Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) is joining the New York State Department of Transportation in celebrating the re-opening of two local canal bridges that have been closed off to traffic for the better part of a year: the Telegraph Road Bridge in Murray and the Bates Road Bridge in Medina.
While there will still be some work to be done on both bridges, the DOT has assured it will not affect traffic. Both bridges will be open to vehicular traffic by the end of the day on Saturday.
“The coordination and dedication of those workers to restore the bridges for modern traffic is both commendable and admirable,” Hawley said. “I am just as excited as the next person to finally have this construction done and have these roadways open to us again.”
The Telegraph Road Bridge has been closed since Aug. 5, 2019 for steel repairs. The Bates Road Bridge has been closed since Nov. 8, 2019 for the same reason. The Telegraph bridge will have minor final touches being completed by the construction crew but traffic will be able to flow through. The Bates bridge will have open traffic flow, but continue to have a construction crew presence in order to install sidewalk grating.
Photos by Rebecca Cooley: Medina firefighters respond to smoke coming from the roof of a house at 1100 South Main St.
Press Release, Medina Fire Department
MEDINA – At 5:10 pm on Wednesday evening while on routine patrol, police officers from the Medina Police Department noticed smoke coming from the roof at 1100 South Main St.
Orleans County Sheriff’s Office dispatchers quickly alerted the Village of Medina Fire Department along with firefighters from the Shelby and Lyndonville. Crews from the 3rd and 4th Platoons arrived to find smoke coming from the second floor of a 2-story single family residence.
All five occupants were out of the house on arrival of firefighters. The family was alerted by several smoke detectors that activated as the Police Department spotted the smoke.
Fire Chief Matt Jackson arrived and was in command of the scene as crews made entry and discovered high heat and low visibility on the second floor. Crews found and extinguished the fire in a bedroom and were able to keep the fire damage contained to the room of origin. There is smoke damage throughout the second floor as well as water damage to the first story. The family is currently being assisted by the American Red Cross.
Also assisting at the scene were members from the East Shelby Fire Department along with Coordinators and Investigators from the Orleans County Emergency Management Office.
The Ridgeway Fire Department stood by at the Medina Fire house and handled a fire alarm at Medina Memorial Hospital while the units were still on scene at the South Main Street fire.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation at this time. One village firefighter received a lower body injury He was treated and released from Medina Memorial Hospital and remains off duty at this time.
We would like to thank all our Public Safety partners for their assistance and we would also like to remind everyone to please check your smoke detectors monthly to ensure they are in working order. Smoke detectors save lives!
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 June 2020 at 10:41 am
Photos courtesy of Jenifer Cardone
MEDINA – Medina juniors in the daisy chain are out in a field on Blair Road this morning, picking daisies for the daisy chain for Friday’s graduation.
The daisy chain tradition dates back about a century in Medina. It will continue for Friday’s commencement, which has been split into three ceremonies. The state has capped the size of graduation ceremonies to 150 people.
Medina decided to have three different commencement celebrations for the Class of 2020, which includes 110 members. The ceremonies will be at Vets Park instead of the high school auditorium. The services will be at 4 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.
These daisy chain members include, from left: Lexi Hare, Sophia Cardone, Abby Blount and Hannah Kenward.
The daisy chain includes the 16 top-ranked girls academically and top two boys in the Class of 2021. They will gather on Thursday morning to build a 54-foot-long daisy chain.
The daisies are always picked close to graduation to be fresh for the ceremony.
MEDINA – The Village of Medina has received complaints from village residents of a company offering to take credit card payments for water bills. The company name is Doxo.com.
The village does not utilize any outside third party firm for collection of any fees, bills or taxes (other than Medex the billing company for the ambulance) due the village and warns residents that any request for payments from other than the village or Medex should be considered fraudulent.
All fees, bills and taxes due the village (other than Medex) can be made in person at the village clerk’s office on Park Avenue utilizing cash, check or credit card. In addition, payments can be made by credit card by phoning the village clerk’s office at 585-798-0710.
Photos by Tom Rivers: The Medina Marching Band performs at home on Sept. 21 during the Fall Festival of Bands. Medina on Oct. 27 won the Small Schools 1 Division in New York State Field Band Conference Championship. Medina scored 91.6, which topped the seven other marching bands in the division.
MEDINA – Medina Marching Band director Jim Steele has announced the band awards and the students leaders for next year.
Steele posted the news on Facebook. The band was unable to have its annual banquet due to the Covid-19 pandemic and a current limit on social gatherings to no more than 25 people.
The following nine seniors will be graduating from the program:
Mary Margaret Flores – Flute Section Leader
Reagan Wilkins
Grace Cook – Alto Sax Section Leader
Lily Kiebala – Mellophone Section Leader
Trenton Crews – Clarinet Section Leader
Margaret Klotzbach – Head of Percussion and Assistant Drum Major
Lacey Kenward – Trumpet Section Leader and Assistant Drum Major
Miranda Zelazny – Low Brass Section Leader and Assistant Drum Major
Jada Draper – Drum Major
Band Awards are as follows:
NYSFBC Scholarship – Jada Draper – $400 scholarship and certificate
Steele Family Scholarship – Margarget Klotzbach – $250 scholarship, certificate and name on Steele Family Scholarship Plaque
Medina Mustang Band Service Scholarship – Lacey Kenward – $150 awarded after first semester of college, certificate and name on the Service Scholarship plaque
Joseph C McKain Award – Senior – Miranda Zelazny Junior – Faith Ann Vanderwalker – certificate and names on the McKain plaque
Alfred Hartway Drum Major Awards – Jada Draper, Lacey Kenward, Miranda Zelazny and Margaret Klotzbach – certificates and names on the Drum Major Plaque
Outstanding Band Member awards – trophies
Rookie of the year
Brass – Cameron Kenward
Woodwind – McKenzie McGrath
Percussion – Riley Tompkins
Guard – Abigayle Wright
Most Improved
Brass – Joe Brueckner
Woodwind – Caiden Class
Percussion – Reagan Wilkins
Guard – Karina Rotoli
Most Valuable
Brass – Chris Woodroe
Woodwind – Bailey Jackson
Percussion – Mark Barcena
Guard – McKenna Callard
Directors Awards – Madison Owens from Miss Diana, Reagan Wilkins from Mr. Steele, Mrs. Botsfords TBA
All members of the fall band from 2019’s show – Walk the Path will be receiving their 2019 Championship Patch.
The field band performs at Vets Park on Sept. 21. Medina won the state title in the field band competition.
All members of both the Junior Varsity and Varsity Winter Guards will be receiving patches for the 2019-2020 season from the NECGC.
Those members that will be receiving their Letter “M” for 6 or 7 seasons of service are the following:
• 6 seasons: Gabbi Flores Medina, Seagan Majchrzak, Mason Moreland, Will Roush, Alayna Smith, Kayleigh Wright, Bailey Jackson, Lana Ortiz, Jaxon Phillips and Madison Owens.
• 7 seasons: Bryce Quintern, Kiana Cleveland, Aries McMurray, Ayden Amrhein, Sam Boyle, Kaylee Lacey, Regan Timmer, Sophia Cardone, Destiny Jones and Michelle Tagg.
Those members getting a service bar for 10 or 11 seasons of service are:
• 10 seasons: Megan Zakes, Paige Adkins, Carter Green, Kylie Hinman, Hannah Kenward, Emma Leonard, Jaden Pencille, August Pietrafesa, Melanie Poynter, Emma Roush, McKenna Callard, Faith Ann Vanderwalker, Chris Woodroe, Amanda Woodruff, Grace Cook, Lacey Kenward and Mary Flores.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 22 June 2020 at 9:19 pm
File photo by Cheryl Wertman: Lt. Todd Draper and Kye, the Medina Police Department’s K-9, are pictured in January 2014 when they met children at a local basketball game.
MEDINA – Kye, Medina’s K-9 since 2012, will soon be retiring. Kye is a Belgian Malinois that works each day with his partner/handler Lt. Todd Draper.
The Medina Village Board announced Kye will be retiring and the board agreed to sell the dog to Draper for $1, which is typical when a K-9 retires. The dog then spends the rest of its life with its handler’s family.
Medina already has enough in donations to purchase a new a Belgian Malinois. Police Chief Chad Kenward said a new dog will likely be purchased next month. The department will also announce a new K-9 handler later this week.
The handler and the dog will then be trained together other the summer. The dog should be in serve in September or October. Once the new dog is ready, Kye will be retired, Kenward said.
Kye’s main duties have been tracking, drug detection, building searches and criminal apprehension. Kye and Draper have attended many public events and visited local schools and done demonstrations for the community.
“K-9 Kye has filled out his retirement papers and put his paw print on it,” said Mayor Mike Sidari.
The Village Board at this evening’s meeting also accepted the resignations of two full-time firefighters. Sergio DiCenso and Bob Urtel are both transferring to other fire departments.
Mayor Sidari said the village is in “quite the quandary” with the filling the two positions because a spring Civil Service test was cancelled. Fire Chief Matt Jackson said the department will work on filling the position.
Jackson said the department will be down from 20 full-time firefighters to 16. Medina’s firefighters are also emergency medical technicians or paramedics and run an ambulance service.
‘We are asking the public to please keep yourself, your loved ones, and other village residents and their property safe by not discharging fireworks.’ – Chief Chad Kenward
Press Release, Medina Police Chief Chad Kenward
MEDINA – In recent weeks, our agency, along with several surrounding agencies, have received multiple fireworks complaints from citizens.
These incidents are happening at multiple locations, and it can be difficult for officers to identify a specific suspect who set off these devices. Unfortunately, this is not an issue that is isolated to the Village of Medina, and though our investigations, we believe that a majority of these illegal devices are being purchased outside of the area. We assure you that we are as frustrated with the problem as you are.
Over the weekend, additional officers were put on the street. These officers were able to take some enforcement action, and effected multiple arrests in direct relation to these situations. Here is a brief recap of the charges filed by our agency over the weekend, and the corresponding number of arrests:
Due to current legislation, arrests for these offenses are non-bailable offenses, meaning, after the arrest, subjects are released to appear in court at a later date.
We have had multiple instances where arrested individuals have been believed to have continued setting off fireworks after being arrested and released. Despite these difficulties, our agency will continue enforcing NYS law in regard to possessing and discharging illegal fireworks. It should be strongly noted, that individuals who maintain any premise where this illegal activity is conducted may also be charged with Criminal Nuisance, even if they are not the ones discharging the fireworks.
It should go without saying, but fireworks are very dangerous. Annually, approximate 10,000 people are hurt or killed by fireworks, including 1/3 who are under the age of 16 years old. In addition, fireworks start an average of 18,500 fires each year. We are asking the public to please keep yourself, your loved ones, and other village residents and their property safe by not discharging fireworks.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 17 June 2020 at 8:12 pm
MEDINA – Now that governor has increased the maximum size of social gatherings from 10 to 25 people, the Medina Village Board is returning to in-person meetings.
The board has been meeting through Zoom since late March.
The board will meet this Monday, June 22, at 6:30 p.m. for a workshop at the Shelby Town Hall on Salt Works Road, with the regular meeting to follow at 7 p.m.
Mayor Mike Sidari said any attendees will need to wear a face covering.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 16 June 2020 at 8:48 pm
MEDINA – The school district today counted about 2 ½ times as many ballots this election, which was done entirely through absentees due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The district’s proposed $40,491,733 budget passed overwhelming, 912 in favor to 203 opposed.
The 1,115 votes counted in the election compare to the 424 cast in the last election, May 21, 2019.
The $40,491,733 budget is up from the $40,284,425 in 2019-20. The tax levy, what the district collects in taxes, remains at $8,641,861. This is the 12th time in the past 13 years the district has either kept taxes flat or cut them.
The budget maintains nearly all academic programs and all extracurricular activities. The budget does eliminate intramural (reducing $24,000) and a summer program in the elementary school (saving $50,000). Medina also is eliminating the director of curriculum and the tax collector position (saving $140,000).
Proposition 2 – Establishment of a General Capital Reserve Fund (Approved – Yes, 895; No, 221)
The district will put up to $4,000,000 in the fund for the purpose of financing capital improvements to the district’s buildings and facilities.
Board of Education Candidates (Elect 3)
• LuAnn Tierney – 916 votes
• Annette Allis – 902 votes
• Arlene Pawlaczyk – 878 votes
Current Board member David Sevenski (who did not seek re-election) had the most write in votes with 11.
Photos by Ginny Kropf: Boy Scouts gather around a pile of used flags as they wait for the fire to be lit for the flag retirement ceremony Monday morning at Medina Conservation Club. Flag burning is a longtime tradition of the American Legion, VFW and Scouts.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 16 June 2020 at 9:18 am
MEDINA – A group of Boy Scouts and their leaders joined members of the American Legion and VFW posts in Medina to participate in a flag retirement ceremony Monday morning at the Conservation Club on Bates Road.
Veteran Dave Kusmierczak read a history of meaning behind the stars and stripes, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
Scouts then placed worn flags on a pole and put them in the fire.
Scoutmaster Tim Miller helps hold an American flag while Scouts Tyler Miller, left, and David Vanderwalker cut apart stripes to be placed in the fire.
Kusmierczak explained when a flag is no longer fitting to be displayed, it must be disposed of in a dignified manner. The most common and preferred way to dispose of an American flag is by burning.
Scouts Tyler Miller of Medina and David Vanderwalker of Middleport cut apart a white stripe, a red stripe and the field of stars, placing them individually in the fire.
Dave Kusmierczak (in back), a member of the American Legion and VFW, reads the meaning behind the stars and stripes of the American flag prior to Monday morning’s flag retirement at Medina Conservation Club.
Kusmierczak said the ceremonial flag burning has been a tradition for years and years. He said they often have several flag burnings a year, in addition to Veterans’ Day in November and Flag Day in June, but because of the Covid-19 pandemic, they haven’t had one since November. Likewise, the Boy Scouts haven’t had one either.
Retired flags are collected at a number of locations throughout the area, including Medina Savings and Loan, Key Bank, Ace Hardware, the Veterans Administration Office in Albion, as well as the VFW and American Legion.
The American Legion in Albion also retired about 1,500 flags on Sunday.
Austin Beutler of Medina places a flag in the fire, during the ceremonial ceremony at Medina Conservation Club. The Scouts traditionally hold a similar ceremony on Flag Day at their camp on School No. 10 Road, but canceled it this year because of the pandemic.
