By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 21 July 2013 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
KNOWLESVILLE – Orleans County 4-H Fair officials usually expect to ease into the Fair week with a relatively quiet Monday.
But good-size crowds were out this evening, enjoying nice sunshine without really hot summer weather. Fair leaders were happy to see the seats filled for the talent show and some lines at the concession stands.
In the top photo, two children get ready to head down the Fun Slide as the sun sets in the background.
The opening ceremony included a presentation of Colors by veterans, including from left: Jim Freas of Medina, Kevin Truesdell of Medina and Ron Ayrault of Holley.
U.S. Rep. Chris Collins addressed the opening ceremony crowd. He said county fairs “are certainly a part of our great Western New York tradition.”
State Assemblyman Steve Hawley and Jim Bays, first deputy commissioner for the NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets, also spoke during opening ceremonies. They commended the Cornell Cooperative Extension staff and volunteers for their work in planning the fair, which runs until Saturday night.
CCE program director Jennifer Wagester is at left followed by volunteers Gary Blackburn, Pete Toenniessen, John DeFilipps, Ed Neal (CCE president) and Michele Bokman.
The opening day included the Swine Show. Here, Blake Houseman, 2 1/2, of Gasport climbs up on the fence to get a better look at the action.
The talent show was also on the center stage. Allie Amoroso of Brockport performed a jazz solo to “Looking Good – Feeling Gorgeous.” She finished fifth and qualified for the State Fair.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 July 2013 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers – Robert Batt, president of the Fair Board, and Kerri McKenna, a community educator for the Cornell Cooperative Extension, have been busy gearing up for next week’s 4-H Fair in Knowlesville.
KNOWLESVILLE – The animals are soon to arrive, a group of nearly 550 creatures that include cows and pigs, llamas and rabbits, goats and horses.
After seeing the numbers drop at recent fairs, next week’s event in Knowlesville shows a sizable uptick in animals. The number of cows and beef cattle are up from 20 last year to 65 next week.
And the number of 4-H animal exhibitors also is on an upswing with nearly 200 kids showing animals.
“Most fairs are seeing their numbers go down,” said Kerri McKenna, the community educator for the Cornell Cooperative Extension in Orleans County. “Our leaders have been out recruiting new members.”
The fair officially starts on Monday, July 22, and runs until the 27th. The week-long event typically draws about 30,000 people. It’s considered one of the most successful youth fairs in the state, a small-county celebration that bans alcohol and limits exhibitors to children.
“We have a community that supports youth, agriculture and the community in general,” said McKenna, a former 4-H’er. “This is the biggest event of the year where everyone is involved.”
The fair includes a new Midway provider, Midway Rides of Utica, which is bringing a 90-foot-high Ferris wheel to Knowlesville, the biggest to ever come to the Orleans fair.
The Fair Board is spending $16,000 for entertainment, with bands, the Midway, a Motorcyle Thrill Ride and other entertainers. The board is not hiking the cost to enter the fair. That remains at $5 per carload, which Fair Board President Robert Batt said is the least expensive in the state.
“We’re definitely the cheapest,” he said. “We want to keep it low so families can come and have money to spend.”
He is pleased to have many new food vendors for the week. The Fair Board also is trying to make better use of the parking lot by the Education Center for the fair. On Wednesday the 24th the lot will be used for a craft show and community yard sale.
There will be a motorcycle cruise-in on Thursday with a Classic Car Show on Friday. On Saturday, the last day of the fair, first responders will bring fire trucks, ambulances and a helicopter. Children and community members are encouraged to come meet firefighters, medics and other first responders.
For more information, check the 4-H Fair Website by clicking here.
Provided photo – Orleans County Legislators David Callard, left, and Ken Rush, right, stand outside the Dwight “Buzz” Hill Education Center at the 4-H Fairgrounds in Knowlesville with CCE Interim Director Paul Lehman.
Press release
CCE of Orleans County
KNOWLESVILLE – Residents, business owners and public officials in Orleans County will be happy to know that their generous donations and volunteer help have paid off with the completion of the mortgage payments for the “Buzz” Hill Education Center at the 4-H fairgrounds.
The Extension will burn the mortgage during a 5:45 p.m. presentation on opening day at the 4-H Fair on July 22. An event for donors is being planned for September.
“We decided to try to burn the mortgage at the 4-H Fair,” said Ed Neal, chairman of the Extension Board of Directors. “A final push in May brought dozens of checks from this generous community.”
Much the same as a homeowner celebrates the retirement of a home mortgage after years of sacrifice, residents can feel as though they have a piece of ownership in what Extension officials say is one of the finest education centers in the state.
The effort to build an improved facility to replace the older center on Main Street in Albion began in 2000 when the Extension Board of Directors established a goal of creating a permanent facility at the fairgrounds. Originally scheduled to be paid off in 2014, at least $2,000 in interest is expected to be saved with this final push.
While many area residents see the facility at the fairgrounds and know about the 4-H organization, they may not realize that this center of non-formal education is much more than a youth organization and a fair.
One hundred years ago, Cooperative Extension had its founding in Broome County, New York. Then known as Farm Bureau, the organization, early on was totally focused on rural farm improvement. The addition of “home economics” sought to improve domestic life.
In January 1917, Orleans County came on board with the establishment of the first Farm Bureau Office in the Waterman Building in Albion. Nine months later, the “Home Economics Commission” was established to serve homemakers. 4-H Clubs of Orleans County officially were organized in 1938.
Today, agricultural educational needs are much more sophisticated. Orleans shares with other counties a portion of budgets for specialists in tree fruit, vegetables, dairy, livestock and field crops. Two of 19 specialists that Orleans has access to are housed in the Orleans office.
While the organization has experienced some turnover in local staff, the organization is recruiting a full-time program director who will also be a youth issues leader.
“We have serious budgetary constraints from narrowing federal and state dollars and know we must pull ourselves up with our own bootstraps by generating grant income and business income from use of the grounds,” said Interim Director Paul Lehman. “We appreciate the considerable support from the County Legislature.”
The word “cooperative” in Cooperative Extension means cooperation between federal, state and local governments and by memorandum of agreement to, as the organization’s mission states: put knowledge to work in pursuit of economic vitality, ecological sustainability and social well-being. It brings local experience and research based solutions together, helping New York State families and communities thrive in our rapidly changing world.
The board of directors of Orleans County Cornell Cooperative Extension hopes that the organization will continue to serve residents for another 100 years.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 8 July 2013 at 12:00 am
‘We have an obligation to proceed. This is what we were elected to do.’ Medina Mayor Andrew Meier
MEDINA The Village Board hired a consultant and formed a committee to develop a plan for the orderly dissolution of the village, an end result that ultimately will need voter approval to become a reality.
The village was awarded a $50,000 state grant in February to develop a plan to dissolve the village and fold those government services and assets into the towns of Shelby and Ridgeway.
The board tonight voted to hire the Center for Governmental Research based in Rochester to help develop the plan. CGR will be paid $55,555. The organization assisted Medina and towns of Ridgeway and Shelby with a consolidation study about two years ago. That project showed the costs of providing services could be reduced by $200,000 to $400,000 with consolidation of services, plus the state would likely give the communities $600,000 annually as incentive aid for reducing layers of government.
“We’re beyond the study phase,” said Andrew Meier, the village mayor. “I’m hopeful we can come up with a plan that will reduce the taxes and preserve the services. That will be the question.”
The board hired CGR and also formed a citizen committee to help with the plan. Don Colquhoun, the retired executive director of The Arc of Orleans County, will lead the committee. Colquhoun participated in the consolidation study.
“He has extremely good organizational skills and he is respected by the two towns,” Meier said. “He is a godsend.”
Other committee members include Cindy Robinson, a Main Street business owner and president of the Medina Business Association and the Orleans County Chamber of Commerce; Charlie Slack of Slack Insurance; Thurston Dale, a retired veterinarian; Meier; and Village Trustee Mark Irwin.
The committee and CGR could have a plan in place in six to nine months. The Village Board could then accept the plan and schedule a referendum for village residents. Town residents outside the village don’t have a say at the polls on the village’s fate.
Meier believes reducing the village’s layer of government will cut taxes for village residents. Medina has the highest combined tax rate – village, town, school and county – in the Finger Lakes region. That rate is about $54 per $1,000 of assessed property, with the village accounting for about $16 of that tax rate. Residents outside the village don’t pay a village tax.
“We have a problem in the village and the county with very high tax rates,” Meier said.
He wants to reduce the taxes for village residents to make the community more attractive for residents and businesses for years to come.
“We’re going to get at solutions, not just Band-Aids,” he said about the tax problem. “We have an obligation to proceed. This is what we were elected to do.”
The committee and CGR could look at establishing districts for police and fire protection. Those districts could extend beyond the current village boundaries so there is a bigger tax base to support those services. Meier noted many of the properties on Maple Ridge Road enjoy village services and access to the village population base of about 6,000 people without currently paying village taxes.
“It makes intuitive sense,” Meier said about lower taxes with less government layers. “Let’s flesh out the data and see where it takes us.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 June 2013 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
U.S. Rep. Chris Collins, R-Clarence, hands a proclamation to Town Supervisor Brian Napoli today in honor of the town’s bicentennial. Resident Hugh James, back left, was one of about 50 people to crowd into the town hall for the presentations.
Ridgeway Town Supervisor Brian Napoli, left, congratulates Don Marchner, Ridgeway fire chief, for the Fire Company’s award in leading the county in EMS training hours with 994.
Orleans County Legislator Lynne Johnson, right, reads a proclamation in honor of Ridgeway’s 200th anniversary. Johnson is joined by Mary Woodruff, a town councilwoman who last November became the first woman elected to the Ridgeway Town Board. Woodruff is joined by her grandchildren, Amanda and Brennan Woodruff.
Orleans Hub will have more on Ridgeway’s bicentennial later.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 June 2013 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers – State Sen. George Maziarz, right, and Ridgeway Town Supervisor Brian Napoli address a crowd today during the town’s bicentennial celebration and open house to a renovated town hall.
MEDINA – It may have a been a year late, but the town of Ridgeway celebrated its bicentennial today with speeches from politicians, awards of appreciation, reflections on the town’s history and food.
Ridgeway formed in 1812, and was named for “The Ridge,” a natural embankment that was an east-west route used by Native Americans and other travelers. Seymour Murdock was the town’s first settler in 1810, and constructed the first frame barn of heavy oak timber that still stands today, according to a proclamation about the town’s bicentennial.
The proclamation noted the town’s successful agricultural industry due to industrious farmers, excellent soils and moderate climate. Ridgeway has grown to 6,534 residents, and continues to draw people looking for opportunity, as evidenced by the influx of Amish and Mennonite families, according to the proclamation from the Orleans County Legislature.
The town postponed the bicentennial celebration until 2013, wanting to wait until about $50,000 of renovations were complete in the town hall on West Avenue, a building that hadn’t been improved much since it was built in 1979.
Horizon Builders in Ridgeway renovated the main meeting room, and put in new windows, carpets and doors. The building also received a fresh coat of paint on walls and the ceiling.
“This is the entryway of democracy, a town hall like this,” State Sen. George Maziarz said about the celebration. “A town hall like this is an investment in democracy.”
Town Supervisor Brian Napoli accepted a citation from the State Senate for the town’s 200th anniversary. State Assemblyman Steve Hawley also sent also congratulations and official commendation.
U.S. Rep. Chris Collins presented an official proclamation from Congress.
Napoli used the occasion to publicly praise Richard Nellist, the recently retired town historian who has agreed to help as a volunteer with historical efforts.
Don Marchner, the Ridgeway fire chief, also accepted a citation from Napoli and Collins for the Ridgeway Fire Company’s distinction of leading the county in EMS training hours with 994.
“That shows the dedication of everyone in the department,” Napoli said. “We’re really indebted to them.”
Orleans County Legislator Lynne Johnson also noted that Mary Woodruff, a town councilwoman, is the first woman to serve on the Town Board in Ridgeway’s history. She also was instrumental in organizing the bicentennial party.
Napoli also was praised by County Legislature Chairman David Callard, a former Ridgeway town supervisor. Callard said Napoli has worked steadily to expand public water lines and improve water quality throughout the town.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 28 June 2013 at 12:00 am
GAINES – U.S. Rep. Chris Collins, R-Clarence, will meet with local residents Saturday from 9 to 10 a.m. at The Village Inn as part of his ongoing “Coffee with Chris” events.
The Village Inn is located at 4369 Ridge Rd. The event is open to public. Collins is expected to give an update about Washington, D.C., and take questions.
He will then join Ridgeway town officials for a bicentennial celebration at the Ridgeway Town Hall. That event begins at 10:30 a.m. at 410 West Ave., Medina.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 June 2013 at 12:00 am
Town will show off renovations to Town Hall, honor citizens
Photo by Tom Rivers – Brian Napoli, Ridgeway town supervisor, stands outside the town hall, which was recently upgraded. Ridgeway will have an open house Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to noon at the building, 410 West Ave.
MEDINA – The town is inviting the public to come see renovations to the town hall on Saturday, and also to help mark Ridgeway’s 200th birthday.
The celebration will be from 10:30 a.m. to noon at 410 West Ave. Ridgeway actually reached its bicentennial last year, when contractors were working on the town building. Now that the work is complete, the town wants to show off the town hall, and mark its 200th birthday.
State Sen. George Maziarz, R-Newfane, and State Assemblyman Steve Hawley, R-Batavia, are expected on Saturday with formal proclamations in honor of the bicentennial. County Legislators Dave Callard and Lynne Johnson also are expected to help celebrate the milestone.
Town Supervisor Brian Napoli will present honorary citations to the Ridgeway Volunteer Fire Company for their work in the community and to historian Richard Nellist.
Mary Woodruff became the first woman ever to serve on the Town Board when she was appointed in March 2012. She was then elected to councilwoman last November. She will also be recognized on Saturday.
Press release, Orleans County Sheriff’s Department
ALBION – Two rollover crashes on opposite ends of the county kept Orleans County deputies busy Thursday afternoon, the Sheriff’s Department reported.
The first incident occurred at approximately 5:20 p.m., in the 3600 block of Horan Rd., in the town of Ridgeway. A 2012 Ford Taurus, operated by Zoltan M. Koleszar, 48, of Medina, was travelling north at a high rate of speed on Horan Road, when the operator lost control of the vehicle.
The car ran across the roadway and off the west side before striking a utility pole and a tree. The car then over-turned several times before coming to rest on its side.
Koleszar, the sole occupant, refused medical treatment at the scene but later complained of back and neck pain during the arrest process and was transported to Medina Memorial Hospital. He faces driving while intoxicated and other traffic charges and will appear in Town of Ridgeway court at a later date.
The incident was investigated by Deputies K.J. Colonna and J.J. Cole. Ridgeway firefighters and the Medina FD ambulance personnel also responded to the scene.
The second incident occurred at approximately 5:45 p.m., in the 16700 block of Fourth Section Rd. (Route 31A) in the town of Clarendon.
Emily A. Benson, 20, of Medina, was travelling west on 31A in a 2005 Ford Suburban, when she failed to negotiate a curve. The vehicle ran off the north side of the roadway, struck a mailbox, and went down an embankment, causing it to overturn several times before coming to rest upside down.
Benson, the sole occupant, was transported by Monroe Ambulance to Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester. Her injuries were non-life threatening. Benson made an admission to falling asleep at the wheel. There were no other contributing factors in the crash.
The incident was investigated by Deputy T.N. Tooley and Inv. C.L. Black. Clarendon firefighters and ambulance personnel also responded to the scene.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 18 May 2013 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers – Nicole Cooper, 14, of Medina runs through an inflatable obstacle course this afternoon at the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds in Knowlesville.
KNOWLESVILLE – About 50 youths played miniature golf, laser tag, and enjoyed bands, face painting, balloon art, an inflatable obstacle course an other events this afternoon.
The faith-based committee of the Orleans United Drug-Free Coalition put on the event for children in grades 6 through 12 today from 1 to 4 p.m.
The event was called BLAM! for bands, laser tag, and mini-golf.
Simeon Sugar, 16, of Albion mishits a putt this afternoon to the delight of his playing partners, from left: Jordan Thomas, 14, of Holley; Shay Russell, 15, Appleton; and Simeon’s twin brother, Levi.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 April 2013 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
Bradley Martin and a team of six draft horses harrow a field on Knowlesville Road this afternoon. Martin works for a Mennonite-owned dairy farm, part of a growing cluster for Amish- and Mennonite-owned businesses in the Ridgeway and Yates communities. Martin also walked the field, removing big rocks by hand.
A Brockport man is hospitalized following a farm accident in the Town of Ridgeway on April 26, 2013. The incident occurred in the 3100 block of Bates Road. Emos Jeanat was working on farm property he owns at that location. He was working on a 10-wheel hydraulic dump truck he recently purchased, when he was inadvertently pinned between the cab and the dump box.
Jeanat was extricated by Ridgeway firefighters and flown to Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester by MercyFlight helicopter. Medina FD ambulance personnel also assisted at the scene.
The incident was investigated by Deputies T.N. Tooley and J.J. Cole.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 April 2013 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
Paige Martin, 10, of Shelby holds still while a butterfly is painted on her face by Veronica Compton of Lockport. Compton worked in the face-painting booth sponsored by LynOaken Farms at the Orleans County Home and Garden Show. Paige’s 12-year-old sister Shelby, below, shows off a creature painted on her arm. The two visited the Home and Garden Show at the 4-H Fairgrounds today.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 13 April 2013 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
Bob Waters, president of the Medina Sandstone Society, signs a copy of the organization’s latest publication, “Medina, My Home Town – Fond Memories.” Waters and the Sandstone Society are among 56 vendors at today’s Home and Garden Show at the 4-H Fairgrounds in Knowlesville. In photo below, Clor’s Meat Market in Batavia employees Ryan Gugel, left, and Troy Colton prepare chicken for the concession booth in the Trolley Building.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 12 April 2013 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
Jenna Roberts sets up a display of decorative yard flags as part of an exhibit for Roberts Farm Market in Medina at the 4-H fairgrounds in Knowlesville on Friday. Roberts Farm Market is one of 56 vendors for this weekend’s Orleans County Home and Garden Show. Jenna worked with her parents, Gary and Margaret Roberts, to set up a booth with flowers and garden decorations. The show runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Besides the exhibits from vendors, there will be face painting, an obstacle course and miniature golf. Admission is $1, but is free to children 10 and younger. The event is organized by the Orleans County Chamber of Commerce.
