By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 28 August 2019 at 8:46 am
MEDINA – The Village Board has approved a two-year contract with the school district where the Medina Police Department will provide a resource officer.
The contract increases the amount paid to the village from $60,000 this past school year to $65,000 in 2019-20, and then $70,000 in 2020-21.
Medina police officer Corey Ambrose served as the school resource officer the past two years. This school year, Stephen Gross will be the resource officer.
The Medina contract is less than what other school districts pay for the service.
The Orleans County Sheriff’s Office is receiving $100,000 to provide a school resource officer in Lyndonville and Kendall. In Albion, the school district is paying the village $81,250 annually for an officer.
In other action at Monday’s Village Board meeting:
• The board approved borrowing up to $50,000 for a computer overhaul for the Police Department. That includes a new server and laptops.
• The board also agreed to have Martin Busch continue in a part-time role as code enforcement officer. Busch has retired after 24 years in the job. He has agreed to work in a limited role helping to review building plans and do some inspections. Busch will be paid $30 an hour. He is expected to work about three hours a week.
• The village is giving about 20 water customers until the end of October to have new water meters in place. More than 2,000 meters have been replaced with a new software installed for reading the meters.
But about 20 water customers have the old meters. Most of them need to make plumbing upgrades for the new meters because their pipes are corroded or brittle.
The village has been working to replace meters the past three years. The village is paying extra expense keeping the old software system for the 20 meters.
The board voted to give those customers until the end of October to have the meters replaced or else their water will be shut off.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 27 August 2019 at 4:31 pm
Photo by Tom Rivers: Zelaya, a mariachi band, performed during a “Day of the Dead” celebration in downtown Medina last Nov. 1. They are performing under a big tent that was set up in the parking lot on West Center Street across from the Post Office. This Nov. 1, many of the performers will be at the Orleans County YMCA.
MEDINA – The Medina Village Board agreed to have some village streets closed to traffic for a short time to accommodate upcoming special events.
That includes demonstrations this evening at Lyons Collision on Orient Street. About 200 firefighters will be there from 6 to 8 p.m. to see extrications and other demonstrations.
The northern section of Main Street will then be blocked off on Wednesday from 3 to 8 p.m. for the Super Cruise.
On Sept. 7., Prospect Avenue near the YMCA and Pearl Street will be closed to traffic for the dedication of the bronze statue in front of the Y, which was originally an Armory and training site for soldiers. The dedication will be from 11 a.m. to noon on Sept. 7.
Medina businesses last year teamed with the Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council on Nov. 1 for the Day of the Dead, with many of the events under a tent at the parking lot on West Center Street across from the Post Office.
This time many events are planned downtown from 3 to 6 p.m., with a processional at 6 to the YMCA. The Y will host most of the performances. A section of West Avenue will be closed to traffic from approximately 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Karen Canning of GO Art! asked the Village Board for the short-term street closure. She expects there will be about 100 people in the processional.
Police Chief Chad Kenward said it will take about three police officers to keep the street closed and the participants safe. That will include some overtime for officers.
The board gave the OK for the overtime and blocked-off street.
“It’s something new and we want to encourage people to come into our town,” said Trustee Marguerite Sherman.
The board also approved use of Boxwood Cemetery for two Medina cross country meets, Oct. 1 and Oct. 8. The high school course is off-limits due to construction at the school campus.
Village officials said they would push to have some older trees pruned in the historic cemetery before the two races.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 27 August 2019 at 11:10 am
Provided photo
MEDINA – The Medina Fire Department has a new 4-wheel drive Suburban, which the department can use to take a utility trailer to the many unsanctioned recreation areas in the community by the canal, creeks and Glenwood Lake.
Pictured from left include Fire Chief Tom Lupo, State Sen. Robert Ortt, Mayor Michael Sidari, Lt. Steve Cooley and firefighter Jacob Crooks.
Ortt secured a $64,000 grant through Dormitory Authority of the State of New York for the vehicle and a utility trailer. The trailer will house and haul rope rescue equipment as well as cold and swift water rescue gear.
Lupo, the fire chief, said there has been a big increase in kayakers using the local waterways.
The village is paying about $3,000 towards the vehicle and trailer. Lupo said the new Suburban replaces a Durango from 2007 that has a lot of rust.
Photo courtesy of Cindy Perry: Tyler Fuller, a member of the maintenance and security staff at Orleans Community Health, directs people to the North Door of Medina Memorial Hospital on Monday.
Press Release, Orleans Community Health
MEDINA – The final phase of the parking lot repaving at Medina Memorial Hospital will continue this week through Thursday.
Maintenance and security staff have been available since 6:30 this morning to direct patients and visitors coming to the hospital. People will be directed to the North Door entrance (wheel chairs will be available).
On Thursday, the front circle (main entrance) will reopen for patients and visitors.
All deliveries will be directed to the Shop Door/Maintenance.
Thank you for your patience and cooperation in the final phase of the parking lot project. If you have any questions, please call Maintenance at 585.798.8012.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 24 August 2019 at 4:10 pm
Photo by Ginny Kropf: Heather Smith of Gasport sits at her desk in Medina Memorial Hospital, after being named the new executive director of Orleans Community Health Foundation.
MEDINA – Orleans Community Health Foundation has had a busy summer, with a number of special events, including the announcement of a new executive director.
After Angela DiRosa left to take another position, Heather Smith has stepped into the role of Foundation Director.
Smith began her association with the Foundation as a volunteer in 2002. Her mother, Barbara Jantzi, was on the board and Smith helped with plans for Treasure Island.
“I was getting a small piece of the action, when in 2012 I started working for the Foundation as administrative assistant,” Smith said.
In January 2016, she resigned to go back to college. She got a bachelor of science and master’s degrees in sports management, an unlikely path, but one which suited her goals.
“I wanted to further my role in fundraising, and sports management had a fundraising component in it,” she said. “Besides, I like sports.”
The timing for her new job was perfect, Smith said.
“I had graduated in January and was looking for a new job,” she said.
“Her passion has always been to work locally and help our community,” said Cindy Perry, director of Wellness, Marketing and Education at Community Partners.
Smith, who lives in Gasport, was raised in Medina and her roots go way back. Beach Drive is named after her grandfather.
“I am looking forward to reconnecting with the donors I’ve worked with in the past and forging new relationships,” Smith said.
In June the Foundation had its 33rd annual golf tournament at Shelridge Country Club. Smith said the weather attempted to dampen the day, but they held out and managed to have a successful event, raising more than $15,000.
Winners of the Men’s Division Flight were Will Condo, Alex Sutphen, Evan Gaesser and Steve Mazzacash. The Mixed Division Flight winners were Cindy Perry, Matt Bush, Tim McPherson and Rebecca Mannella.
In August, Orleans Community Health CEO Mark Cye presented his request for funding to support the ongoing need of bringing additional surgical services back to Medina Memorial Hospital. His request to the Orleans Community Health Foundation detailed the need for surgical equipment to serve the community more effectively.
“The Foundation board loved that Orleans Community Health is continually working towards expanding surgical services we offer the community, and therefore decided to approve the funding request,” Smith said. “To kick off this initiative, the proceeds from all 2019 events hosted by the Orleans Community Health Foundation will go towards this effort to provide the necessary equipment for these doctors to practice at Medina Memorial Hospital.”
Looking forward to the coming fall, Smith said they are excited to announce the Treasure Island benefit will take place Nov. 2 at Sacred Heart Club. Doors will open at 5 p.m. The event boasts an amazing assortment of donated baskets, trips, live auction items and, of course, various other opportunities to support Orleans Community Health that evening, she said.
“You can participate in Lucky Cork, where you draw a numbered cork out of a treasure box and are awarded a corresponding bottle of wine,” Smith said. “Sometimes they are wrapped with an extra treasure hidden inside.”
Treasure Island also offers a cash raffle and 50/50 drawing. Tickets for the event are available in the Foundation office located on the ground floor of Medina Memorial Hospital. They can also be purchased online at www.charityauction.bid/supportOCH2019.
Anyone who would like to sponsor the event or donate a basket may also do so through the website or call Smith at (585) 798-8426.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 23 August 2019 at 6:01 pm
Provided photos: Medina native Colin Huwyler stands by a fleet truck which uses his technology to burn used vegetable oil and restaurant grease.
Colin Huwyler was already interested in the development of clean energy while he was in Medina High School.
Since graduating in 2002, Huwyler has not only made a name for himself in the field of biodiesel technology and development of clean energy, he has become a leader in the field.
Huwyler, 34, a son of Bobbi Huwyler of Medina and Monte Huwyler, is founder of Optimus Technologies in Pittsburgh, the market leader in development of biodiesel conversion systems for medium and heavy duty trucks.
Huwyler recently returned from Binghamton University, where it was announced his company is one of 19 semifinalists in a $2.5 million competition sponsored by New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA).
When Huywler first began researching on the internet, he discovered that the original diesel engine was designed to operate on peanut oil to enable farmers to be self-sufficient. The engines were modified when petroleum oil was discovered, and the technology evolved from there, he said.
After graduation from Medina High School, he entered the University of Buffalo to study political science. He needed a car which was economical to drive back and forth, he said. New York state had then outlawed the purchase of diesel passenger vehicles, so Huwyler went to Toronto and purchased his first car – a diesel Volkswagen Jetta.
He found a kit online to convert the car to burning used cooking oil and restaurant grease. A neighbor helped him install it in his Jetta.
“We put five gallons of soybean oil in it, and it ran,” Huwyler said.
Some things about the design of the conversion kit were not convenient, so Huwyler started tweaking them.
“It got to the point where the kit had more of my tweaks than the original parts,” he said.
Colin Huwyler, founder of Optimus Technologies, is shown during an interview on television about his company’s success in building conversion kits for vehicles to burn used vegetable oil and restaurant grease. He has just been announced as a finalist in a competition sponsored by NYSERDA to win $1 million.
In 2005, Huwyler started his first company, Fossil Free Fuel. He was selling his kits when a customer in Eastern Pennsylvania needed help installing one, and Huwyler went to assist him.
That was near Allentown, and when Huwyler was looking for a place to grow his company, Pennsylvania was a natural choice.
“That’s where the interest was in sustainable and clean technology,” he said.
Huwyler moved to Pittsburgh, where he entered the University of Pittsburgh and graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering.
His company today is located in the Pittsburgh suburb of Braddock, where he said the mayor was very helpful when he was setting up his business.
They had been building systems for cars when several companies began asking if Huwyler could do the same for their large distribution trucks and heavy equipment.
“That compelled me to start Optimus Technologies,” Huwyler said. “Our technology is now being used on garbage trucks in Washington, D.C. and Chicago. A number of new entities are going to install it this fall.”
Optimus Technologies currently has three employees, and plans to hire another three by the end of the year.
“If we win this contest, we’ll be hiring a lot more,” Huwyler said.
NYSERDA’s 76West Clean Energy Competition is one of the largest in the country which focuses on supporting entrepreneurs to build clean energy businesses and economic development. It supports New York’s target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 85 percent by 2050, Huwyler said.
The competition attracted proposals from 169 companies from 14 countries.
“All had really interesting technologies,” Huwyer said. “But we feel really good about our chances. Our technology can meet the goals New York state has set, and we have proven it already.”
Huwyler has four patents on his technology, with several more pending.
Winner of the 76West Clean Energy Competition will receive $1 million. The second place finisher will receive $500,000 and four third-place winners will each get $250,000. Winners will be announced in the fall.
“If we win, the money will help grow our company,” Huwyler said. “The focus would be on hiring, growing technology and setting up a company in the Southern Tier of New York state.”
One of the requirements of the competition is the winner must set up or do business in the Southern Tier.
Other finalists include Clean Fiber of Buffalo and Paradigm of New York in Rochester.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 23 August 2019 at 10:11 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – Western New York Energy welcomed about 200 people on Thursday for a first-time community tour and open house of the facility on Bates Road. The plant opened in November 2007 and uses about 20 million bushels of corn each year to produce about 60 million gallons of ethanol.
Bill Draper (white helmet), a shift leader and board operator for WNY Energy, leads one of the tours. Draper has worked for the company the past seven years.
Tim Winters, WNY chief executive officer, said the company wanted to show the community how ethanol is made and some of the other byproducts at the facility.
“We’re trying to promote our product,” he said. “There is a lot of misunderstandings about our product.”
WNY Energy employs 44 people at the plant, plus six more in Shelby Transportation, which hauls corn from some farms and also delivers distillers grains. Shelby Transportation also delivers feed grade corn oil.
A group on the tour walks by distillers grains, which will be sold to livestock operations, including many dairy farms.
In addition to ethanol, which is blended in gas in the Rochester and Buffalo markets, WNY Energy produces the distillers grains. Carbon dioxide also is captured by WNY Energy and then turned into food grade CO2 by Air Products, a company next door to WNY Energy.
Mike Langdon is the lab manager for WNY Energy and has been with the company since it started. The company has become more efficient in getting more ethanol out of the corn. Langdon said the local corn is a high-quality product with lots of starch that has proven desirable in creating ethanol.
“It’s my personal opinion that our local corn is the best corn in the country,” said Langdon, who has been with the company for 12 years.
Mike Schoolcraft releases corn from a Shelby Transportation truck into a corn hopper. Most of the corn used by the ethanol plant comes within a 100-mile radius.
Dr. Andrew Randolph, technical director of ECR engines, discussed the benefits of ethanol and E15 fuel for vehicles, including NASCAR race cars.
Winters, the ethanol plant CEO, said there are misunderstandings in the public that ethanol is bad for engines. That is why WNY Energy wanted to bring in Randolph to dispel some of the myths against ethanol.
Randolph said ethanol burns cleaner with less carbon emissions, without sacrificing power.
The United States is the world’s leading ethanol producer at 16.1 billion gallons in 2018, double the output of Brazil, which is second.
WNY Energy in Medina is one of 210 ethanol biorefineries in the U.S., and one of only two in New York. The other plant is in Fulton, Oswego County.
The company prides itself on cleanliness and safety, as well as high-value products. WNY Energy hasn’t missed a day due an an accident since the plant opened.
Read’s Ice Cream in Henrietta served ice cream cones for the people after they completed the tour.
Provided photos: Wolcottsville Wildlife in Akron was a popular exhibitor on July 18.
Posted 20 August 2019 at 7:33 pm
Press Release, Lee-Whedon Memoiral Library
MEDINA – Lee-Whedon Memorial Library had a fantastic summer reading program this year. This year’s theme was “A Universe of Stories.” Our staff offered 64 programs that were attended by 2,424 children, teens and adults.
A crayon initiative resulted in more than 40 pounds of crayons being donated.
Children read 1,035 books, teens read 933 books, and adults read 685 books. Library staff gave away over 200 books to participants.
We partnered with the YMCA, Medina Parks and Rec, Medina Central School, and multiple local daycare centers to offer programming.
In addition to providing literacy and reading focused programs, our staff helped foster better global citizens. Children, teens, and adults learned about local animal conservation and rehabilitation efforts, different cultures from around the world, and the importance of donating to charity. Participants donated 50 pounds of food to a local animal sanctuary, 40-plus pounds of crayons to the Crayon Initiative, and many boxes of food for the local food pantry.
Our weekly STEM programs focused on space, coding, and robotics which strengthened critical thinking and deductive reasoning skills.
Overall, the summer program was a great success in preparing children and teens for the future. Thank you to everyone who participated and we look forward to seeing you at the library!
Photo courtesy of Lee-Whedon Memorial Library: Heidi Ziemer, Outreach & Digital Services coordinator of the Western New York Library Resources Council, presented a check to Catherine Cooper, director of Lee-Whedon Memorial Library. Also present for the presentation were Suzanne McAllister and Kristine Mostyn of Lee-Whedon Memorial Library, Sheryl Knab, executive director of Western New York Library Resources Council; (in back from left) Tom Bindeman, director of the NIOGA Library System; and David Schwert, trustee of Lee-Whedon Memorial Library.
Press Release, Lee-Whedon Memorial Library
MEDINA – Lee-Whedon Memorial Library has been awarded a Regional Bibliographic Data Bases Project Grant for $6,225 to fund the continuing digitization of the Medina Daily Journal and The Journal-Register newspapers.
The grants are made available through the Western New York Library Resources Council. This is the third grant the library has received for the project. Local newspapers from 1865 through 1972 are now accessible online through www.nyshistoricnewspapers.org
Medina’s history and growth were nowhere better chronicled than in the local newspapers of the day. Fortunately these have been preserved, first in bound volumes, later on microfilm.
This microfilm has been an invaluable resource for local historians and genealogists and has been heavily accessed over the years. Online access to these newspapers provides a broader access and has proved to be very popular, said Catherine Cooper, director of the library.
MEDINA – On Wednesday and Thursday, Medina Memorial Hospital will begin working on the repaving process for the hospital “front circle/main entrance” and parking lot (located north of the hospital) from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Please enter the parking lot from the northern entrance (near Commercial Street). Visitors and patients will be escorted to the North Door and taken to their destination by Maintenance/Security. Wheelchairs will be available if needed.
During the evening hours the main entrance will be available for use. Please use caution during this time as the parking lot may be a little “uneven” during the repaving process.
If you have any questions, please call Maintenance at 585-798-8012.
Thank you for your cooperation. Your safety is of the utmost importance to us at Orleans Community Health.
Photos by Ginny Kropf: Members of Medina Lions, Lee-Whedon Memorial Library and Medina High School’s English Department gathered around a new little library for the We Read Program, which Lion Chris Keller built and the Lions donated Friday morning. From left are Julie and Chris Keller, library director Catherine Cooper, Lion Jim Hancock, and teachers Todd Bensley, Elizabeth Dickhut, Karen Jones and Nicole Goyette. This will be the fourth little book kiosk in the village, as part of the We Read Program.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 16 August 2019 at 1:38 pm
MEDINA – A program launched in the fall of 2018 to promote reading in the community got some support from Medina Lions with a unique donation this morning.
When the Lions heard Medina’s We Read Program was in need of another little library, Lion Chris Keller volunteered to build one.
The We Read Program, with a goal is to promote reading in the community, was an idea of Medina High School’s English Department, led by Elizabeth Dickhut. With support from Lee-Whedon Memorial Library, We Read was launched in the fall of 2018.
Chris Keller, rear, watches as Catherine Cooper, director of Lee Whedon Memorial Library, and Jim Hancock, a member of Medina Lions Club, unveil a reading library Keller made on behalf of the Lions for the We Read Program.
The newest little library is a bit different from the other three, which are placed in strategic locations around Medina, such as Pine Street Park, Rotary Park and the Canal Village Farmers’ Market on Saturday mornings.
Keller, who teaches at Albion Central School and is a talented woodcrafter, built this library with a cedar roof and then his wife Julie suggested he paint it in the Lions’ colors of yellow and blue. This library will be filled with books and placed in State Street Park.
The idea of We Read is to place books throughout the town where adults and children can take a book and keep it or return it or leave another book.
Goyette said she has noticed increased activity in the library at Pine Street Park, where the children’s books have been very popular.
“More adults are also starting to use the little library, and that’s great,” she said.
Dickhut said she loved that more people, such as the Lions Club, were getting involved.
“That was the whole idea of We Read – to promote reading to the community,” Dickhut said.
Hancock said people are also using the library in Rotary Park as a drop-off for people wanting to leave non-perishable food items.
Anyone is welcome and encouraged to leave books on any subject in the We Read libraries, or take a book to read.
Hancock said the Lions hope their donation of the little library will be a lasting tribute to the We Read Program.
Photo by Ginny Kropf: David Kusmierczak is active with the American Legion, VFW, the Honor Guard and the Orleans County Joint Veterans’ Council.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 16 August 2019 at 9:13 am
Provided photos: Congressman Chris Collins reads a proclamation honoring David Kusmierczak of Medina as Veteran of the Month in the New York 27th Congressional District. The ceremony took place Wednesday at the VFW in Medina.
MEDINA – David Kusmierczak didn’t think twice about joining the military as soon as he graduated from Medina High School in 1967.
He also didn’t hesitate to join the VFW (and later the American Legion) shortly after he finished his tour of duty and returned home in 1971.
It was this same dedication to veterans which has prompted him to step up and volunteer for any activity involving veterans in his community – a commitment which hasn’t gone unnoticed by his peers.
On Wednesday at the VFW in Medina, Congressman Chris Collins announced Kusmierczak as the Veteran of the Month in the New York 27th Congressional District.
The presentation was a complete surprise to Kusmierczak, who was told by Steve Johnson and Jim Freas there was going to be a veteran honored and they wanted all veterans to be there.
Kusmierczak wasn’t even suspicious when his wife Barbara and children Dan Taramasco and Jeanette Voelker showed up for the event. Another son, Matthew, had to work and couldn’t attend.
Barbara had been in on the award and provided Collins’ aide Alexandra Gould with his biography, which she read to the group gathered there.
Kusmierczak entered the United States Air Force in November 1967, because he didn’t want to be drafted into the Army. He completed basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, then became a security policeman, serving at many Air Force bases throughout the United States.
Then came his orders to go to Vietnam, and he was sent to Bien Hoa Air Force Base near Saigon. He was there two years, where he was in security at the bomb dump.
He arrived home in August 1971, and returned to his job at General Electric in Brockport, where he had worked the afternoon shift while still a junior in high school. After a year, he left and went to Harrison Radiator in Lockport, retiring from there after 33 years of employment.
A question about his life insurance policy led to a chance meeting with the woman who would become his wife.
Barbara sold insurance and he was put in contact with her when he had questions about his policy.
“She looked nice to me,” Kusmierczak said. “I used to call her up and pretend I needed to know how to cook something, when I really did know how to do it.”
They dated for two years before they were married in 2005. At one point, Barbara suggested maybe they should split and date other people, to make sure their relationship was going to work.
David Kusmierczak poses with his family after a surprise announcement by Congressman Chris Collins Wednesday, naming him Veteran of the Month in the New York 27th Congressional District. From left are Collins, Barbara Kusmierczak, David and their children Dan Taramasco of Rochester and Jeanette Voelker of Hamlin.
“I said, ‘No way.’ I threw down a calendar and told her to pick a date and that is when we would get married,” Kusmierczak said.
That was the fall of 2004 and the date she picked was June 25, 2005.
There were married by a justice of the peace at the Cobblestone Church in Childs, followed by a reception at the Village Inn.
After Kusmierczak retired from General Motors he stepped up his involvement in veterans’ activities.
“Frank Berger got me into the Honor Guard for a veteran’s funeral,” he said. “When their chaplain took ill, Dell Stork asked me to be chaplain. I still do that.”
He has been a member of the American Legion for 28 years and a chaplain at the VFW.
Then Berger introduced Kusmierczak to the Orleans County Joint Veterans’ Council, where he became their chaplain and has been president for four years. He has also been chaplain for the Orleans County American Legion for two years and for the Orleans County Legislature for three years. Whenever the Legion and VFW are placing flags on veterans’ graves, firing gun salutes at veterans’ memorial sites or marching in local parades, Kusmierczak is sure to be there.
He is actively involved in fundraising for the Butts-Clark American Legion and supports the Healing Presence Program, which gathers and distributes Christmas presents to homebound and nursing home veterans. Last year Kusmierczak distributed 69 packages to veterans.
He also participates in Wreaths Across America at Boxwood Cemetery and in any fundraisers for the VFW and American Legion.
He said when Gould started reading his biography, he soon realized she was talking about him.
He said it is a real honor and he has a spot all picked out on top of their curio cabinet to display the framed American flag which Collins presented him. The flag was flown over the U.S. Capitol in Kusmierczak’s honor on July 17.
Photo by Tom Rivers: Marty Busch, Medina’s code enforcement officer the past 24 years, is pictured on Main Street in Medina on Tuesday. Busch helped the village of Medina craft regulations for design standards and property maintenance that have helped with the look and upkeep of the downtown business district.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 August 2019 at 2:04 pm
MEDINA – Marty Busch is being praised for helping the Village of Medina implement several local laws and policies that have encouraged investment in the downtown business district, Maple Ridge Corridor and some of the struggling residential neighborhoods.
Busch had his last day in the office on Tuesday after 24 years as code enforcement officer. Medina Mayor Michael Sidari has declared Sept. 28 as “Marty Busch Day” in the village. That is Busch’s last official day working for the village.
In a proclamation on Tuesday, Sidari said Busch has made Medina a safer community by enforcing the instruction and building codes.
Busch helped Medina pass several local laws for property maintenance, sign standards and a vacant house registry, laws that Sidari said “will have a long-lasting positive influence on the village.”
Early in his career with the village, Busch was at a conference in Saratoga, where he was wowed by the community’s thriving historic business district.
“They passed historic preservation standards and they stuck with it,” Busch said.
He brought that message to Medina, and the Planning Board and Village Board implemented similar standards.
Buildings owners took on ambitious projects, breathing new life into buildings from the 1800s. The investments spurred more investments, and now the downtown is a destination and an envy of many small canal towns.
“People saw someone take on a building and bring it to its potential,” Busch said.
The community is fortunate to have many people with a vision for businesses and buildings, he said.
Marty Busch accepts a proclamation declaring Sept. 28 as “Marty Busch Day” in Medina. That is Busch’s last official day of work. The Village Board hosted a retirement for Busch on Tuesday afternoon, which was attended by Kathy Blackburn of the Medina Business Association and Jim Whipple, chief executive officer of the Orleans Economic Development Agency.
Busch has been the code officers while new businesses built in the Medina Business Park or along the Maple Ridge Corridor. Busch and the village officials often pushed chain stores to up the ante with their proposed buildings, going for brick and some extensive landscaping.
“We really do have a gem of a village,” Busch said at a retirement party on Tuesday at the Village Office. Our Main Street is second to none. We have outstanding parks. I think the best is yet to come. We’ll keep rolling and Medina will be incredible in a very short time.”
Mayor Sidari credited Busch with working well with property owners and businesses while they developed plans for projects, and then did the construction.
“Marty was the catalyst for the transformation of downtown Medina,” Sidari said. “Not only the downtown, but the entire village as well. Between the Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals, they brought several ideal laws to pass.”
Sidari said a recent law establishing a vacant building registry, which includes fines, has encouraged those property owners to either fix up the houses or sell them. It has reduced the number of vacant homes from about 80 to 45.
Busch admitted the codes officer is a job “where you never make everybody happy.” People usually don’t like being told what to do with their property, or if there are violations.
Cindy Robinson, the Medina Business Association president, said Busch was fair and helped people understand the zoning ordinances.
“If you did things right, there was never an issue,” she said. “Marty never scared anyone away (from investing) in Medina.”
Dan Gardner of Lyndonville is following Busch as code enforcement officer.
Medina firefighter Jeff Tuohey shakes Marty Busch’s hand on Tuesday, Busch’s last day in the office. Busch said h has had a great working relationship with Medina firefighters and police officers.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 August 2019 at 7:55 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – Medina Village Clerk Debbie Padoleski, left, and Deputy Clerk Jada Burgess are pictured with a Medina community sign that was recently installed by the Village Clerk’s Office at 119 Park Ave.
The sign was found in the third floor of City Hall in storage about a year ago. For many years it had been a gateway sign at the entrance of the village.
The sign was given a fresh coat of paint with the art work touched up by students in Jennifer Scott’s art class in Medina. It was a project as part of Make An Impact Day at the high school in May.
“The art department made it look brand new,” Padoleski said.
Once the sign was done, there was the question of how to hang it. The DPW heard the Ridgway Highway Department had a sign post that had been knocked over at the corner of Salt Works Road and West Center Street. That is a gateway to the village and where one of the Medina community signs used to be placed.
Joe Perry, DPW superintendent, and the DPW workers repaired the sign post and mounted it by the Village Clerk’s Office, with the sign.
It’s been up about two months and Padoleski said it has been popular with village residents, who are glad to see the sign back on the landscape.
Photo courtesy of Lynne Menz: The statue of a soldier will be dedicated on Sept. 7 in Medina. The soldier is atop the Company F Memorial outside the Orleans County YMCA in Medina, which was originally an armory used as a training site for soldiers.
MEDINA – After 13 years of planning, fundraising, constructing and more creating, the Company F Memorial Statue will be dedicated at a formal ceremony honoring the Company F soldiers that trained at the Medina Armory on Pearl Street in Medina from 1898 to 1947.
The statue dedication, which launches the 4th annual Orleans County Heritage Festival, will be held Saturday, Sept. 7, at 11 a.m. on the corner of Prospect Avenue and Pearl Street (on the grounds of the Orleans YMCA, formerly the Medina Armory).
A reception will follow in the YMCA featuring historical displays and a meet and greet with the sculptor, Brian Porter, and UB Foundry Director, Chris Siano.
The monument, a pentagonal shaped column made of Medina Sandstone topped with the 1,400-pound bronze statue, is a tribute to over 550 Company F war veterans that battled four major conflicts: the Spanish American War, Mexican Border Incursion, World War I and World War II.
The names of each of those local soldiers are inscribed on plaques attached to four of the walls of the monument. The 5th wall memorializes Company C leaders who trained at the Medina Armory during the Cold War era, some of whom served in the Korean and Vietnam wars. The monument also serves to honor all of our veterans and symbolizes our local military history.
Phase II of the monument, the Company F bronze statue was unveiled to the community in November 2018 when it lead Medina’s Old Tyme Christmas Festival’s Parade of Lights. Ironically, the parade route was opposite in direction to the route the young soldiers marched in October 1940— from the armory, down Main Street to the train station— as they departed for basic training prior to the outbreak of WWII. The Parade of Lights’ route symbolized the final homecoming, including a brief stop at the former armory. The statue was on display inside the YMCA’s original entrance during the winter and mounted to the monument in April 2019.
Company F Memorial Chairman Bill Menz, a former Company C National Guardsman (1953-58) and an original member of the Armory Action Committee (1978), then Medina Sandstone Society (2004), presented the need for such a monument to the Sandstone Society in 2006 and with their support, presented the concept to Company F WWII Veterans at their annual reunion. He and fellow contractor, John Fuller, built the sandstone structure which was dedicated in October 2008 with several WWII veterans in attendance.
Mr. Menz passed away in July 2018 before the completion of the statue. However, he was able to visit the foundry in early July to see some of the castings before it was assembled. The committee regrouped and completed Phase III of Chairman Menz’s legacy with the addition of 5 memorial benches encircling the monument, a flag pole for the American flag and lighting.
Attending the dedication ceremony will be family members of Company F veterans, local and state dignitaries, clergy, veterans, current members of the 108th Infantry, contributors and the group of devoted individuals who worked passionately to bring this monument to fruition. The public is invited to this event which will be held rain or shine.
