By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 12 August 2017 at 1:07 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Tim German (left), a planner with the Orleans County Planning Department, and Jim Bensley, director of the Planning Department, haul some batteries to a roll-off dumpster as part of today’s household hazardous waste collection by the Orleans County Highway Department on West Academy Street.
About 250 residents signed up to dispose of batteries, propane tanks, oil-based paints, solvents, polishes/waxes, aerosols, pesticides, fluorescent bulbs, adhesives & resins, motor oil & filters, acids, corrosives, antifreeze and other household hazardous waste.
Employees with Environmental Enterprises in Cincinnati empty fluids into large drums to be hauled away.
The county pays the company about $18,000 to collect and remove the household hazardous waste. The state usually reimburses the county for half of the cost.
The county has made the collection an annual event since 2015. It used to be every other year but has been doing every year “because of the demand,” Bensley said.
Environmental Enterprises sorts and collects the household hazardous waste today.
The collection event doesn’t include explosives, pressurized tanks, ammunition, PCBs, pathologic waste, infectious waste, radioactive waste, syringes, pharmaceuticals, computers and electronics.
Paul Gray of the Orleans County Highway Department carries two propane tanks to a dumpster. Nancy Kelly-Schicker of the Health Department also carries a propane tank. The county had several employees working at the event today.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 8 August 2017 at 11:08 pm
File Photo: Leonel Rosario is pictured inside Mariachi de Oro, which the Rosario family opened in September 2011.
The Orleans County Chamber of Commerce has announced its award winners for 2017, with Mariachi de Oro the “Business of the Year.”
The Rosario family opened the restaurant on Sept. 9, 2011, offering authentic Mexican food. The business has expanded since it opened on Maple Ridge Road, just east of Route 63.
Other award-winners include:
• Small Business of the Year – Canalside Tattoo
• New Business of the Year – Orleans Millworks
• Business Person of the Year – Deborah London (Bloom’s Florist)
• Community Service Awards – Warren Kruger (Kendall Highway Superintendent) and Jackie Mowers-Sciarabba (Genesee-Orleans Ministry of Concern)
• Phoenix Award – Fitzgibbons Public House
• Agricultural Business of the Year – Kludt Farms
• Lifetime Achievement – Bruce Landis (Photos by Bruce)
Photos by Tom Rivers: Orleans County Court Judge James Punch is pictured a week ago during his last day in the courthouse. He served as the county judge for nearly 27 years.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 4 August 2017 at 10:22 am
‘The opioid crisis is different because it seems to cross over all social, economic and other lines. We’re seeing people from nice families … who are in serious trouble because of these drugs.’ – Judge James Punch
ALBION – Orleans County Court Judge James Punch retired on July 29 after nearly 27 years as the county judge. Punch, 62, worked five years as district attorney before he was elected judge.
After his final court session last Friday afternoon, he sat down for a 25-minute interview with Orleans Hub Editor Tom Rivers.
Q: I’d like to talk about some societal changes since you’ve been judge. Nearly 30 years ago I don’t think the court volume was nearly what it is today.
A: Things have certainly changed. I could enumerate on some ways society has changed.
Q: You have a very good vantage point.
A: Good or very bad, depending on how you look at it. I think the biggest change in the last 30 years is the change in people brought about by the opioid crisis. I’ve never seen anything like it and I’m going back farther than 30 years, it’s closer to 40 as an attorney. I guess it would be 38 years starting as a defense attorney, a Family Court attorney, then later as district attorney. I actually started out as a Legal Aid lawyer for a year.
So I have pretty much 1980 from today as a reference point. The drug use that we used to see – in the old days it was heroin and then crack cocaine started coming into the area around 1986 – it seemed there was limited populations using those drugs.
The opioid crisis is different because it seems to cross over all social, economic and other lines – geographic. We’re seeing people from nice families whose parents have actually tried who are in serious trouble because of these drugs.
Quite honestly I don’t think we have as a court system a good way of dealing with it. I’m not sure there is one. We have to keep things together at the seams with a certain amount of punishment for the sellers and at times possessors. I still believe in drug court but I think it’s much harder to get someone through drug court with a heroin or opioid habit than it was before when it was typically a cocaine or alcohol problem.
They just seem to go back to it. It’s a much more powerful addiction. It has to be a combination of the courts and public health in order for it to work and I’m not sure how that can actually in practice be implemented. But I think they have to start looking at it differently and I think they are.
That’s the biggest change I’ve seen.
‘Things have changed a lot. I don’t want to be an old fogey and say how great things were in the old days, but things have gotten a little be shaky these days.’
The other big change I’ve seen is there seems to be a general change in the way people look at government institutions and authority in general. When I started for example the jurors wore coats and ties, and the ladies wore dresses. It’s much different now. You’ve seen it.
As a judge or police officer, you were respected. There was a presumption that you would be respected until you did something to lose that respect. Now it’s the inverse where you’re not respected in these positions until some individual sees a reason to respect you. That also cuts across a lot of lines with the clergy, doctors, lawyers, judges, police.
That’s made it a little bit trickier to try to enforce these laws when people are less apt to accept your authority. That’s a bad thing for society, but you have to deal with. In any of these positions you have to be very careful and behave as ethically as you can, and don’t give any appearances of unethical or irresponsible conduct, and then just hope for the best.
So there’s two changes.
As far as the numbers go (for caseloads), when I started the numbers were quite a bit lower than they are now. They really peaked in I’d say the mid-’90s when they were very high. Then they levelled off for a few years. In the last few years, not only in my courts but in the neighboring counties, family court has actually decreased. That’s in the last three or four years. I’m not sure why. It could be demographics.
Q: I’d be inclined to think we have less families in the community now given the enrollment drops in local schools.
A: I think it could be. I know the divorces, the raw numbers, have gone down and that’s because fewer people are getting married.
Things have changed a lot. I don’t want to be an old fogey and say how great things were in the old days, but things have gotten a little be shaky these days.
Q: I wonder, and I think many others do, why you stuck with this for so many years, especially in a small town where this job could be a real burden for someone?
A: It’s funny you don’t know your job is stressful because you’re trying to buck up and deal with the stress, but the last couple of days I’ve finally discovered it was stressful. I’m starting to feel the release. I never thought I was under stress. I love to have a mission. When I was DA and judge, in a strange way the more serious the case or the bigger the problem, the more it engaged me. I felt like I was running on all cylinders.
Those challenges weren’t what scared me away. They are actually what kept me not only in the job, but loving the job.
I talked last night (during retirement gathering at Tillman’s Village Inn) about those murders, those were terrible, tragic things that occurred. But I felt like that was what God put me on the Earth to do. That’s why I say I love this job because I feel like this was what I was meant to do.
Q: I wasn’t familiar with the murder on Murdock Road (which Punch referenced during comments at retirement). Was that a boy who was killed?
A: A 17-year-old boy, his name was Randy Neal. It happened June 2, 1986. He became involved with a little group of criminals. One of them was a guy named Harry Ayrhart. It was a brutal murder. They went up into his room, and I say they because we always suspected there was an accomplice but we only had evidence against Harry Ayrhart. They surprised him in his sleep and cut his throat and then some.
It was a tough case to prosecute. We had to really dig for evidence and get some statements from people who knew what happened. I think back then everyone who was a cop in the county worked on that case in one way or the other. We got the conviction and it was confirmed on appeal.
Later Harry Ayrhart decided to be a witness. There was a prosecution against a fella by the name of Paul Rutherford. He was the suspected accomplice. With Harry Ayrhart’s statement they felt they had enough to proceed with the prosecution against Paul Rutherford. This is about 10 years ago, and he was acquitted. Part of the reason is you can’t be convicted just on the testimony of an accomplice. There is inherent suspicion on its reliability. So he was acquitted.
James Punch served as the sole county judge in Orleans, leading Criminal Court, Family Court, Surrogate’s Court and State Supreme Court. He also started specialized courts for drug and domestic violence.
Q: Is the intention to keep this as a one-judge county?
A: I’m afraid so. There is no plan to increase it. It can be handled by one judge, it really can. But you have to do a lot of studying and you have to read the law in all of these different areas. You can’t go into any court and tell yourself this isn’t my area. You can’t be an amateur in any area. You have to study up.
I have a big filing system I use. Every time I read something that comes up I print it and get it into hard copy and I throw it into these files. I can’t possibly remember it all so that’s my memory. It’s divided into Family Court, Surrogate Court, Supreme Court, and County Court. When I have an issue come up, I pull up that little sub-file on confidential informants or any number of issues. There are probably 300 different sub-categories. That’s how I’ve managed to do it. It’s old-fashioned and low-tech but it’s worked for me. It still can be done by one person.
We’re told if our population ever hit 55,000, they would consider a second judge. (Editor’s Note: The Census estimate in 2016 for Orleans County was 41,346 people.)
The courthouse renovations were done with eye towards having two judges. There are two chambers, and there is extra space for another secretary. We don’t see it in the future. The population just isn’t there.
Q: We’re just about the same as Wyoming County, and they have two judges. I think they have more Family Court cases than we do.
A: They have something we don’t have and that is Attica Correctional Facility, and that – back I think in the ’70s, they had so many lawsuits out of the facility and so many indictments out of the facility, they got a second judge because of the facility.
It’s huge. It’s much bigger than our two facilities put together. (Albion is home to two state prisons – Albion and Orleans Correctional.)
Why they have more Family Court cases than we do, I don’t know. For a lot of years we were neck and neck but theirs has increased a little bit.
All the other counties have more population so we’re kind of in this odd position as the only county in Western New York with one judge.
Q: I wasn’t covering the court when you had cancer. I didn’t realize you had it twice.
A: Well I can tell you about it if it’s not too boring.
Q: Sure. I don’t even know what type of cancer you had.
A: I had run-of-mill prostrate cancer. I missed four days of work. I had a prostatectomy and it was no problem. That was in 2006.
The next year I could see hard lumps about the size of a baseball forming. They started to hurt like crazy. I went to the doctor and had a scan and it turns out they were cancer of unknown primary, which is called CUP – cancer of unknown primary. When they first diagnosed it, it was really a nondiagnosis really, but it was really aggressive.
I would up with about seven tumors. Two of them were bigger than baseballs. The others were reoccurrences. I’ve had two reoccurrences. I’ve had most of my abdominal muscles surgically removed and I wear a brace to hold myself together. But I can still play tennis and racquetball and stuff like that, but I can’t play golf. I’m a lefty and I can’t pull through that way. I still have a good vigorous game of tennis.
I went to Roswell, and they, in conjunction with Sloan Kettering, came up with a treatment plan that involved some very unusual and heavy chemotherapy. I was really sick as a result of the chemotherapy. I also had radiation for nine weeks. I had four major operations/surgeries.
They had at one point written me off, actually. That was one doctor at Roswell. The other doctor said we think we can go in there surgically and they did. So that and the nasty chemo allowed me to survive.
Q: Why not retire then?
A: I was only 51, and I wouldn’t have a pension. I could have had a disability pension. I had a certain amount of faith I could get through it. I worked through most of it. I had to go into the hospital for a week because I had a double line going in for five straight days and then I needed time to recover so there were judges helping me. But for most of it I worked and I needed that motivation to stay focused and keeps my hopes up, keep my prayers up. Working really helped me to get through it.
Q: So when were you out of the woods with cancer?
A: I was pretty sick for 2 to 3 years after the chemo. The cancer itself took a couple of years. I would say probably out of the woods just before the last election in 2010. I was sick, but not too sick to do the job. I was anemic for two or three years because my blood was just battered by the chemo. It took two to three years to get that back. But I was still working. I was cross country skiing. I could only go 100 feet or so at a time but I was still out there trying to get back into shape.
I lost all of my hair and my eyebrows. You know why you lose your hair with chemo? Because it hits the fast-growing cells. The faster the cell grows, the thinner the cell wall, and the chemo penetrates the cell wall. It will penetrate the thinner cell walls and not the slower-growing, thicker cell walls. Your hair and fingernails grow fast, and your stomach lining grows fast so those are your vulnerable spots.
The cancer, if you’re lucky, is growing fast, and mine was very fast and very aggressive. It actually worked in my favor. It grew so fast the cell walls didn’t have time to thicken so it eventually killed what was left of the cancer once I got the right chemo.
The first chemo had no effect and that’s when they wrote me off. Then they got their ducks in a row and came up with this new chemo which made me very sick. But it saved my life.
So you know my fingernails fell off. My toenails fell off. My stomach, I was in terrible shape. And of course I had no hair, no eyebrows, no eye lashes. I remember walking out into the courtroom after my hair had fallen out. It doesn’t just fall out. It starts falling out and you can’t sleep because it’s in your mouth. I couldn’t sleep, I’m a clean person and it was driving me crazy. I went to the mirror and there was a clump of hair. In about 90 seconds, I pulled it all out. It all came out in clumps and then I was able to sleep that night.
Suzanne (Punch’s wife) woke up the next morning and said, ‘What happened to you?’
So that’s the story on cancer. I was able to work through the vast majority of it. I did think I was going to have to take a disability retirement but fortunately, thanks to medical science and Roswell and Sloan Kettering, I was able to get right through it. I feel good today.
Q: Did the defendants seem shocked while you were fighting through that?
A: When I came out the first time with no hair, it was the defendants – and the defendants aren’t always terrible, horrible people. I learned from my days as DA, the way you get a statement from the defendants is to be kind of nice to them, and they’ll be nice to you. I tried to do that a little bit. I called them by their first name. I tried to tell them when I’m sentencing them, even if it was the maximum under the plea bargain, something positive to send them off with. – so when I came out the first time it was the gallery over here of the defendants that I heard the gasps from. I was walking very slow. I must have looked like I was 90 years old. They weren’t used to that. They looked horrified. I was sort of touched by their reaction.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 August 2017 at 4:53 pm
ALBION – David Callard, chairman of the Orleans County Legislature, has announced his resignation from the seven-member body, effective today.
Callard is stepping down for “personal reasons,” said Chuck Nesbitt, the county’s chief administrative officer.
The chairman had already stated this was going to be his last term after nearly 24 years as a county legislator. He wasn’t seeking re-election this November to another two-year stint as a legislator. (The Republican Party endorsed Skip Draper, current Shelby town supervisor, to succeed Callard, beginning Jan. 1, 2018.)
Lynne Johnson, who has been vice chairwoman, will serve as leader of the Legislature for at least the short-term. The Legislature has begun working on the 2018 county budget.
Callard was the group’s chairman for nearly eight years. He was picked by his colleagues to be their leader for four two-year terms.
Nesbitt issued this statement about Callard’s resignation:
“The County Legislature has been informed that David Callard has resigned from the County Legislature effective Aug. 2, 2017. Mr. Callard has served on the County Legislature for 23 years. We thank him for his service to the county. Lynne Johnson, vice chairwoman of the County Legislature, will act as chair until such time as a new chair is elected.”
Prior to being elected a county legislator, Callard was on the Ridgeway Town Board for four years. Callard, a Ridgeway resident, is a retired banking executive. He ran for Congress in 1996, losing to a long-time incumbent, John LaFalce.
Photos by Tom Rivers: Orleans County Court Judge James Punch, right, was honored during a retirement party on Thursday at Tillman’s Village Inn. Here he receives gifts of appreciation from the 8th Judicial District from Eugene Pigott, a former associate judge on the Court of Appeals, and Paula L. Feroleto (center), the District Administrative Judge for the 8th Judicial District. Pigott said Punch has had "a stellar, stellar career."
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 August 2017 at 1:05 pm
ALBION – Judge James Punch would often set bail for hundreds of thousands of dollars for defendants with long criminal histories, and he would typically give them the maximum sentences.
“He’s a tough sentencer, we all know that,” said District Attorney Joe Cardone during a retirement party for the judge last Thursday. “It sends a message to the drug dealers from other counties not to do business in Orleans County.”
Punch served as Orleans County Court judge for nearly 27 years until his retirement on July 29.
Cardone said Punch also was demanding of attorneys, insisting they be prepared – and on time.
Twice Punch fought cancer, and continued to carry out his duties on the bench with distinction, Cardone said.
“He came to work to maintain the integrity of our court system,” Cardone said. “We’ll be forever grateful for your hard work and decency.”
Cardone said Punch had a great “BS Barometer” in seeing through excuses and lies from some of the defendants.
District Attorney Joe Cardone was among the speakers during a retirement party for Judge James Punch last Thursday.
In addition to Criminal Court, Punch was judge for Family Court, Surrogate’s Court and State Supreme Court. He also started specialized courts – drug and domestic violence courts.
The 8th Judicial District has six judges scheduled to fill in during Punch’s absence until a new judge is elected and begins on Jan. 1.
“We have a full contingent trying to replace one person,” said Paula L. Feroleto, administrative judge for the 8th Judicial District. She is among the judges that will preside over cases in Orleans the next five months until a new judge starts.
Feroleto said Punch has shown himself to be “an honorable person,” looking for ways to serve justice and fill the needs of the judicial system in the county. That hasn’t always been punishment-focused.
“He really has a tender heart,” she told about 250 people at Punch’s retirement party. “He is a tender person.”
Before he was judge, Punch worked about five years as district attorney. He was first elected at age 29, the youngest DA in the state. A week on the job as district attorney, he had his first murder case. Punch had seven of those cases as DA, and won convictions in all them.
He thanked the law enforcement officers for their work in those cases. During the retirement party, he insisted all the sheriffs during his tenure be acknowledged for their work.
He ended his speech with a toast to two words. Those two words – “To Justice” – were the same two words he used in a toast after securing his first murder conviction as a DA.
Former Sheriff David Green said Punch proved his dedication to the community, taking on many difficult cases.
Punch, a 1973 Medina graduate, said he is grateful for a career in the community where he grew up.
“My life has been a series of fortunate events,” Punch told the group. “Luck, hard work and God have been involved.”
He recalled going before the Albion Republican Committee when he was 29 and seeking that committee’s support for DA. Punch said one of his shoes came apart, and he didn’t think it would make a good impression.
“My left shoe had fallen apart,” he said. “It had detached everywhere but the heel.”
Just before his interview with the committee, he talked Jeff Rheinwald, former head of the Albion Federal Savings & Loan, into switching shoes. Punch wonders if he would have received the endorsement without Rheinwald’s shoes.
David Schubel, president of the Orleans County Bar Association, said Punch has served with distinction for nearly 40 years, beginning as a private practice attorney in Medina. He presented Punch with a ceremonial gavel and a piece of inscribed Medina sandstone, thanking him for his service.
When Punch was a young attorney, he rehabbed an old Medina sandstone building on West Center Street for his law office. Punch was a part-time district attorney with one assistant, handling the 10 towns courts, the village courts and the county court. Cardone said it was an immense workload for a part-time elected official. Punch would prosecute seven murders and 40 felony trials in five years before becoming judge.
David Schubel, Orleans County attorney, presents gifts from the Orleans County Bar Association to James Punch during a retirement party last Thursday.
Schubel praised the judge for the “totality” of his career in very demanding positions.
“We are enormously grateful for the years you have served,” Schubel said.
Sanford Church, the county’s public defender, also spoke during the retirement gathering, saying Punch could write a book – “Punch Lines” – with his many memorable quotes during court.
Punch said he was hoping for a low-key departure from his career.
“I just wanted to leave the keys on the desk,” he told the crowd at the party.
But his staff wouldn’t have that. There were many lawyers, law enforcement officers and local elected officials at the gathering on Thursday.
“You’re not going to hear this too many places but I’m really going to miss the attorneys I worked with,” he said to laughter.
Public Defender Sandy Church said the retiring judge should write a book, Punch Lines, that includes his many memorable quotes from the bench.
The judge said the county has a strong criminal justice system, from the law enforcement officers, to probation, child protective services, mental health and many support agencies.
“You don’t now how good we have it until you’ve been in other counties,” Punch said.
He commended Church for his work as public defender and Cardone as the district attorney.
“Joe knows when to be tough and aggressive, and he also knows when to give someone a break,” Punch said about Cardone. “He’s a good and decent guy.”
The judge said retirement will allow him to spend more time with his wife Suzanne, their three grown children and three grandchildren.
He thanked the staff at the Courthouse – “my work family.”
“I love every one of you,” he said. “I’m going to miss everyone of you.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 August 2017 at 7:57 am
The Village of Medina and Orleans County both are seeking state grants to develop waterfront plans along the Erie Canal.
Orleans County asked Medina to join the county effort for about 25 miles of waterfront in Orleans along the canal.
Medina opted instead to pursue its own plan. The Orleans plan will focus on the villages of Albion and Holley, and towns of Murray, Albion, Gaines, Ridgeway and Shelby.
“I hope we’re both successful,” Medina village trustee Owen Toale said during last week’s Village Board meeting.
The village has been working on its waterfront development plan for nearly a year and didn’t want to start at the beginning of the process.
“I think we’re miles ahead of where the county is,” said Marty Busch, the village’s code enforcement officer. “We’re at different points and that makes it hard to mesh it all together.”
The Village Board approved a letter of support for the county application. Medina lined up support from local state legislators, and the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor, among several key officials and organizations, Busch said.
Medina wants a plan that stretches beyond the canal, including State Street Park, and downtown and neighborhood revitalization.
A waterfront revitalization plan would include public input to identify assets along the canal and identify projects and strategies to enhance the canal waterfront.
County legislators said they are willing to align and coordinate the county planning efforts with Medina’s plan.
A plan is critical for the municipalities to then receive larger state grants to support business projects and public improvements. The county and Medina both submitted applications by Friday’s deadline through the state Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) process, where about $800 million is available through dozens of state agencies.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 27 July 2017 at 9:28 am
Goal: Build ‘civic capacity’ for local municipal boards, organizations
Courtesy of Lynne Menz: This is the logo for the new Leadership Orleans program.
ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature approved spending $33,000 for the county’s contingency fund to help start the “Leadership Orleans” program, which will begin with classes in January for about 25 participants.
The program will be run through Community Action of Orleans & Genesee. The county approved the $33,000 to help with the startup costs for the new program.
Most other counties in Western New York have leadership programs. Genesee County, for example, has been running its program for at least 15 years through the Cornell Cooperative extension of Genesee County.
“It will build civic capacity in Orleans County,” said Chuck Nesbitt, the county’s chief administrative officer.
The local municipal boards and civic organizations all could use more people with a deeper understanding of the community, Nesbitt said.
The Leadership Orleans participants will all pay a tuition to be in the program, which has monthly day-long meetings. The monthly programs will give participants insight about the agencies and different sectors of the community, from local government, cultural organizations, volunteerism, community health, tourism and recreation, agribusiness, education and economic and workforce development.
Leadership Orleans will run for a year with members of the group meeting monthly on the third Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The program will focus on civic responsibility and community stewardship, Kelly Kiebala, the Orleans County Job Development director, told county legislators during a presentation last month.
Kiebala graduated from the Genesee program in 2010. She is helping to run the Orleans effort.
The tuition in the program could range from $750 to $1,500, depending on the size of the class.
The program wants to draw from a cross section of the community, including business, labor, education, arts, religion, government, community-based, ethnic and minority groups.
Leadership Orleans is looking for people to share their expertise and engage in “courageous conversations.”
The program will be open to adults at least 18 years old. They should be open be flexible and adaptable, open to different roles, including a student, beginner, learner, organizer, director, boss, volunteer, teacher and “servant leader.”
The program will soon begin an outreach effort.
Besides Kiebala, the Leadership Orleans program was developed by the following committee members: Laura Bentley, co-owner of Bentley Brothers and graduate of LEAD NY; Diana Fox, assistant clinic coordinator for Orleans County Mental Health and graduate of Leadership Genesee in 2002; Gary Graber, Darien Town Justice, terminal manager for Teal’s Express and Leadership Genesee graduate in 2005; Chuck Hoover, sales and marketing for Batavia Turf/CY Farms and Leadership Genesee graduate in 2013; Kim Pritt, retired Albion resident who was part of Leadership Sanford, North Carolina; Thad Thompson, golf course superintendent for Terry Hills and LG grad in 2013; Patrick Weissend, vice president and branch manager for Bank of Castile and LG grad in 2002; and Peggy Marone, director of Leadership Genesee and LG grad in 2002.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 July 2017 at 9:03 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature this afternoon presented a Special Recognition Award to James Punch, who is retiring Friday after nearly 27 years as Orleans County Court judge.
Punch accepted the award from Legislature Chairman David Callard, left. The judge received a standing ovation and applause from the legislators and others at the meeting, including Clerk of Legislature Nadine Hanlon, back left, and County Treasurer Susan Heard.
Prior to being elected judge, Punch served as the district attorney for nearly five years.
“Through your extreme professionalism serving as our County Judge and as our past District Attorney, our county has benefitted from your extensive knowledge and service,” legislators stated on the certificate. “Your pledge to protect Orleans County and beyond is widespread and long lasting. The Orleans County Legislature does hereby wish you success and happiness in all of your future endeavors, along with thanking you for your allegiance to the county you were raised in.”
The award is signed by legislators David Callard, Don Allport, John DeFilipps, Lynne Johnson, Fred Miller, Bill Eick and Ken DeRoller.
Punch grew up in Medina and graduated from Medina High School in 1973. Callard said he remembers the judge as a kid riding around the community on his bike.
Judge James Punch praised county officials and other departments for their service to the community.
Punch is retiring on July 29. His final court sessions will be on Friday.
“It has been an honor to serve,” Punch told legislators. “I’m proud of the county and I’m proud of the Legislature.”
He praised the Legislature and county officials for moving forward with an addition to the historic county courthouse a decade ago that made the building handicapped accessible, allowing it to continue to be used for a courtroom and for offices.
“That preserved what I think is the most beautiful courtroom in Western New York,” Punch said.
He also praised the Department of Social Services, Probation and the Mental Health Department for their work trying to help families in crisis.
In addition to leading County Court, Punch also has served as judge for Family Court, Surrogate Court, and Supreme Court, as well as judge for Drug Court and Domestic Violence Court.
“We have an awful lot to be proud of in this county and a lot of it is what you do in this Legislature,” Punch said.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 21 July 2017 at 3:18 pm
File photo by Tom Rivers – The 1-million-gallon water tank on Route 98 is pictured through a metal fence at the site north of the village in the Town of Gaines. A firm about two years advised the village to spend nearly $1 million to bolster the tank with a series of improvements.
ALBION – Orleans County will seek state funding to study a county-wide water district, which could be created to maintain and operate some of the water infrastructure in Orleans.
The study has the support of the Albion Village Board and several of the town boards.
Albion’s Department of Public Works handles the maintenance and operation of the village system. The village sells water to the towns of Carlton, Gaines, Albion and Barre.
Holley and Lyndonville also have water systems, the Niagara County Water District serves Medina, and the Monroe County Water Authority is a supplier for Kendall, Murray and Clarendon.
The highway superintendents for the towns also function in a part-time role as water superintendents, and highway employees also work on the water systems.
Several highway superintendents are expected to retire soon, and the water plants, storage tanks, water towers and other infrastructure are all getting older.
Some local municipal leaders think a county-wide water district could be the best answer for qualified personnel overseeing the water systems, and could also draw more grants and resources for costly capital projects.
“It’s definitely worth looking in to,” said Dean London, mayor of Albion.
The village is a primary water supplier in the county. But the MCWA has been pushing westward from Monroe, locking Kendall, for example, into a 40-year agreement.
A countywide water district could help the Village of Albion keep the local towns as customers. The district could also have an overseeing board of directors with representatives from the village, towns and county.
“The water plant is a resource we have,” London said. “If we had county-wide participation, it could set ourselves in a good direction.”
London said the plant at Wilson Road in Carlton is under capacity and could produce more water, serving more water districts and serving as an economic development tool in the county.
“Monroe County (Water Authority) is trying to make inroads from the east,” London said. “We need to protect what we have.”
Orleans County is taking the lead on the application to the state for the study. The county has received letters of support from the municipal boards from the villages of Albion, Holley and Lyndonville, as well as the Town Boards from Barre, Clarendon, Gaines and Ridgeway.
If the project moves forward, the municipalities are expected to continue to keep their own infrastructure, with the county-wide water district perhaps having its own superintendent, staff and possibly billing clerks.
The study would flesh out details and different scenarios.
The study and the formation of the countywide water district could drive investment to the Albion water plant, boosting its capacity and increasing its efficiency, said Chuck Nesbitt, the county chief administrative officer.
Nesbitt said the timing for the study is ideal with the imminent retirement of some of the local highway superintendents. The state also has boosted resources for water infrastructure, and the study and a possible county-wide district could increase the chances for securing some of those funds locally, he said.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 19 July 2017 at 11:35 am
File photos by Tom Rivers: The County Administration Building on Route 31, behind The Villages of Orleans Health and Rehabilitation Center, will have an addition to make room for relocated county offices, including the Public Health Department.
ALBION – Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced today that Orleans County would receive a $3,682,748 grant to “protect and transform” healthcare in Orleans County.
The funding would support primary care staff from Oak Orchard Health to work out of the county mental health department. The bulk of the funding would go towards an addition on the County Administration Building for the Health Department.
The Health Department currently is housed in a site owned Comprehensive Healthcare Management Services LLC. Comprehensive acquired that building as part of the $7.8 million acquisition on Jan.1, 2015 of the former county nursing home.
County officials pay an annual six-figure rent to Comprehensive for use of the space for the Health Department, said Chuck Nesbitt, the county’s chief administrative officer.
The entire addition could be $8 million. The state funding “makes the numbers work,” Nesbitt said.
This rendering from Wendel shows a proposed 22,000-square-foot addition to the County Administration Building.
The county can use the lease payments it currently pays Comprehensive to offset some of the local cost for the addition. The county may also relocate the Department of Social Services to the addition, which would bring additional state reimbursement.
County officials initially eyed the addition for the County Legislature and its staff, including a meeting room. That wouldn’t bring state funding.
The county could instead renovate space that would be vacated for the Legislature, Nesbitt said.
The nearly $3.7 million will allow the county to move forward with the project.
“It really is a big deal,” Nesbitt said. “It’s full speed ahead.”
The Public Health Department leases space next to the former Orleans County Nursing Home on Route 31 in Albion.
The state funding is part of $491 million announced statewide for healthcare projects in the “Health Care Facility Transformation Program.”
The funding will improve patient care through the development of high-quality medical facilities and programs serving the inpatient, primary care, mental health, substance use disorder and long-term care needs of communities throughout New York State, Cuomo said.
“Now, more than ever, we need to protect health care in New York and ensure the system in place is meeting the needs of current and future generations of New Yorkers,” Cuomo said in a statement. “While others seek to decimate our hospitals and reduce access to quality healthcare, we are investing to help ensure a stronger, healthier New York for all.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 13 July 2017 at 5:13 pm
Provided photo: Tim Call shared this photo on July 2 of his backyard in Hamlin. Normally he would have a nice view of the lake, but he had to build up a berm to fight flooding and erosion.
POINT BREEZE – A new organization that was formed by lakeshore residents who have lost chunks of their backyards to the high lake Ontario is holding a rally on Friday.
United Shoreline will gather at 7 p.m. at the Orleans County Marine Park, 1110 Point Breeze Rd. (Route 98)
State Sen. Robert Ortt (R-North Tonawanda) and State Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R-Batavia) are both expected to speak at the rally and discuss a flood relief package approved by the State Legislature and Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Some of the state relief programs are being managed by Pathstone for Orleans County residents. Pathstone Director Susan Boss will be on hand to field questions on the grant application process and will have hard copies of the applications to distribute.
Dale Banker, director of the Orleans County Emergency management Office, will also address the group.
In addition, the Governor’s Office Mobile Command Center will be on site during the meeting for DEC permits and insurance claim assistance.
The Mobile Command Centers and DEC Permitting Offices will be at the Marine Park on Friday from 10 am to 8 p.m. They are scheduled to be back at the Marine Park on July 22, July 26 and July 30.
United Shoreline held its first rally last month in Kendall and then in Hamlin. The group is looking for a solution to the water levels and looks for proactive management to avoid the same flooding and erosion again next spring.
“Simply put, we need the shoreline fixed and we don’t want to be having this same discussion next year!” United Shoreline member Dawn Herbeck said in an email.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 July 2017 at 8:19 am
ALBION – For more than 30 years, the pistol permit office has been maintained through the county judge’s chambers, even though it is a function of the County Clerk’s Office.
But with James Punch retiring as the county judge on July 29, the county is shifting the function to the Clerk’s Office, which is led by County Clerk Karen Lake-Maynard.
The Legislature on Wednesday also authorized the creation of a full-time pistol permit clerk position in the Clerk’s Office.
The shift of the function to the Clerk’s Office will be effective when Punch retires on July 29. He has served as County Court judge for nearly 27 years.
The 8th Judicial District is working on a plan to have coverage in Orleans County for the different courts led by Punch: Criminal Court, Family Court, Surrogate’s Court and State Supreme Court.
Punch is retiring after 27 years on the bench. Before he was elected judge, he was the county’s district attorney for five years.
His successor will be on the ballot in November, and will assume the office on Jan. 1.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 June 2017 at 10:22 pm
A local construction company will be replacing two county-owned bridges in the western side of Orleans County.
The County Legislature accepted Keeler Construction’s bids on Wednesday for the projects.
Keeler, which is based in Barre, was the low bidder at $466,030 to replace the Culvert Road Bridge over Fish Creek in Ridgeway.
Keeler was also low bidder at $947,335 to replace the Marshall Road Bridge over Johnson Creek in Yates.
These projects are being funded with an $8 million bond the county took out in 2014 for a series of infrastructure projects over three years. This is the last year for those projects as part of the bond.
In addition to the two bridges, the county is replacing two culverts this year on Platten Road in Yates at a total cost $885,173.
The state has made more bridge and culvert money available for municipalities with the Bridge NY program. The county has four projects identified for 2018 with the state program, which pays for 95 percent of the bridge costs and 100 percent of the culverts.
The Legislature on Wednesday approved enigineering and “right-of-way incidentals” for two bridge projects in 2018.
That includes $169,400 to LaBella Associates in Rochester for engineering and right-of-way incidentals as part of the Portage Road bridge replacement in Ridgeway over Fish Creek.
Bridge NY Project, which is 95 percent funded by federal government, includes a 5 percent local share – $8,470 –to be paid by the county.
The Legislature also approved $174,100 to LaBella Associates in Rochester for engineering and right-of-way incidentals as part of the Monroe-Orleans County Line Road bridge replacement over the east branch of Sandy Creek in Murray. The 5 percent local share – $8,705 –will be paid by the county.
Photo by Tom Rivers: Sandbags were placed as a buffer from the spreading water at the Green Harbor Campground & Marina in Carlton in this photo from May 16. The high waters from Lake Ontario delayed the opening of the campground this year.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 June 2017 at 10:01 pm
The State Legislature and Gov. Andrew Cuomo approved $55 million in relief for flooding victims from the high Lake Ontario, which was down from an earlier $90 million package.
Despite the $35 million reduction, State Sen. Rob Ortt, R- North Tonawanda, said the funding provides critical relief for property owners who have suffered for more than two months from the high waters.
“Residents, business owners, farmers and local governments impacted by the Lake Ontario flooding will be able to breathe a collective sigh of relief,” Ortt said in a statement today. “This bill provides up to a $50,000 grant per eligible homeowner, and keeps the focus on helping year-round residents, not on how much money they make. We also haven’t forgotten about seasonal residents, small business owners, farmers, landlords, not-for-profits and municipalities.
“The high water levels have posed a significant burden for individuals along the coast. I’m proud both houses of the legislature were able to work together to provide much needed relief to families devastated by the unprecedented man-made disaster, so that they can begin to rebuild.”
Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the $55 million is needed for the shoreline property owners.
“I’ve been up there several times and that situation is difficult and long-term,” the governor said in Albany today. “It’s not like a flood where it is several days and it’s gone, this has been weeks and weeks and weeks.”
The budget also incudes funds for portable dams to help stave off flooding. Two of those Aqua Dams were installed in Kendall on Wednesday.
“They are these large dams that can be filled with water and actually stop the water from coming onto property, roads, etc. so that was a very good piece of legislation in my opinion,” Cuomo said.
The state funding – a maximum $50,000 grant – will kick in after property owners tap federal assistance and insurance coverage.
Photos by Tom Rivers: The Regional Transit Service held a ground-breaking ceremony on Wednesday for a new $4 million transportation facility in Albion to serve RTS in Orleans County. This photo shows, from left: David Callard, Orleans County Legislature chairman; Bill Carpenter, CEO of RTS; and Henry Smith, a former county legislator who is the county’s representative on the RTS board of directors.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 June 2017 at 8:56 am
RTS also expanding bus routes to Lyndonville, Holley, Brockport and Batavia beginning in September
ALBION – The Regional Transit Service, along with Orleans County officials, celebrated the ground-breaking for a new 13,000-square-foot transportation facility in Albion on Wednesday.
RTS has run a public transportation service in Orleans County since 2003. It has six buses in the county, and they are parked outside by the County Highway Department on West Academy Street.
This rendering shows how the facility will look in Albion. LeFrois Builders is general contractor for the project.
The new $4 million facility will allow the buses to be parked inside. The facility will be behind the County Highway Department, with RTS in a 50-year lease with the county for the land.
The facility will include eight indoor bus bays, three bus maintenance bays, a vehicle wash bay, storage for parts and materials, administrative office space, a break room with kitchenette, and designated parking.
“It’s absolutely critical for a county to grow and develop to have public transportation,” said David Callard, chairman of the Orleans County Legislature.
Local officials and RTS leaders join for a ceremonial ground-breaking celebration.
Federal aid funneled to the state will pay 80 percent or about $3.2 million of the cost, while the state pays 10 percent and RTS pays the other 10 percent, said Bill Carpenter, CEO of RTS.
He praised Gov. Andrew Cuomo for approving the bulk of the funding for the project.
Construction of the new facility is set to begin the week of July 10 and is scheduled for completion in July 2018.
“This is an exciting day for RTS and public transit in Orleans County,” Carpenter said. “The construction of this new facility will help our team make it easy for customers to enjoy the ride and fulfill our vision of becoming the preferred transportation choice.”
RTS has the facility on county land to ensure a long-term partnership that is beneficial to taxpayers, Carpenter said.
Henry Smith, a former county legislator, has been the county’s representative on the RTS board of directors for nine years. He addresses the crowd during the ground-breaking. He is joined at the podium by David Callard and Bill Carpenter.
RTS also pays the county an hourly rate for maintenance of the buses using county mechanics in the highway department. The new facility will also have space for tools and equipment to work on the buses and county vehicles. Right now those tools are in two different county buildings.
When RTS started in Orleans, it was known as the Orleans Transit Service or OTS. It had 3,500 riders its first six months. The ridership has grown to 42,000 last year.
The rebranded RTS will be added routes on Sept. 5, with trips to Holley, Lyndonville, Batavia and Brockport, as well as Saturday service from Medina to Albion.
RTS is doing that without adding buses or staff, adding service while maintaining efficiencies, said Jamie Mott, manager of regional for RTS in Genesee and Orleans counties.
Jamie Mott (left), RTS director of regionals for Genesee and Orleans counties, signs one of the ground-breaking shovels with RTS CEO Bill Carpenter.
