New York voters approved an amendment to the state Constitution on Tuesday, allowing seven new resort-style casinos to be built off Indian-owned land.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo pushed for the casino expansion, saying it would bring jobs and much-needed tourism money to the state, particularly four upstate locations. A new casino won’t be in Western New York as part of a compact with the Seneca Nation of Indians.

Most counties backed the casino expansion, but Orleans said no, with 3,226 voters opposing the amendment and 2,922 in favor of it.

The governor was pleased with the state-wide vote on the issue. He made this statement late Tuesday.

“This vote will keep hundreds of millions of dollars spent each year in neighboring states right here in New York while increasing revenue for local schools, lowering property tax taxes and bringing proper regulation to the industry,” he said.

There were six state-wide proposals before voters on Tuesday. One of them, a proposal to raise the allowable retirement age for judges to 80, was rejected. It failed in Orleans by a 1,735 to 4,016 vote.

Other proposals passed voter approval, including in Orleans County.

New Yorkers OK’d a long-standing constitutional element that allows municipalities to exclude the cost of sewer projects from their mandated debt limits, which encourages improvements to the state’s crumbling infrastructure. In Orleans, it passed 2,880 to 2,597.

Two land issues in the Adirondack Forest Preserve were also on the ballot. Proposal 4 authorizes the state to arrange a land swap to settle century-old property disputes between NY and about 180 private landowners. It won overwhelming support state-wide. It passed in Orleans with a 3,472 to 1,966 vote.

Another proposal was ahead in votes state-wide. It will allow NYCO Minerals the chance to expand by 200 acres at its wollastonite mine in Essex County. In exchange it will give 1,500 acres of land for inclusion in the forest preserve. The issue passed in Orleans by a 2,872 to 2,548 vote.

A proposal to provide an additional credit on civil service exams for disabled combat veterans was heartily endorsed state-wide and in Orleans County.

The state Constitution only allows a veteran to receive additional civil service credit once. The proposition on the ballot Tuesday will allow a veteran to receive additional service credit based upon the newly certified disability. Orleans voters supported it 4,580 to 1,268.

“Turnout for local elections tends to be 27 percent, but this year it will likely top 40 percent or more in towns with contested races,” Election Commissioner Dennis Piedimonte said.

“Towns with unopposed candidates didn’t see a lot of turnout, probably around 20 percent,” Piedimonte said.

The returns are starting to come in at the Board of Elections.

It may be too close to call in the races for Highway Superintendent in Carlton and Ridgeway.

Dave Krull has a narrow lead over Paul Snook in Carlton and Ray Wendling has a slight lead over Mark Goheen in Ridgeway. Absentee ballots will be opened in a week to determine winner.

The unofficial results for the Orleans County Legislature elections are in, with 40 of the 40 polling places reporting.

At-Large, West – David Callard (R-I): 4408

At-Large, Central – Don Allport (R, I, C): 3419

At-Large, Central – Gary Kent (D, Nursing Home): 2917

At-Large, East – John DeFilipps (R, I): 3367

At-Large, East – Jack Gillman (D, Nursing Home): 2573

District 1 – Bill Eick (R, I): 833

District 1 – Emil Smith (C, Nursing Home): 518

District 2 – Lynne Johnson (R, I): 968

District 2 – Linda Rak (C, Nursing Home): 629

District 3 – Fred Miller (D, C): 900

District 3 – Henry Smith (R, I): 607

District 4 – Ken DeRoller (R, I): 1142

District 4 – David Schult (D, C): 683

County Treasurer Susan Heard (R, I): 5146

County Clerk Karen Lake-Maynard (R, I): 5287

Photo by Tom Rivers – A van decorated with a message urging Orleans County residents to vote and “Rescue the Villages” is parked at the northwest intersection of routes 98 and 31 in Albion. We’ll find out later if the nursing home issue is a factor in the local elections.

Orleans Hub will be working the elections tonight and will be updating the site frequently with results and comments from candidates and party leaders.

One big factor this election is the nursing home, and the push from many residents who want it to stay county-owned. Four candidates ran on a “Save Our Nursing Home” party line.

The Conservative Party also may play a factor in the election. The party has tended to only endorse Republican candidates, but this election the party also backed Democrats and independents.

Most of the towns also have contested races, including three – Albion, Barre and Kendall – where two candidates are running for town supervisor.

Photo by Tom Rivers

I voted at about noon today in Albion at the Elks Lodge on West State Street. I was told by the voting inspectors that turnout has been “steady” so far.

It is a warm day, which will make it easier for more people to get to the polls.

Not every one realizes there are six propositions on the back side of the ballot, so don’t forget about them. The one getting the most press is a proposal to allow seven casinos in the state that aren’t on Indian-owned land.

This might be the third year locally for the optical-scan machines. I miss the old manual-lever voting machines, but I’m getting used to the paper ballots.

Republicans have big advantage in numbers

Photo by Tom Rivers – Legislature Chairman David Callard is unopposed for another two-year term as legislator. There are races for the six other legislator seats.

Tomorrow is decision day for Orleans County residents. They will go to the polls to decide the leaders of town and county governments. The polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

In recent years, most of the candidates for county offices have been unopposed. But this year many of the races are contested, especially for county Legislature, where six of the seven legislator seats have two candidates.

The Legislature in February voted to transfer the nursing home to a local development corporation. The LDC was given the mission of finding a buyer for the site.

The move to sell the 120-bed nursing home stirred the passions of many community members, including candidates who want to stop the sale. Four candidates are running under an independent “Save Our Nursing Home” line.

Republicans have been dominant in recent years. Every elected county position is currently filled by a Republican. A Democrat has not held an elected county position since Gary Kent of Albion served on the Legislature in 2008 and 2009.

Republicans have a nearly 2 to 1 enrollment edge over Democrats, 10,397 to 5,573. There are 4,730 “blanks” or unaffiliated voters, plus 1,058 members of the Independence Party. Other party enrollment figures include 518 Conservatives, 160 members of the Working Families Party, 46 in the Green Party and 23 Libertarians. There are 22,505 registered voters in the county.

Here is a list of candidates for the county offices:

There are three county-wide legislator positions, with each requiring a legislator to live in the east end, central and west end of the county, respectively. George Bower of Holley has served in one of the spots for about two decades. But he is retiring.

Republicans endorsed Clarendon Town Councilman John DeFilipps for the two-year position. Democrats backed former Kendall Town Supervisor Jonathan “Jack” Gillman for the spot. He also has the “Save Our Nursing Home” line.

DeFilipps and all of the Republican candidates for Legislature have the Independence Party line.

In the countywide legislator position, central, the race again pits incumbent Republican Don Allport versus Kent. This is the fourth time they are facing each other. Allport has won the last two elections after Kent defeated him in November 2007.

Kent has been a loud advocate for keeping the nursing home in county ownership. Allport is the only Republican for Legislature that secured the Conservative Party endorsement.

Like Gillman and two other candidates – Linda Rak and Emil Smith – Kent has the independent Nursing Home line.

In the other county-wide position, this one on the western end, Legislature Chairman David Callard in unopposed.

In the district seats, there are races for every position.

Republican Bill Eick currently represents District 1, which includes the towns of Barre, Clarendon and most of Shelby. He is being challenged by Emil Smith, who has the Nursing Home line and Conservative Party support.

In District 2, Republican incumbent Lynne Johnson is challenged by Linda Rak, who is backed by the Conservative Party and also has the Nursing Home line. The district includes the towns of Ridgeway and Yates and a portion of Shelby.

District 3 includes the towns of Albion and Gaines. Republican Henry Smith is challenged by Fred Miller, who is backed by the Democrats and Conservatives. Miller is a current trustee on the Albion Village Board.

District 4 will have a new legislator because Ken Rush is retiring as the representative for the towns of Carlton, Kendall and Murray. Republicans endorsed Ken DeRoller for the position. He is vying against David Schult, who is endorsed by the Democrats and Conservatives.

County Treasurer Susan Heard and County Clerk Karen Lake-Maynard are unopposed in their re-election bids for four-year terms.

At least two towns – Albion and Kendall – will elect new town supervisors

Voters will go to the polls on Tuesday to elect town officials in an election that promises to change the makeup of some local Town Boards.

Two towns, Albion and Kendall, have town supervisors that aren’t seeking election, which means those towns will have a new chief executive officer. In Barre, incumbent Mark Chamberlain, R, also faces a challenge for town supervisor from Cyndy Van Lie Shout, D.

The polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Here is a list of the local town races:

Albion – Town Supervisor Dennis Stirk, D, is not seeking re-election for another two-year term. He is the only Democrat who currently serves as a town supervisor in Orleans County.

Stirk is backing the Deputy Town Supervisor Jake Olles, who is endorsed by the Democratic Party. He also is running under the independent “No Bull” party. He is running against Town Councilman Matt Passarell, who has the Republican and Conservative party lines for town supervisor.

The Town Board will have two new councilmen because neither incumbent, Tim Neilans or Passarell, is seeking re-election for that position. Todd Sargent has the Democratic and Republican lines. Richard Remley has the Republican line while Justin Sheehan has the Democratic line. Voters will elect two of the three to four-year terms.

In Barre, Chamberlain versus Van Lie Shout tops the races. Residents also will pick among three candidates for town justice. Alan Jones is retiring. The following want to succeed him: Rick Root, a Democrat; Richard DeCarlo Jr., Republican and Independence parties; and Sean Pogue, a Conservative.

Three candidates – Joe Grabowski, a Democrat, and Republicans Tom McCabe and Lynn Hll – are also running for two Town Council positions.

In Carlton, four candidates are vying for two Town Board seats, including Bilal Huzair, D, C; Douglas Hart, D; and incumbents Joyce Harris, R; and James Shoemaker, R.

In a rematch of the Republican primary for highway superintendent, incumbent David Krull is running under the Independence Party. He lost a close GOP primary to Paul Snook Sr., who has the Republican and Conservative Party lines.

Town Clerk Pam Rush also appears to be unopposed, but Lea Olles is mounting a write-in campaign. Olles lost to Rush in the Republican Primary in September.

Town Justice Kevin Hurley, a Republican, is unopposed.

It’s a quiet election for town offices in Clarendon. The Republican team is unopposed. Dick Moy is seeking re-election to town supervisor while Paul Nicosia and Marc Major are running for four-year terms on the Town Board.

In Gaines, a there is a three-way race for two Town Board seats. Republican incumbents Jim Kirby and Sue Smith face a challenge from John Leggat, who is endorsed by the Democratic Party. Smith also has the Conservative line.

Town Supervisor Carol Culhane is unopposed for re-election. She has the GOP and Conservative lines.

Town Clerk Jean Klatt, R, is unopposed for re-election and Bruce Schmidt, the town justice, is unopposed. He has the Republican, Democratic and Conservative lines.

In Kendall, two candidates are running for a town justice race that pits Stephen Cliff, a Democrat, against Debra Drennan, a Republican.

The other positions on the Town Board appear to be unopposed. Town Supervisor Dan Gaesser isn’t seeking re-election. The Republican Committeee endorsed Anthony Cammarata for town supervisor. Gaesser is helping to lead a write-in campaign to have Councilman Bart Joseph elected town supervisor.

Two other Republicans for Town Board, Bruce Newell and Patrick Snook, Jr., also appear to be unopposed, but two write-in candidates, David Balka and David Gaudioso, are mounting an effort to be elected.

Town Clerk Amy Richardson, R, and Highway Superintendent Warren Kruger, R, are both unopposed.

The Republican team of incumbents is unopposed in Murray. The slate includes John Morris for town supervisor, Kathleen Case and Paul Hendel for Town Board, Cynthia Oliver for town clerk, Ed Morgan for highway superintendent and Gary Passarell for town justice.

In Ridgeway there is a rematch of the GOP primary for highway superintendent. Incumbent Mark Goheen, Republican and Independence, held off challenger Raymond Wendling in the primary. But Wendling is back as a candidate for the Conservative Party and the independent Ridgeway Peoples Party.

The other Republican candidates are unopposed including David Stalker and Jeffrey Toussaint for Town Board, Barbara Klatt for town clerk, and Lawrence Sanderson for town justice.

In Shelby, three Republican candidates are unopposed, including Merle “Skip” Draper for town supervisor and Steve Seitz Jr. and William Bacon for the Town Board.

In Yates, three candidates are running for two positions as town councilmen. Paul Lauricella Jr., a member of the Conservative Party, is running against Republicans James Whipple and Bradley Bentley.

Two other Republicans – Town Supervisor John Belson and Town Justice Donald Grabowski – are both unopposed.

Photos by Tom Rivers

At 2 a.m. tonight we gain an hour as part of Daylight Saving Time. On the plus side, we can get an extra hour of sleep.

But I personally dread this time of the year when it gets dark at about 5 p.m. But this is the law of the land. So don’t forget to turn your clocks back.

Photo by Tom Rivers – The county jail received about $1 million in improvements that should mostly pay for themselves in increased efficiency costs, county officials said.

ALBION – The county has completed about $1.5 million in energy conservation upgrades, work that officials expect will pay for itself in the coming years through increased energy efficiencies.

Most of the work, about $1 million worth of projects, was focused at the county jail. But the initiatives included energy upgrades at the County Clerk’s Building, Courthouse, highway garage, mental health building, nursing home, public safety building, central hall (treasurer’s office) and veterans office. In the six of the nine buildings, new more energy-efficient lights were installed.

The county spent $1,474,371 for the projects. State and federal grants paid $111,200. The upgrades are expected to reduce the county’s utility bills by $63,853 a year at the current market prices, said Keith Krug, the project manager from Wendel Energy of Buffalo.

The projects could pay for themselves in about 15 to 20 years with the reduced energy costs.

Wendel worked with county officials, especially highway superintendent Jerry Gray, for about two years in making the improvements. The highway department helped bring the projects in under budget by $82,000, Krug told legislators.

“Jerry Gray and his staff are the most committed DPW department we’ve ever worked with,” Krug said. “They did everything on time. In the end you were able to do more with your dollar.”

The improvements have given the county jail extended life by at least another 20 years, and stopped the pressure from the state Department of Corrections to build a new facility, legislators said.

“The $1 million in jail improvements saved the county $30 million by not having to build a new jail,” Legislator Lynne Johnson said.

Wendel did an energy audit of 10 county buildings about two years ago and worked with the county to identify projects that would have a payback through grants and energy savings.

The jail on Platt Street, built in two stages around 1970, was crowded and falling into disrepair mainly due to water infiltration. The state was pressuring Orleans to build a new facility.

But a series of improvements, plus a drop in the inmate population, have quieted talk that the jail is inadequate.

The jail used to have a problem with water infiltration from the roof, with a leaking expansion joint the main culprit. But contractors put on a new tiled roof and sealed the expansion joint. The roof is on top of a rubber membrane with a drainage system.

The jail also has a new boiler system, and a series of energy efficiency improvements, including new caulking around about 100 windows and also on the seams of the building. Crews sprayed insulation inside the concrete panels on the building.

The project upgraded showers and gate motors in the cell blocks. The showers now have water timers and a raised concrete pad on the floor, which will reduce water migration.

ALBION – The four public libraries in Orleans County are seeking a $1 contribution in the county budget for each resident in the county. That would total $42,883.

Currently, libraries are in the 2013 budget for $10,087. County officials are working on the 2014 spending plan, which should be presented next month.

Libraries could use more money to keep up with the costs of providing computer access, programs, books, magazines and other information for residents, said Susan Rudnicky, director of the Hoag Library in Albion.

She addressed the County Legislature on Wednesday. The county was giving $29,914 to be shared among the four libraries as recently as 2002, but that dropped to $7,480 in 2003. Since then, the amount was raised to $12,587 in 2007, $13,617 in 2010, and then was cut to $10,087 in 2011. It hasn’t changed since then.

Rudnicky said about 40 percent of county households do not have Internet access. Many of the residents in those homes rely on library computers to check email, fill out job applications and for research.

Libraries have experienced a growth in circulation and visits from the public in recent years, following renovations and technology upgrades, Rudnicky said. Medina’s library is currently closed while undergoing a major remodeling. It is expected to reopen on Nov. 1, Catherine Cooper, library director, told legislators.

ALBION Orleans County expects to start construction on three new radio towers next month. The towers are part of $7.1 million upgrade to the county’s emergency communications system.

The county held a public hearing on the three towers on Wednesday. No one spoke in opposition to the 180-foot-high towers that will go in Shelby, Albion and Clarendon.

One will be on land owned by the town of Clarendon near its highway garage off Route 31A, the other will be next to the county’s Civil Defense Center on Courthouse Road in Albion and the other will be next to the Medina water tank on Route 31A. Medina and Clarendon both agreed to lease the land to the county at no cost.

Orleans County approved a $5 million deal last year with the Harris Corporation to rebuild the county’s emergency communications systems. Harris is reprogramming 1,100 portable radios and upgrading the dispatch center.

The county’s radio system was last overhauled in 1992. Orleans currently has one transmission tower on Countyhouse Road. That’s about 10 miles from the eastern and western ends of the county. Firefighters, police officers, and other first responders for years have complained that the county’s current radio system is often unreliable, particularly on the edges of the county.

The new towers should be up in the spring and the new system could be operational in April, county officials said.

The county was awarded a $2 million state grant towards the project from the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services. Orleans has taken out a $4.5 million bond to help finance the costs of the upgraded system.

ALBION – For six months members of the Orleans County Conservative Party have circulated petitions, asking residents to support a repeal of the county sales tax on fuel oil – gas, propane, home heating oil and wood.

On Wednesday, The party’s vice chairman, Paul Lauricella of Lyndonville, handed 97 pages of petitions signed by 1,100 people to County Legislature Chairman David Callard.

The county collects a 4 percent tax on fuel oil and it generates about $3.3 million in revenue for the county, money that helps offset the need for more property taxes, Callard said. The tax on gas raises about $1.8 million while the home heating oil tax generates $1.5 million, according to County Treasurer Susan Heard.

“It’s not an easy problem,” Callard told Lauricella and Al Lofthouse, the Conservative Party chairman. “You’re dealing with very big numbers.”

Lofthouse said the county could find other savings to make it possible to reduce the sales taxes on fuel. The Legislature should try to eliminate the tax out of respect to the “hard-working people” of the county who must buy fuel to travel to jobs and heat their homes, Lofthouse said. The Legislature could try eliminating the tax on home heating oil first, he suggested.

But to do so for home heating oil, taking $1.5 million away in revenue, would force the county to raise taxes by about $1 per $1,000 of assessed property, costing someone with a house assessed at $80,000 an additional $80 a year in property taxes.

The taxes on fuel account for $3.3 million of the county’s $14.9 million total in sales tax.

“I don’t think anybody disagrees with you,” Callard told Lofthouse. “But it’s very difficult to overcome those numbers in savings. We’re sympathetic and we hope someday to do what you’re saying.”

“I stand behind these people. I urge everyone to support them on Election Day.”
– “Tinker” Young, president of Orleans County SCOPE

ALBION – The president of a pro-gun group, the Orleans County chapter of SCOPE, stood up at today’s County Legislature meeting and urged the public to support the incumbent legislators.

Emerson “Tinker” Young said the current Legislature distinguished itself around the state by renouncing the state’s SAFE Act, which was passed by the State Legislature and Gov. Andrew Cuomo in January. The Orleans Legislature formally opposed the act and then later called for state legislators and the governor to rescind it.

The 10 towns and four villages in Orleans then followed the county’s lead, making Orleans the only county in the state where every town, village and county elected board opposed the SAFE Act.

“They were already in action standing up for that flag and our Constitution,” Young said. “I stand behind these people. I urge everyone to support them on Election Day.”

Young spoke after Paul Fulcomer, president of the Joint Veterans Council, voiced his displeasure with fund-raising literature by a pro-nursing home group. The door knocker included an image of the American flag. The hole for the door knocker went through the flag.

Fulcomer said proper flag etiquette stipulates the flag shouldn’t be used for advertising.

“You can do any advertising you want but don’t use my flag for it,” said Fulcomer, a Vietnam War veteran.

Young, who’s also a Vietnam vet, said he was “rightly disgusted” by the ad that used the flag.

Dee Smith, a member of the Concerned Citizens of Orleans County, thanked the two speakers for their service as veterans.

“I’m all for the Constitution and doing the right things,” she said.

Smith has been a frequent observer at Legislature meetings since February, when the group voted to form a local development corporation that was charged with selling the 120-bed county nursing home. Smith and the Concerned Citizens don’t want the nursing home to be privatized.

“I’m for keeping the nursing home,” she told the Legislature. “I will continue to push for keeping it and I will buck you about it until the day I die.”

MEDINA – The plan for a new Dunkin’ Donuts in Medina will go before the Orleans County Planning Board on Thursday.

The board will review the site plan at 7 p.m. in the County Administration Building, and planners will make a recommendation whether Shelby town officials should approve a special use permit and variance for the project at 11378 Maple Ridge Rd.

The review by the county is needed before the Shelby Town Planning Board and also the Zoning Board of Appeals can give a final vote on the project.

JFJ Holdings of North Andover, Mass., is the developer for the project. The company is also working to build a Dunkin’ Donuts in Albion, right next to the Tim Hortons on Main Street.

County planners will look at two other projects on Thursday: an amendment to the Ridgeway zoning map to reclassify 11 Parcels on Ridge Road near Oregon Road from the Rural Residential District to Hamlet District, and an area variance, site plan review and special use permit for kennel in Kendall at 15705 Carr Rd.