Picketers urge more public support to keep nursing home

Photos by Tom Rivers – Tim Good, a cleaner at The Villages of Orleans, was one of about 50 picketers who lined Main Street in front of the County Clerks Building today during the Orleans County Legislature meeting.

ALBION – In a rally wasn’t as big as advertised, about 50 people stood along Main Street, with most holding signs in support of keeping The Villages of Orleans as a county-owned nursing home.

“Don’t Sell Our Soul,” proclaimed a sign held high by Grace Denniston, the retired Office for the Aging director. She praised the nursing home employees for being so public in challenging the County Legislature’s decision to transfer the facility to a local development corporation, the Orleans County Health Facilities Corporation.

“I’ve been in privately owned nursing homes and they’re not nearly as nice as ours,” Denniston said. “I may need this someday for me. You never know.”

The Legislature made the decision in February to transfer the site to an LDC. The three-member LDC will meet at 1:30 p.m. May 15 at the Orleans County Health Department’s Conference Room, 14012 Route 31 in Albion. The LDC will hear a proposal by Harris Beach for legal services and the Bonadio Group for accounting services, as well as consider potential consultants to help with the selection process for a new operator of the 120-bed facility.

Grace Denniston brought along her granddaughter Payton Denniston to show their support for a county-owned nursing home.

Supporters of keeping the nursing home publicly owned filed a lawsuit against the county, trying to bring the sale of the facility to a public referendum. James Punch, acting State Supreme Court judge, said he will make a decision in the matter in about a month.

The nursing home supporters say they will keep going public with their opposition to the LDC and the Legislature’s push to sell The Villages.

Tim Good of Albion has worked as a cleaner at the nursing home for 17 years.

“The residents honestly are like family,” he said today while holding a sign protesting the possible sale. “We have to protect them. They’re my family. That’s why I’m here.”

Gary Kent, a former county legislator, wants more community members to attend the peaceful pickets the second and fourth Wednesdays from 2 to 5 p.m. That’s when the Legislature often meets at the County Clerks Building.

“We’ll just keep calling attention to it,” he said. “I know it’s ambitious but we want to surround the entire courthouse block.”

County Legislature is trying to sell nursing home

ALBION – Picketers have been gathering on Main Street each Orleans County Legislature meeting since the group voted in February to transfer the county nursing home to a Local Development Corporation.

About 20 to 25 people have participated in the pickets the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month. So far the demonstrations have been in either the freezing cold or a downpour.

Concerned Citizens of Orleans County, a group of nursing home employees, families of nursing home residents and other community members say Wednesday could be the biggest gathering yet of nursing home supporters. The picketers want to surround the entire Courthouse Square block, trying to stir the public to pressure the Legislature and the LDC to not sell a county-owned nursing home. Concerned Citizens want the Legislature to terminate the LDC.

The Legislature in February created the LDC and appointed three community members – former Yates Town Supervisor Russ Martino, former Gaines Town Supervisor Richard DeCarlo Sr. and Clarendon Town Supervisor Richard Moy – to serve as LDC directors. Martino has said the LDC will work to ensure the county gets a good price for the 120-bed facility and that the operator will maintain a high level of care for residents.

Legislators say a sale would likely take at least two years to identify a suitable buyer and obtain permission from the state Department of Health to sell The Villages of Orleans.

Cindy Troy, president of the local CSEA union of county employees, is critical of the LDC because it has little public oversight and accountability to taxpayers.

“An LDC is politics at its worst,” Troy said. “It is nothing more than a way to weaken the process, get around the law and eliminate the need for a super-majority vote on the sale of The Villages.”

Troy said the county shouldn’t be working to sell the nursing home, which she called a “public safety net.”

The Concerned Citizens will meet tonight at 6 at the Pullman Memorial Universalist Church in Albion.

Photos by Tom Rivers – About 150 motorcyclists gathered for a motorcycle safety rally this afternoon at the Orleans County Courthouse in Albion.

The group then went on a 50-mile ride throughout the county.

ALBION – With warm weather finally here, motorcyclists in Orleans County want to remind the public they’re back on the roadways.

About 150 bikers joined today for their annual “motorcycle safety and awareness rally” at the Orleans County Courthouse and then embarked on a 50-mile ride throughout the county.

The group has had an annual rally for at least 20 years, and the crowd seems to get bigger every year as the sport gains popularity, said Fran Abrams, public relations coordinator for the Orleans County chapter of American Bikers Aimed Toward Education.

Motorcyclists have a simple message for drivers who share the road.

“We’re back on the roads, look twice and save a life,” Abrams said.

County Legislator Lynne Johnson, R-Lyndonville, read a proclamation from the Legislature that declared May “Motorcyle Safety and Awareness Month” in Orleans County. She praised the ABATE chapter for promoting rider safety and working to dispel myths about bikers.

State Assemblyman Steve Hawley also addressed the group. He said he strongly supported a $150 million increase in the state budget for road and bridge improvements.

“That will make the roads safer,” Hawley said.

Jeremy Ingraham of Middleport gets ready for the 50-mile ride throughout Orleans County.

ALBION – Orleans County continues to reduce its unemployment rate, although it is still among the highest in the state.

The state Department of Labor reported the county’s unemployment rate fell to 10.4 percent in March, which was down from 11.2 percent in February and 12.3 percent in January.

Orleans is one of 14 counties with a double-digit unemployment rate in March. Lewis County in northern New York has the highest unemployment rate at 12.3 percent while Tompkins County has the lowest, 5.3 percent. State-wide the rate was 8.2 percent in March.

Other nearby rural counties have a better jobs picture. Genesee had an 8.0 rate, while Livingston was listed at 9.1 and Wyoming, 9.7 percent.

The DOL reported that 17,100 people were working in Orleans in March, while 2,100 were out of work and looking for a job.

Press Release, Orleans County Sheriff’s Department

ALBION – A 15-year-old boy was charged with unlawful possession of weapons on Wednesday after he allegedly possessed materials common to the construction of homemade bombs and/or improvised explosive devices, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department reported.

The department did not release the boy’s name and declined to say which town the boy lived in because of his likely status as a youthful offender. The boy was issued an appearance ticket to Family Court.

“We’re not at liberty to release a lot of information given that he’s a juvenile,” said Undersheriff Steven Smith.

Every school district in Orleans County has at least one person willing to serve as a volunteer on the Board of Education. Residents had a Monday deadline to submit petitions to run as candidates for the May 21 election.

Medina and Lyndonville each have five candidates running, while Kendall and Holley each have one and Albion has two candidates.

Here is a list of the districts and the candidates:

Albion – BOE President Margy Brown of Carlton is running for another five-year term while resident Linda Weller seeks a position. Incumbent Marie Snyder opted against re-election.

Holley – Normally three seats are up for election each year, but this time there will only be one because the BOE is shrinking from nine to seven members. Brenda Swanger is seeking re-election to a three-year term while BOE President John Heise and another incumbent, Dorothy Morgan, are not running again this election.

Kendall – Board member Edward Gaesser isn’t seeking re-election. Martin Goodenberry of Morton is unopposed for a five-year term.

Lyndonville – Four seats are up for election with the top three voter-getters receiving three-year terms and the fourth-place finisher getting a two-year term. Incumbents Terry Stinson, Tara Neace and James Moody are running again. Harold Suhr and Michelle Dillenbeck also will be on the ballot.

Medina – Three incumbents – Wendi Pencille, Virginia Nicholson and John McCarthy – are seeking re-election to three-year terms while David Sevinski and Lori Draper are also running.  The top three vote-getters will get full terms while the fourth-leading candidate will receive a one-year term.

Photo by Tom Rivers – Chris Walton, a recruiting assistant for Adecco in Batavia, talks with Tristian Curtiss, an Albion resident who is looking for a job. About 40 companies and agencies are at a job fair today from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the American Legion in Albion.

ALBION – Orleans County may have a high unemployment rate, 11.2 percent in February, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t jobs available in the county.

About 40 companies and agencies are at a job fair in Albion today. Almost every one is hiring.

Worthington Corporation, which bought Bernz-O-Matic in Medina two years ago, is looking to fill 10 permanent jobs and 10 more seasonal positions in June. The jobs involve small assembly work for a company that makes propane torches.

“We’re looking for someone who comes to work everyday,” said Susan Koleszar, human resources manager for the company with 171 workers in Medina. “You need to be at work on time and be available for some overtime.”

Adecco in Batavia is working with several businesses to fill positions. The hiring agency just filled 15 jobs for Darien Lake – landscaping positions to get the theme park ready for a new season.

Adecco works with Perry’s Ice Cream in Akron, Freeze Dry in Albion and other local manufacturers.

“There are jobs out there,” said Sarah Levanduski-Surdel, a recruiter for Adecco.

She said people need to apply for jobs, and then follow-up with phone calls.

“You have to do your due diligence,” she said at the job fair at the American Legion on South Main Street.

Tristian Curtiss, 18, of Albion applied for 10 jobs recently but hasn’t heard back. She said she would reach out to those places with phone calls. She is willing to work two to three part-time jobs. Adecco representatives urged her to keep trying.

Carol Miller, director of the Job Development Agency in Orleans County, said job-hunters may need to lower their expectations if they are unemployed.

“If you’re willing to work there are jobs out there,” she said. “It may not be the job you want, but it’s a job. Once you’re employed, you’re employable. People would rather hire someone who has a job.”

Right now there is a push for seasonal positions, and some companies are filling other permanent slots. Miller said there are job opportunities throughout the year.

“All employers are always looking for good employees,” she said.

Vince Iorio, the senior employment specialist with Career Ventures, expects at least 300 people for the job fair, which is now in its eighth year and runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. today. He works with The Arc of Orleans County, trying to connect people with disabilities to employers.

The job fair is open to the entire community.

“It’s a win-win for everybody,” he said. “The employers and job seekers get to connect. The job seekers connect with a human being, rather than filling out an application over the Internet.”

PARMA – A speeding motorist eluded an Orleans County Sheriff’s Department deputy early this morning, but then went off Route 104 and crashed into the woods in the town of Parma, the department reported.

A motorist with Pennsylvania license plates was speeding at about 85 miles an hour when he passed a deputy at 2:40 this morning near Hurd Orchards on Route 104 in the town of Murray, Undersheriff Steve Smith said. The deputy pursued the motorist until he lost track of him, with the deputy going as far as Josie’s Juke Box in Parma.

On the way back to Orleans County, the deputy noticed a car had gone off West Ridge Road near Hinkleyville Road in Parma. The car was “mangled,” Smith said, and the driver was unconscious and needed to be extricated by the Spencerport Fire Department. He was taken to Strong Memorial Hospital with a head injury and broken legs.

The driver’s name hasn’t been released. Smith said the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department is handling the investigation.

Photos by Tom Rivers – About 200 people gathered outside the Orleans County Courthouse to protest the SAFE Act on Saturday.

ALBION – Roseanne Regan of Holley joined 200 other people at a Second Amendment rally in Albion, braving the cold and wind on Saturday. Regan didn’t deliver a fiery speech from the podium.

She hoped her presence with others would send a message to Gov. Cuomo and state legislators who approved the SAFE Act in January, which was designed to tighten gun control laws.

“I believe in the Second Amendment,” a shivering Regan said. “I’m sick and tired of people speaking for us and the government dictating. This isn’t the Soviet Union or Germany.”

The legislation, and its passage without a public hearing, has fired up many New Yorkers, including the contingent gathered in Albion on Saturday. New York Revolution formed soon after the SAFE Act’s passage. Gia Arnold of Holley is regional coordinator for the group and she helped organize Saturday’s event.

Conservative talk show host Bob Lonsberry, who has railed against the SAFE Act on WHAM in Rochester, addressed the crowd in Albion.

Talk show host Bob Lonsberry from WHAM in Rochester urged the group to follow the example of Rosa Parks, who refused to give in to unjust laws. Parks wouldn’t move to the back of a segregated bus, a bold move that helped embolden blacks in the Civil Rights struggle.

Gun owners shouldn’t accept the new state laws, Lonsberry told the crowd in Albion. He quoted from Martin Luther King Jr., who urged “civil disobedience” in the fight against oppression.

State Assemblyman Steve Hawley has co-sponored legislation that would repeal the law. State Sen. George Maziarz noted several lawsuits also seek to repeal legislation that will begin to take effect on Monday.

Maziarz said he’s not against background checks for gun buyers. But he thinks the state can better direct the fight against criminals by “focusing on cleaning up the streets and the murderers.” He called the gun control legislation “The Unsafe Act” because he said it targets law-abiding citizens rather than criminals.

The new state law deprives residents of constitutional freedoms, several speakers said at the rally.

Many in the crowd chanted, “Cuomo has to go,” during the rally. Someone carried a sign that referred to “Comrade Cuomo.”

Hawley said New Yorkers should feel angry at the majority of the Legislature and governor for passing a law “that turns law-abiding citizens into law-breaking citizens.” One controversial piece of the legislation requires magazines that can hold no more than seven bullets, when most magazines hold 10.

The legislation was hastily crafted without any vetting from the public, Hawley said, leading to bad policy.

“Now that we’ve had time to analyze and dissect this bill, we can see why it was forced on us so quickly,” Hawley said. “It is full of flaws and mistakes that even the bill’s authors have no excuse for.”

Photos by Tom Rivers

About 200 people attended a rally for the Second Amendment today in front of the Orleans County Courthouse. The event was organized by New York Revolution, a group that formed after the state Legislature and Gov. Cuomo approved a gun control law – the SAFE Act – in January. State Sen. George Maziarz called the legislation “The Unsafe Act” because he said it targets law-abiding citizens rather than criminals. Maziarz was among the speakers at the rally. Orleans Hub will have an article on event later today. For now, here are some photos.

Conservative talk show host Bob Lonsberry addresses a crowd of nearly 200 people in front of the Orleans County Courthouse.