ALBION — The Orleans County Tourism Department today unveiled the cover of the new travel guide which should be available in print next month. The 48-page guide can be viewed online by clicking here.

The dominant photo on the cover shows a sailboat during a striking sunset. There are also photos of the chapel at Hillside Cemetery near Holley (showcasing Medina sandstone architecture), two kids with large salmon and the Canal Culvert, the only place where traffic goes under the Erie Canal.

The guide has a theme of “Great Lake Adventure & Canal Town Culture.”

The travel guides will be distributed at travel centers and at trade shows, and also many other locations in the county and region.

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ALBION – The Orleans County Emergency Management Office has ordered 900 swabbing kits to get samples for people to be tested for the coronavirus and 2,500 face masks for law enforcement, firefighters and healthcare providers.

Dale Banker, the EMO director, said today he is hopeful for a shipment this week of the swabbing kits and the N95 masks.

The county hasn’t received any of the swabbing kits that he ordered, but has received 250-300 of the N95 masks.

The swabbing kits have been sought by the Health Department. The N95 masks will be distributed among law enforcement, firefighters, EMS, healthcare facilities and staff at the Arc of Genesee Orleans.

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Photo by Tom Rivers: Jack Welch has been the county’s personnel director since 2004.

ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature next week plans to officially name Jack Welch as the county’s new chief administrative officer.

Welch has worked as the county’s director of personnel and self insurance since 2004. He succeeds Chuck Nesbitt, who left the job in December to take a position in the private sector. Nesbitt held the county’s top administrator post for 14 ½ years.

“It is an honor and privilege to be selected for this position and I am truly blessed to be given the opportunity,” said Welch, a Holley resident and former member of Holley’s Board of Education.

Lynne Johnson, chairwoman of the Orleans County Legislature, said Welch is well regarded in the county.

“Jack’s reputation precedes him,” she said. “He has certainly risen to the occasion during this unprecedented time with great leadership ability.”

Welch is also well respected among his colleagues around the state. He is the president New York State Association of Personnel & Civil Service Officers.

As chief administrative officer, Welch will lead a county government with a $71 million budget, and 415 employees in 24 departments.

The job description posted by the county for the CAO lists key responsibilities for the job as preparation of the county budget, developing long-range capital improvement budgets, purchasing oversight, labor relations management, property control and risk management, intergovernmental relations and legislative advocacy, public information officer duties, and general oversight of departments and the coordination and administration of county government functions and activities.

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If feeling sick or develop symptoms, stay home, Health Department director says

Paul Pettit

ALBION – Now that there is confirmation of the coronavirus in Orleans County, Public Health Director Paul Pettit said residents can protect themselves with social distancing (staying at least six feet apart) and by washing their hands often with soap and water.

People should make sure they wash their hands thoroughly especially after blowing their nose, coughing or sneezing; going to the bathroom; and before eating or preparing food.

The Health Department also advised of the following:

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.

• Stay home when you are sick.

• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.

• Avoid people who are sick.

• Disinfect high-traffic surfaces often.

If you have questions about recent travel and symptoms regarding COVID-19, call the NYSDOH Coronavirus hotline: 1-888-364-3065.

Pettit reported this afternoon the county has its first confirmed case: a person over age 60 from the western end of the county. That person is currently out of state and tested positive for the virus after developing symptoms for a respiratory infection.

“The individual is in mandatory isolation where they are recovering,” Pettit said. “This incident is a good example as to the spread of this virus from location to location.”

The Orleans County Department of Health has begun an intensive investigation to identify potential close contacts of the individual before they left on vacation and it is believed to be a community spread transmission.

Some close contacts have been notified of their potential exposure to COVID- 19, placed under mandatory quarantine to monitor for symptoms and swabbed as indicated. Public Health Officials are implementing contact tracing to identify other potential individuals who have had close contact.

Pettit didn’t detail the exact age of the infected person, the town where he/she lives or the person’s gender. The Health Department wants to respect people’s privacy.

He said the Department will release which section of the county a positive case comes from. Genesee County had its first confirmed case on Wednesday. That person lives on the east side of Genesee, Pettit said.

The Health Department leader said the health officials locally and in the region want more tests to see if people have the virus.

“We continue to be frustrated by lack of swabbing kits available,” he said. “We want more kits because we know community spread is happening.”

The Health Department is working to establish drive-through swabbing clinics in Orleans and Genesee counties, and also is working with the local hospitals – Medina Memorial Hospital in Medina and United Memorial Medical Center in Batavia – to increase the number of hospital beds.

Medina Memorial has 19 right now, and could add more using other space in its facility, Pettit said.

“We are trying to ramp up and be prepared,” he said.

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County departments available by appointment only

ALBION – Orleans County officials announced today at 4 p.m. that the county has its first confirmed case of coronavirus.

The person who tested positive for the virus is older than 60 and lives on the western end of the county, said Paul Pettit, Public Health director for Orleans and Genesee counties.

The person actually is currently out of state. That person likely contracted the virus in Orleans and then went out of state for a trip, where the person then developed symptoms for a respiratory infection.

The Health Department is working to identify people who may have been in close contact with the person. Pettit said those people should be contacted to see if they have developed symptoms. They may be put in a precautionary quarantine if they have no symptoms.

If they have symptoms, they will be in mandatory quarantine with the Health Department visiting them once daily and also calling them each day. People in quarantine are staying out of the public and checking their temperature and monitoring for symptoms.

With conformation of the coronavirus in Orleans County, all county office buildings are closed to the public, with service by appointment only.

“Over the past two weeks, COVID-19 has evolved rapidly,” said Legislature Chairwoman Lynne Johnson. “Orleans County has one confirmed case. With this in mind and after discussion with Paul Pettit, Director of the Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments, we are closing all County Office Buildings to the public effective immediately.

“Therefore all of our Departments are open for business by telephone and by appointment. Departments will still service the public’s needs by appointment during normal business hours. We understand this may be challenging for some people, however out of an abundance of caution, we need to take this action. We have set up drop boxes at several of our office buildings to accommodate the need to drop off documents.

“Of course, these documents could be sent directly to the department using the postal service. We continuously are looking at our operations to meet the needs of the public as we are determined to provide the best course of action for everyone’s health and safety.”

State agencies have changed standards this week to move away from face-to-face appointments to allow for interviews by phone in many cases. The current need for social distancing for the public’s safety is a high priority and the County is working to deliver services to our residents as safely as possible, Johnson said.

Here are the contact numbers for each office building:

Clerk’s Building

County Clerk: (585) 589-5334

Real Property: (585) 589-5400

County Office Building

DMV: (585) 589-3214

Elections: (585) 589-3274

Job Development: (585) 589-2772

Legislature: (585) 589-7053

Office for the Aging: (585) 589-3191

Personnel and Self Insurance: (585) 589-3186

Planning and Development: (585) 589-3198

Social Services: (585) 589-7000

Tourism: (585) 589-3102

Emergency Management Office: (585) 589-4414

Department of Public Works: (585) 589-6145

Mental Health: (585) 589-7066

Central Hall

Historian: (585) 589-4174

Treasurer’s Office: (585) 589-5353

Public Safety Building

District Attorney 590-4130

Probation 590-4100

Sheriff 590-4142

Veteran’s Services:(585) 589-3219

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All town halls, village offices in Orleans closed until further notice

Photo by Tom Rivers: A crowd gathered on June 11 for a ribbon-cutting at the County Administration Building in Albion.

ALBION – Orleans County officials are closing the Public Safety Building and the County Administration to the public, effective immediately, due to concerns about the coronavirus.

County departments affected by this change from the Public Safety Building include the District Attorney’s Office, Probation and the Sheriff’s Department.

The departments at the County Administration Building include Public Health, Elections, County Legislature and Computer Services which are in the new addition. Other departments in the building include Department of Motor Vehicles, Office for the Aging, Job Development, Personnel & Self Insurance, Planning, Tourism and Department of Social Services.

“Over the past two weeks, COVID-19 has evolved rapidly,” said Lynne Johnson, County Legislature chairwoman. “While Orleans County has no confirmed cases, there are confirmed cases in neighboring counties and increasing local testing. I believe it is inevitable we will see cases here in Orleans County.

State agencies have changed standards this week to move away from face-to-face appointments to allow for interviews by phone in many cases.

“The current need for social distancing for the public’s safety is a high priority and the county is working to deliver services to our residents as safely as possible,” Johnson said.

Departments in the two buildings will still service the public’s needs by appointment only, Johnson said.

“We understand this may be challenging for some people, however out of an abundance of caution, we need to take this action,” Johnson said. “We will be looking at each county building individually to determine the best course of action for everyone’s health and safety.”

Currently, to make an appointment to conduct business with the affected departments call (585) 589-7000. The phone system will direct to the appropriate party to assist with a need.

“We will be continuously working to make this transition as smooth as possible as we begin to deliver services utilizing a new protocol,” Johnson said.

The Orleans County Legislature meeting on March 25 at 4:30 p.m. will be available using the Zoom app which may be downloaded to any device. The Legislature will only be using audio. There will be no video.

Topic: Orleans County Legislature Meeting Time: Mar 25, 2020 04:30 PM Eastern Time

Join Zoom Meeting (https://zoom.us/j/876636369) or you may also dial in 1.646.558.8656 Meeting ID: 876 636 369.

All 10 town halls, 4 village offices closed to public

The 10 town hall buildings and four village offices in Orleans County are all closed to the public until further notice.

The towns and villages are using dropboxes and many have on-line payment options.

The 10 towns to close their town offices include Albion, Barre, Carlton, Clarendon, Gaines, Kendall, Murray, Shelby, Ridgeway and Yates.

The four villages include Albion, Holley, Lyndonville and Medina.

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Press Release, Orleans County Health Department

Orleans County has declared a state of emergency and all public schools are closed until further notice.

“Over the past week, COVID-19 has evolved rapidly,” said Lynne Johnson, chairwoman of the Orleans County Legislature. “While Orleans County has no confirmed cases, there are confirmed cases in a neighboring county and increasing local testing. I believe it is inevitable we will see cases here in Orleans County. With this in mind and after discussion with Paul Pettit, Director of the Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments, I am declaring a state of emergency for Orleans County. I am recommending that all schools in Orleans County close to students effective immediately for an undetermined amount of time.”

Paul Pettit, Public Health director: “We still want to remind people the risk in our community still remains relatively low and these decisions are based on the need to slow transmission in our communities. Through ongoing discussions with all 5 school districts and county administration, this unified decision is based on the increased activity in our county and has led to these preventive measures.”

The recommendation applies to students, districts can make individual determinations regarding faculty and staff.

“With the announcement of Monroe County schools closing and Kendall and Holley share students with the Monroe County BOCES program, I feel this is a difficult but proactive approach to slow the potential spread of disease,” said Julie Christensen, superintendent of Kendall Central School.

“We understand the potential hardship this can have on our families,” stated Michael Bonnewell, superintendent of Albion Central School, “but are in agreement with this decision.”

“Even though there are no positive cases of COVID-19 in Orleans County we believe taking a proactive approach will help keep our students and their families healthy,” said Mark Kruzynski, superintendent of Medina School District.

“We will continue to work with the Health Department to determine when we can get our students back to school, but want our families to understand that this is a rapidly evolving situation and we are concerned for the safety of our school family,” said Jason Smith, superintendent of Lyndonville School District.

“As a District Superintendent it is our charge to provide safe, quality education for the students of our district,” said Brian Bartalo, superintendent of Holley School District. “We understand this is an unprecedented response to the COVID-19 outbreak and anticipate that these steps will help protect our communities and limit the potential spread of disease.

“With the declaration of a State of Emergency it allows us to procure goods and services as well as required and available assistance to municipalities and school districts vital to the security, well- being, and health and safety of the citizens of Orleans County,” said Dale Banker, director of Emergency Management for Orleans County.

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ALBION –  Orleans County Sheriff Chris Bourke will be temporarily suspending visitation with Orleans County Jail inmates effective March 13.

This policy has been put in place to help protect inmates and jail staff from the rapidly evolving coronavirus situation, Bourke said.

Niagara and Genesee have also restricted visits to their jails due to the coronavirus concerns.

“This action is a precautionary measure only,” Bourke said. “At this time, there is no reason to believe that there is any risk to staff or inmates in our facility. This action, along with the cleaning and sanitizing procedures put in place this week, will reduce the risk of an exposure to inmates or staff.”

The sheriff said friends and families of inmates in the Orleans County Jail may use the Video Visitation System.

In Niagara County, acting sheriff Michael J. Filicetti also announced today he is temporarily suspend all inmate visitation and programming until further notice. Legal representation will continue through non-contact visits for attorneys following a medical screening.

The Niagara County Jail will have reduced charges for phone services beginning on Tuesday, March 17.

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Provided photo: Doug Farley, director of the Cobblestone Museum in Gaines, accepts a grant from the Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council on Tuesday. Jessica Torrey, left, is the GO ART! board president.

The Geneses-Orleans Regional Arts Council has approved $72,000 in decentralization grants to support arts and cultural programing in the two counties.

That is an increase from the $70,000 in arts grants the previous year for the two counties, and up from the $63,084 in 2018.

GO Art! has been administering the New York State Council on the Arts’ Decentralization Regrant Program for 33 years. A panel picks from applications submitted by municipalities, organizations and artists. The awards were presented on Tuesday at GO Art! in Batavia.

GO Art! approved 24 grants with 17 to municipalities and organizations as Reach Grants. There are also five Ripple Grants for individual artists to create new works, and two Spark Grants that are Arts in Education grants and connect artists with public school students.

The Reach Grants for community arts groups in Orleans County include:

• Orleans County Chamber of Commerce (2020 OONA summer concert series) – $550

• Lee-Whedon Memorial Library in Medina (Finally Fridays! concert series) – $2,500

• Lyndonville Lions Club (I Hear the Music) – $3,950

• Village of Albion (Concerts on the Canal) – $1,880

• Yates Community Library (More Than Just Books) – $4,416

• Village of Holley (Concerts at the Canal Park) – $550

• Cobblestone Museum (2020 Museum Arts Series) – $4,700

Genesee County

• Genesee Valley Wind Ensemble (Concert Series 2020 Mr. Mustard Beatles Cover Band Competition) – $4,395

• Genesee Symphony Orchestra (Destinations) – $4,650

• Arc of Genesee Orleans (Film Festival and Art Show) – $4,425

• Holland Land Office Museum (Guest Speaker, Concert Series and Mystery Theater) – $1,000

• Elba Betterment Committee (EBC Music and More) – $2,265

• Woodward Memorial Library in Le Roy (Summer Arts Camp) – $1,500

• Genesee Chorale (2020 series) – $5,000

• ACORNS (Music in the Park) – $350

• Gilliam Grant Community Center in Bergen (Cultural Connections) – $4,993

• Batavia Concert Band (2020 Concert Series) – $5,000

Spark Grants which are Arts in Education grants and connect artists with public school students.

• Orleans County: Jill Pettigrew (It’s Fun to Stay at the YMCA) – $4,076

• Genesee County: Judd Sunshine (Erie Canal songwriting project) – $3,300

Ripple Grants for projects where artists involve the community in the creative process include:

Orleans County:

• Eric Weatherbee (The Humble Bard Magazine) – $2,500

Genesee County:

• David Burke (12 Center St. External Mural) – $2,500

• Bart Dentino (The Spaces Between the Leaves) – $2,500

• Mandy Humphrey (19 & 5 Mural) – $2,500

• Eric Zwieg (Slow Moving Grief) – $2,500

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ALBION – Orleans and Niagara officials are teaming up for a joint application for federal funds to bring high-speed internet to underserved and unserved areas of the two counties. That’s about 3,600 addresses just in Orleans County.

The two counties are seeking federal funds to cover 100 percent of the costs of extending broadband internet through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ReConnect Program.

The Orleans County Legislature voted to pursue the grant on Wednesday and the Niagara County Legislature is expected pass a resolution in favor of the application next month. The application is due by March 16.

Orleans is taking the lead on the application. The two counties have been pursuing high-speed internet for several years through a two-county partnership, the Niagara-Orleans Regional Alliance.

David Godfrey, a Niagara County legislator from Wilson, believes this latest effort will pay off for the two counties. They first started working on high-speed internet in 2012.

The counties have pursued state and federal before but haven’t yet been successful. Godfrey said he is very optimistic the counties will land ReConnect funding for a project that could top $15 million.

The counties are looking at putting in broadband through a fixed wireless system, working with vendor ROS Wireless in Framingham, Mass.

“It’s extremely imperative we continue this fight,” said Orleans County Legislator Ken DeRoller of Kendall.

The lack of high-speed internet on many rural roads in the counties hurts businesses and residents, who download needed reports, homework and other information.

Godfrey said he is hopeful the grant will be awarded and the high-speed internet could be available next year for residents currently unable to access the service.

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Group was recently recognized by Genesee Valley Branch of the American Public Works Association

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature on Wednesday presented special recognition awards to highway workers in the county who were recognized on Jan. 30 by the Genesee Valley Branch of the American Public Works Association.

The top photo shows John Papponetti (left), Orleans County DPW superintendent, congratulating Steve Fuller, a lead motor equipment operator with the county for more than 30 years. County Legislator Fred Miller is in back.

Fuller heads the county’s paving program, working with local villages and towns to coordinate use of the county’s paver. Fuller has a role in about $3.5 million of paving work annually in the county.

He received the Douglas C. Zefting Public Service Employee Award from the Genesee Valley branch of the American Public Works Association. The award recognizes outstanding public service and achievement of an operational maintenance level employee of a public works agency of a political subdivision.

The Orleans County DPW and Town of Albion Highway Department were honored for the Public Works Project of the Year Award for Small Cities/Rural Communities. The two worked together to replace a culvert on Clarendon Road.

County Legislator Fred miller reads the special recognition award which was presented to John Papponetti and Wayne Krull (second from right), lead MEO, and Brian Ettinger, MEO.

This Town of Albion was awarded a grant through the 2016 BridgeNY Program with an overall project budget of $174,000 for design, construction, and construction oversight. The project was put out to bid as a precast concrete buried structure and wing wall system supported on precast concrete footings. The bids came in higher than budgeted and the town needed to find an alternative method for completing this project.

The construction of the new corrugated metal culvert pipe, approaches and guide rails were designed by Labella and constructed by the Orleans County Highway Department under their shared services agreement with the Town.

The project was completed $30,000 under budget.

The Genesee Valley Branch of the American Public Works Association recognized Ed Morgan, the Murray highway superintendent, as the Public Works Leader of the Year. Morgan, right, accepts his special recognition award from Fred Miller on behalf of the County Legislature.

Morgan has been the Murray highway superintendent the past 30 years. During that time, Morgan has helped facilitate the construction of more than 50 miles of waterlines to serve the residents of the community.

Morgan and the Highway Department also replaced the Highway Department flat roof with a new truss roof, built a large storage building and expanded the Town Hall to accommodate the expanding court system with accessibility for town residents and operational staff.

They also built a 1,200-ton salt storage building and installed a computerized fuel system to accommodate not only the town’s needs, but also service two fire departments.

The Highway Department also served as the lead agency in the construction of the Holley Industrial Park including, roads, water and sanitary. Morgan, as member of the Holley Sports Boosters, also was instrumental in building two complete soccer fields for the Holley Central School District. He has been inducted in Holley’s Sports Hall of Fame.

Morgan is active in the community with the Holley Rotary Club, past chairman of Orleans County Republican Party, trustee at St. Mary’s and St. mark’s Parish, commissioner for the Fancher-Hulberton-Murray Fire District, chairman of the board of directors for Orleans County Soil and Water Conservation Board, and Orleans County’s representative on the board for the Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp.

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Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The words “In God We Trust” have been added to the legislative chambers for the Orleans County Legislature. The seven-member Legislature voted on Sept. 25 to have the words displayed in the meeting room next to the county seal.

The Legislature has been meeting in the new space since June. The body moved from the County Clerk’s Building at Courthouse Square to an addition on the County Administration Building on Route 31.

“Whereas, the County desires to display this patriotic motto in the Legislative Chambers as a way to solemnize public occasions and express confidence in our society,” states the Legislature’s resolution from Sept. 25.

The Rev. Dan Thurber, pastor of the Oak Orchard Assembly of God church on Ridge Road in Medina, led a dedication on Wednesday afternoon for the inscription. Legislature Chairwoman Lynne Johnson, back left, and Nadine Hanlon, clerk of the Legislature, are also pictured.

Thurber noted that “In God We Trust” has been on U.S. currency since 1864 and have been the national motto since July 30, 1956, adopted about a decade after the end of World War II.

The four words also are engraved above the entrance to the Senate Chamber and the speaker’s dais in the United States House of Representatives.

“Whereas, in both war and peace, these words have been a profound source of strength and guidance to many generations of Americans,” the county resolution states.

Thurber, during his dedication message, referenced Proverbs 3:5-6:

“Trust in the Lord in all your heart and lean not on your own understanding and in all your ways submit to him and he will make your paths straight.”

He thanked the county legislators for voting for the display.

“I’m thankful this Legislature so fit to put ‘In God We Trust’ in these chambers reminding us everyday that it is beyond us, it is beyond ourselves, it is beyond our own capacity. There is someone greater than us.”

Click here to see a video of Thurber giving the dedication message and offering a prayer.

Bruce Schmidt of Gaines also thanked the Legislature for displaying “in God We Trust.” He said it shouldn’t be considered as promoting religion.

“It is a historic artifact,” Schmidt said about the four words. “It recognizes religion in our national life and is an expression of patriotism.”

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