MEDINA – Lee-Whedon Memorial Library will close for renovations from Sept. 9 through Sept. 30. During that time the ceiling tiles and carpet will be replaced, the walls will be repainted, the HVAC controls will be upgraded and the large window in the Quiet Room will be replaced.
“We realize that this will be an inconvenience for our many patrons. However, closing is the most efficient and safest way to accomplish these necessary improvements” said Maryellen Dale, Board President. “We have put a great deal of thought and planning into this project. Replacing the roof this spring was our first step in securing the integrity of the building for the future. Now we need to upgrade the interior. Lee-Whedon is such a vital community asset: our aim is to make it a more user-friendly destination.”
Before the work begins, the collection will be packed and moved to temporary storage. Patrons are encouraged to visit nearby NIOGA libraries, the closest being Middleport, Lyndonville and Albion. Items checked out from Lee-Whedon after Aug. 26 will not be due until Oct. 1. Lee-Whedon material may be returned to any NIOGA library.
“We are looking forward to the end result, though we are rather dreading the process!” said Catherine Cooper, library director. “We thank our patrons in advance for their patience and understanding.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 19 August 2013 at 12:00 am
MEDINA – The recent deaths of two active Medina community members has prompted a group to propose a memorial garden at Glenwood Lake.
“The Circle of Love Memory Garden” will first honor Michelle Stanton Jones and Linda Froman. Jones was 54 when she died on July 29. She was active in the Memories of Medina Facebook group, an online community with nearly 3,000 members that promote the community. Jones organized several “meet and greets” for the group.
Froman was 58 when she died on July 31. She was a real estate broker, and active supporter of several community causes.
The Memories of Medina group wants to recognize both women and make room for more people to be recognized at the garden, which would have a base circle with a 34-foot diameter. Group representatives will pitch the plan to the Ridge Town Board tonight at 7.
The project includes benches, flowers, a sign and an arbor across the path that will be 10 feet tall and 8 feet from post to post. The garden project will cost about $3,500, said Dayton Hausman, a Memories of Medina member. He thinks the group can raise that with $20 donations from about 175 of the members.
“This will be a flower garden that will add a splash of color,” he said. “Right now there isn’t much color down there. We want to create a place where people can sit and reflect.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 17 August 2013 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers – The village of Medina, town of Shelby and Orleans Economic Development Agency are working together to make Medina Business Park attractive to developers.
MEDINA – It already has a road, and there is plenty of vacant land. But the Medina Business Park is lacking an important designation that would gain the notice of developers: “Shovel Ready.”
But that should soon change. The town of Shelby, village of Medina and Orleans Economic Development Agency are working for “shovel ready” status for the 65-acre business park on Bates Road. Clearing all of the hurdles for environmental and surveying work, as well as approvals with state agencies offers businesses a chance to build at the site without delays. But to get that status will cost about $90,000, according to a report from the Orleans EDA.
“This has been a high priority,” said Medina Mayor Andrew Meier. “We’re very happy to be working with Shelby and the EDA.”
Medina and Shelby have both committed $20,000 towards the costs of obtaining shovel ready status. The EDA has agreed to spend $4,367.75 from the Orleans Land Restoration Corporation. National Grid would pay half of the $88,735.50 cost with a grant.
“We can accomplish a lot more if we all work together,” said Ken Schaal, a Shelby town councilman.
Shelby set aside $10,000 for the project in its 2013 budget, and Schaal expects the other $10,000 will be in the town’s 2014 spending plan.
To reach “shovel ready” status, the site needs nearly $90,000 of services, including boundary, topographical and survey work ($26,010); geotechnical information ($16,000); concept plans and traffic study ($15,000); State Historic Preservation Office application ($1,500); environmental impact report ($3,500); meetings and coordination with Empire State Development ($15,000) and an application to Empire State Development for “shovel ready” status for the site ($7,500). The costs also include a 5 percent contingency for $4,225.50.
The EDA is working to have two shovel ready sites. The other site is a 120-acre cow pasture owned by the Keppeler family on Route 31A .
The EDA last year and in early 2013 worked with a consultant to develop an 850-page plan for economic development for the county. The report was complete in April. The project identified the two sites in Medina – the Keppeler site and the Medina Business Park – as priorities.
O’Brien and Gere, consultants for the EDA with the project, said the two sites are the county’s best bet for luring manufacturing and other companies. The sites both have access to water, sewer and other infrastructure. They both fall within the 30-mile radius of the hydropower plant in Lewiston. The New York Power Authority determines which companies receive that low-cost electricity.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 17 August 2013 at 12:00 am
MEDINA – The village is seeking a federal grant that would add two full-time paid firefighters for two years. If the grant application is successful, the two new recruits would join an existing full-time staff of 13 paid firefighters.
The added staff would help the department meet an increased demand for service, said Mayor Andrew Meier. The fire department last year responded to 2,520 calls, the most ever for the department, including 2,209 ambulance calls.
The department is on pace for about 2,700 calls total this year.
The two new firefighters would also help cut overtime for the department, reducing some expenses. Meier is hopeful the added revenue from the increased calls and overtime reductions will allow the two new firefighters to stay after the grant expires.
The village isn’t committed to keeping the two firefighters after the grant’s two-year cycle.
“If we have a budget gap to close in two years, there is no obligation to retain the positions,” Meier said. “But the goal would be to keep them after two years which we think we can do by boosting revenue through improved service.”
Medina is applying for the grant through the Staffing for Adequate Fire & Emergency Response grant. The village used that program to become the primary ambulance provider in western Orleans County about six years ago. The SAFER grant paid a percentage of the salaries for six new firefighters when Medina expanded its ambulance service.
When Fire Chief Todd Zinkievich pitched the ambulance plan to the Village Board in 2007, he anticipated running anywhere from 1,500 to 1,700 ambulance calls. Immediately, the department exceeded that, pushing 1,800 to 1,900 calls in its first year. The department so far in 2013 is well ahead of the pace for the record 2,209 calls last year.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 August 2013 at 12:00 am
LOCKPORT – A Medina man could be sentenced to life in prison for sexual abuse of young boys, The Buffalo News is reporting.
Gerald L. Wolter Jr., 37, of Freeman Road, has been charged with predatory sexual assault by the Niagara County District Attorney’s Office for sexually abusing two boys in Somerset between May 2011 and January of this year. Wolter faces similar charges in Orleans County for different sexual abuse incidents, the Orleans County DA’s Office said. Wolter hasn’t been indicted in Orleans yet.
Wolter was sent to Niagara County Jail on $50,000 bail on Wednesday.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 August 2013 at 12:00 am
Band has won last four state titles in small school division
Photos by Tom Rivers – Victoria Rice practices with the Colorguard today during band camp at Medina.
MEDINA – You don’t become a four-time defending state champion by taking it easy, even during the summer.
The Medina Mustang Marching Band has been studying their music all summer. The drum line, pit and Colorguard have been practicing on Tuesdays and Thursdays since July 8.
This week, the entire 130-member Marching Band joined together for Band Camp, which includes eight hours of practice each day except for Friday, which runs for four hours.
Michael Busch, a freshman, has been looking forward to band camp all summer, even though he admitted it’s a big commitment.
“We’re learning a lot of new techniques,” said Michael, a third-year band member who plays the bells in the front ensemble.
Hannah Pask plays the xylophone with the front ensemble during Medina’s band camp today.
Marching band directors Jim Steele and Cheri Pritchard had a parking lot full of chalk markings, to let band members know their spots.
“It’s a lot of work,” said Steele, the high school band director. “But it’s very beneficial. We want to give the kids the opportunity to do something that not a lot of kids are afforded.”
Medina is one of only 58 districts in the state (out of about 700) that competes in the field band program. It’s the only district in Orleans County with a field band, which competes in the fall. Medina is the sixth smallest district in the state with a field band. But Medina has more participation in the program than many larger districts, Pritchard said.
“We attribute the size to the band being such a strong tradition at the school,” she said. “A lot of the parents of our students were in the band, too.”
The band is bigger this year. Steele said the numbers tend to go in cycles.
“We’re on an upswing in the cycle, which is great,” he said.
This year’s program is called “The Pursuit Of Gold,” and features a tribute to the Olympics. The band will show their parents what they learned with a preview of the show 7 p.m. Thursday.
Medina will host its annual Fall Festival of Bands on Sept. 21 when 12 bands will perform at Vets Park, including the band from University at Buffalo. About 1,000 spectators are expected for that event.
Vinnie Monacelli, the Colorguard instructor and drill designer, calls out instructions to students today.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 12 August 2013 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – The historic First Baptist Church in Medina is getting a new roof. Matt C.M. Contracting of Medina is taking off the slate roof and putting on an asphalt one. The roof has been leaking and some of the cracked pieces were a danger.
The roofing company has tried to save as many of the intact slate pieces as possible. Many of them are being given to members of the congregation as souvenirs. Jeff MacDonald, an employee for the roofing company, holds one of the pieces.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 10 August 2013 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – Dave Viterna sings and plays the guitar during a concert by the Dave Viterna Band today at Medina’s Canal Basin. Viterna’s band performed the blues.
Another concert from the Creek Bend Band was scheduled to follow Viterna at 6 p.m.
The back-to-back concerts were part of event called “Bluegrass and Barbecue in the Basin.” Baby Ribs, a Medina restaurant, is serving barbecue chicken and ribs during the concerts. The event was coordinated by the Village of Medina Tourism Committee.
Dave Viterna tunes his guitar in between songs today during a blues concert at Medina’s Canal Basin.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 8 August 2013 at 12:00 am
Lois McClure, a floating museum, is traveling canal this summer
Photos by Tom Rivers
Jean Belisle, a member of the nine-person Lois McClure crew, talks about the helm, which he said was nicknamed a “shin splinter” by crew members. The Lois McClure is traveling the canal this summer. The boat is a wooden replica of a canal boat from the 1860s.
Visitors flock to see what the boat looks like below deck.
The Lois McClure docked in Medina today and was open for tours from 4 to 8 p.m. The boat heads east on Friday for an event in Brockport. The schooner is a full-scale replica of an 1862-class sailing canal boat. It was constructed by the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum in Vermont and launched in 2004.
The Orleans County Farmers’ Market planned several activities for children and families today at the Canal Basin in Medina. Cousins Kadinz Sager, 9, and Melodee Sager, 5, both of Medina pose by a cutout with a farm theme.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 3 August 2013 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers – Paula Moyer pulls the ticket for a gift basket as part of a fundpraiser today to fund a scholarship and support the sports program at Medina Central School. Her son Terry died in a car accident on Aug. 28, 2011. He was 17.
MEDINA – Paula Moyer is continuing to keep her son’s memory alive, raising money for a scholarship and the sports program at Medina Central School.
Today, Moyer held the second annual blood drive and basket raffle in honor of her son Terry Moyer, who was 17 when he died in a tragic car accident on Culvert Road on Aug. 28, 2011.
The family awarded the first scholarship in Terry Moyer’s name this past June. Matthew Montesanti won the $250 scholarship. The scholarship will go to a graduate pursuing a building trades career or playing sports in college.
Terry played football and wrestled at Medina.
“We want to raise money for the scholarship and make sure sports are not cut,” Paula Moyer said. “He loved being in the sports.”
Donors gave 19 pints of blood during the drive at the Oak Orchard Elementary School.
Brandon Robinson, 20, of Amherst gives blood today in memory of his friend Terry Moyer. Nineteen people donated during a blood drive in Moyer’s memory.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 August 2013 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers – A committee looking at developing a plan for the dissolution of the village of Medina met for the first time on Thursday at City Hall. A group of village residents is working with the Center for Governmental Research to develop the plan. The group includes, from lower left going clockwise: Paul Bishop and Scott Sittig of CGR, Medina Mayor Andrew Meier, Village Trustee Mark Irwin, Committee Chairman Don Colquhoun, and members Charlie Slack and Thurston Dale.
MEDINA – A public referendum about dissolving the village of Medina’s government probably won’t be ready in time for the March 2014 village elections due to a tight time frame to develop an orderly plan for the village’s dissolution.
“Let’s take our time to come up with a plan that we can all consider and accept,” Mayor Andrew Meier said during the Dissolution Committee’s first meeting Thursday. “I see no reason why to go through an expedited process.”
Medina is using a $50,000 state grant to hire the Center for Governmental Research in Rochester to help prepare the plan. There is a chance CGR and the committee could have the plan fall quickly into place, and possibly be ready for a public vote in March. But Meier and committee aren’t pushing for that as a time frame.
“We need to give the public time to chew it over,” said Don Colquhoun, chairman of the Dissolution Committee.
A public referendum can’t come sooner than about three months after the Village Board formally endorses a dissolution. That gives time for the public to study the plan and make an informed vote.
In order for the dissolution to be part of the March 18 village election, the Village Board would need to endorse a dissolution plan in December to allow for three months of public review before a vote.
Meier expects the village will call for a special election on the issue later in the year.
CGR has a lot of work to do with data collection and interviews with village officials and representatives from the towns of Shelby and Ridgeway. CGR needs to take an inventory of village assets and debts. The group will present a plan for how the debts will be paid if the village dissolves, and how current village services can best be folded into the two towns.
To pay off some debts, some village assets could be sold, including highway equipment and buildings, such as the historic but mostly underutilized City Hall.
Some services, such as police and fire, may continue with the formation of special taxing districts. The committee will look at which government entity would own the village’s water and sewer plants, and how those services can best be provided if the village dissolves.
Colquhoun, the committee chairman, said the group is determined to continue with the process, to look for ways to reduce the costs of government in the community while still maintaining services. The study may show it doesn’t make sense to dissolve Medina. He is going in with an open mind, not committed to dissolution.
“We don’t want to disrupt everyone’s lives,” he said. “But let’s see the data. I think people need to know the alternatives. Everyone complains about their taxes and says there’s nothing you can do about it. This is something we can do about it.”
If the issue goes to a public vote, only village residents will go to the polls. Residents in Shelby and Ridgeway, outside the village, don’t get a vote, but they can participate in the planning process.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 August 2013 at 12:00 am
Floating museum will be open for tours Aug. 8 in Medina
Photos by Tom Rivers – The Lois McClure docked in Albion last night and left this morning, headed west for a public event in Lockport.
The boat will be back in Orleans County on Aug. 8.
MEDINA – A crew from Burlington, Vermont, is trying to turn back the clock by a century on the Erie Canal.
The Lois McClure, a wooden schooner built as a replica of a canal boat from the 1860s, is spending two months on the canal this summer. Last night the boat docked in Albion. This morning it headed west to Lockport, where it will be open for tours from 5 to 8 p.m. today.
The boat will be in Buffalo over the weekend for tours. It will stop in Medina on Aug. 8. The public is welcome to come aboard to see the boat from 4 to 8 p.m. The tours are free.
“We want to bring the perspective of history,” said crew leader Art Cohn, who is also executive director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, which owns the Lois McClure.
The schooner is a full-scale replica of an 1862-class sailing canal boat, constructed by the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum in Vermont and launched in 2004. Cohn said it is typical of a “blue-collar boat” on the canal from a century ago, used to move freight. Many families owned boats like the Lois McClure and made a living hauling goods along the historic waterway.
“It’s a unique boat today, but it was very common in the 1860s,” he said.
The boat has a traveling companion, a tugboat named the C.L. Churchhill. The tug pulls the boat at about 5 miles per hour.
The schooner is named in honor of Lois McClure, who has been a major contributor to the sailboat and other community projects in the greater Burlington, Vermont area.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 August 2013 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – Lynn Condoluci, owner of a woodworking business in Barre, spent today caulking and repainting the wooden frame of a stained-glass window at the St. John’s Episcopal Church in Medina.
Condoluci said the caulk and paint should extend the life of the window frames, which he said have badly deteriorated.
He is working on eight of the church window frames. The church at East Center Street was built in 1832, making it one of the oldest in Orleans County.
