said.
“They know how to work a crowd,” she said.
Leonard Oakes Estate Winery also has quality products, she said. Leonard Oakes has become an award-winning producer of handcrafted artisanal wines and ciders.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 22 March 2016 at 12:00 am
National magazine for school districts highlights effort to preserve opportunities for students
Photo by Tom Rivers – Lyndonville and Medina students perform Guys and Dolls on March 13 in Lyndonville. Thomas Follman of Lyndonville portrays Nicely-Nicely Johnson, Abel Zavitz of Medina is Nathan Detroit, and Leif Isaacson of Lyndonville plays Benny Southstreet. The Lyndonville-Medina musicals, now in their fifth year of a combined program, have won numerous awards through the Rochester Broadway Theatre League’s “Stars of Tomorrow” program. Follman was also an all-star linebacker for the Medina football team.
Two local school districts facing declining student enrollments and cuts in state funding five years ago decided to try some programs together.
Lyndonville would make its stellar musical program available to Medina students. Medina would open up its football team and state champion marching band to Lyndonville.
The shared services have expanded since then to boys soccer, cross country and track and field teams. A volleyball team was added last year.
The two districts also have run shared staff development including a joint summer leadership conference and staff development featuring national student engagement experts.
The Lyndonville and Medina cooperation has been recognized in a national educational magazine. “District Administration” this month highlighted Lyndonville and Medina as “Districts of Distinction.”
The magazine noted how both districts closed elementary schools due to enrollment drops, and efforts to run more efficient and cost-effective districts.
The shared services have preserved and expanded opportunities for students in both districts, District Administration said in highlighting the joint effort.
“We’re very happy with how it’s gone,” said Jason Smith, the Lyndonville Central School superintendent.
Photo by Cheryl Wertman – Steve Anderson, a Lyndonville student, is pictured during the 2014 season when he excelled on Medina’s boys soccer team. He was named a Niagara-Orleans all-star and helped the team capture the league title.
He said students from both districts have welcomed each other. The musicals, for instance, are staged in Lyndonville and include a big cast of 53 Lyndonville and Medina kids, with students from both schools in the lead roles.
The addition of Medina students allows Lyndonville to put on more challenging shows with bigger casts.
“There is a larger talent pool,” Smith said. “The Lyndonville kids really enjoy having the Medina students here.”
Lyndonville students have made Medina’s football and soccer teams stronger, perennial playoff participants since the shared services started.
“This was basically done to offer kids opportunities,” said Jeff Evoy, superintendent at Medina Central School. “We’re always focused on doing what’s best for kids. That’s how we operate.”
The shared services efforts were pushed by former interim superintendents Tom Cox in Lyndonville and Bruce Fraser in Medina. But Smith and Evoy have pushed the effort to new levels.
Those superintendents have known each other for more than 20 years, going back to when they were social studies teachers at Albion.
“There is a huge trust factor for us both,” Smith said. “This has been a really good partnership among the districts.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 18 March 2016 at 12:00 am
Town supervisor, village mayor say they will work together
John Belson
LYNDONVILLE – John Belson appreciates the strong support from the community in Tuesday’s village mayoral election, a victory that returns him to elected office only a few months after he narrowly lost a re-election bid for Yates town supervisor.
Belson will now lead the Lyndonville village government. He has lived in the village since 1997. The village is 1 square mile with 838 residents. The village sits within the Town of Yates.
The Yates town supervisor and Lyndonville mayor work out of neighboring buildings on Main Street. The town supervisor and mayor need to work together because the town contracts with the village for fire protection and water service.
Jim Simon, the man who defeated Belson in a write-in campaign for town supervisor last November, congratulated Belson on his victory.
Simon said Belson will be a “quick study” in knowing how village government works. Belson is already well-schooled on community issues, Simon said.
The new mayor, who takes office April 1, also is familiar with town government and the Yates perspective. That should make it easier for the town as it works with the village, Simon said.
Belson was elected on Tuesday, winning 92-19 over James Tuk, the current deputy mayor.
Belson said the village struggles with a shrinking tax base. It has limited options for growing the tax base, and has many tax exempt properties, with the school district, churches, and village and town facilities.
“We’re all pressed for money,” he said.
Belson would like to boost the downtown business district. He welcomes more people to be involved in the village government and community organizations. He said service organizations, fire departments, churches and even municipal boards need more interest and participation from the community.
“The younger generation needs to be more involved,” he said. “I would like to get more public participation and involvement.”
The village elections don’t allow for much of a transition to the new elected officials. They take office on April 1, about two weeks after the election. The town elections are in early November and the new officials take office on Jan. 1, nearly a two-month transition.
With the town, the newly elected officials also don’t set the budget. That is done by the old board. The Belson-led Town Board in 2015 created the budget for 2016 that is now managed by the Simon-led Town Board.
With the village, the budgets are due before May 1. That means Belson will have a month to work on the village budget that he will then have to manage for 2016-17. At the village level, the new officials start in one of the busiest months for those elected officials. At the town level, the officials start in January, which is often a slower month.
Belson said he is ready for the challenge after the strong support in the election.
“I got a lot of energy from the residents in the village,” he said.
