Photo courtesy of Albion Police Department: Albion Police Officer Christopher Glogowski is pictured with elementary school students. He is now working out of the district as a school resource officer.
Press Release, Albion Police Chief Roland Nenni
ALBION – The Albion Police Department is pleased to announce the recent advancement in the relationship between the Albion Central School District and the Albion Police Department, with the official installment of an on-duty School Resource Officer.
Albion Police Officer Christopher Glogowski was officially appointed to the School Resource Officer position after officials from the Albion Central School District and the Albion Police Department came to an agreement regarding the funding and normal everyday duties for the officer.
Officer Glogowski has been a law enforcement officer for about three years after graduating from the Rural Police Training Academy in 2016, and was appointed to the School Resource Officer position after an interview process involving Albion Police Chief Roland Nenni, School Superintendent Michael Bonnewell as well as other Police Department and School staff.
At any given time, Officer Glogowski will be present in and around all of the Albion Central School campus, Monday through Friday, as well as a number of after school events and activities.
The Albion Police Department looks forward to the growing relationship with students, parents and school staff. The addition of Officer Glogowski is expected to be an expansion of positive police presence in the Albion schools as well as an overall asset to the Albion community.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 March 2019 at 12:01 pm
Company will propose turbines at 655 feet at highest tip height
ALBION – Apex Clean Energy intends to file an application with the state in May or June to build 33 wind turbines with a top tip height at 655 feet, making them some of the tallest structures in Western New York. (One Seneca Tower in downtown Buffalo is the tallest building in WNY at 529 feet.)
The turbines that Apex wants to build in Barre would each generate 4.8 megawatts of power or 158.4 MWs for the entire project. Apex had discussed for turbines with a 600-foot tip height for Barre that would have generated 4.2 MWs.
Getting taller turbines means they can produce more power. That also means the company won’t need to build as many. Apex was considering 47 turbines in Barre as part of Heritage Wind.
Neil Habig (left), is director of project development for Apex Clean Energy’s northeast renewable energy projects. He is joined on the panel by Ben Yaman (center), Heritage Wind project development manager; and Gregory Liberman, senior environmental project manager with Environmental Design & Research in Syracuse. He is working with Apex on many of the environmental studies.
The company held a community forum on Thursday evening at the Albion Middle School Auditorium and company officials discussed different aspects of the project for more than 2 hours. About 50 people attended the forum.
Apex would like to have the wind turbines operational in 2021, said Ben Yazman, project manager for Heritage Wind.
The project is expected to provide about $7,500 per MW to the community to offset taxes, about $1.2 million total. Lease holders also stand to receive at least $5,000 per MW, which would be about $800,000 at the minimum.
Yazman also said at least eight full-time jobs would be created with the project once construction is done.
Building the 33 turbines, running underground cables, constructing electric substations and all the other work on the project will top $200 million, said Neil Habig, director of project development for Apex Clean Energy’s northeast renewable energy projects.
Apex released this layout of the turbine locations, with most of the eastern side of town. Click on map to see it larger.
The company had a panel of experts available at the forum. They were asked many questions about the impact of the turbines on property values, shadow flicker, noise, town roads and wildlife.
Habig said numerous studies have shown turbines don’t depress property values. Because the turbines reduce town taxes, they often result in a community that is in more demand by residents, he said.
“The data shows no negative correlation,” he said. “It’s been studied extensively.”
New York is now home to about 25 wind projects, and Habig said they haven’t reduced property values in their communities.
The turbines will need a minimum wind speed of about 7 miles per hour to turn the blades and generate electricity. Habig said new technology and the taller heights allow the turbines to be financially feasible in areas that previously were thought to not have enough consistent and strong winds.
“The turbines blades are longer and don’t need as much wind to be viable,” he said.
Robert O’Neal, a managing principal at Epsilon Associates in Maynard, Mass., discussed sound impacts from turbines. He said the turbines won’t make enough noise to disrupt neighbors’ sleep.
Robert O’Neal, a sound expert for Apex, said the turbines won’t be louder than 45 decibels to the neighboring homes. That is below the threshold for when outside noise can affect a resident’s sleep, he said.
O’Neal said he has been involved with assessing noise at about 150 wind turbine projects. He said the low-frequency noise known as infrasound won’t be loud enough to cause headaches or affect health.
“Infrasound is in our homes,” he said. “It’s everywhere.”
Apex needs to provide detailed reports to the state as part of the application on many topics about health and safety, wildlife, a construction plan and other issues.
Marcel Minus is a senior energy analyst for Apex. He said shadow flicker is typically an issue for a few minutes each day, and only when it’s sunny outside. He focuses on wind flow modelling, layout design and energy production estimates for Apex. The taller turbines will produce longer shadows.
The company will be building access roads and will have to widen some town roads and increase turning radiuses. Apex will work with Barre town officials to make an assessment of the town roads before the project and then do an inventory of the condition after construction.
“We will leave them in the same or better condition that we found them,” Yazman said about the roads.
These Apex experts include Tracy Butler, construction; Robert O’Neal, sound; and James Muscato, a lawyer who focuses on the Article 10 application process through the state.
Apex also needs to have a decommissioning plan for the turbines. They are expected to last 25 to 30 years. The company needs to provide a financial security for the turbines’ removal as part of the decommissioning plan.
Tracy Butler, director of civil engineering for Apex, said the turbines would be taken down piece by piece. The top 4 feet of the concrete foundations would be jack-hammered out and soil would be put in. Access roads would also be removed and soil de-compacted so it could again be used for crops, if desired.
If Apex is sold, the project would transfer to the new owner. However, the Satte Siting Board would need to vote on transferring the project to the new owner. The same conditions for operating the project would apply to a new owner, said James Muscato, an attorney for Apex.
A video of the presentation will be available at Heritagewindpower.com. The company will also provide more answers to questions not answered at the meeting. Those answers will be on the Heritage Wind website and also posted to NYS Department of Public Service website that details correspondence and filings about the project in Barre.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 March 2019 at 10:21 am
File photo by Tom Rivers: The lift bridge in Medina is pictured in the background of this photo that shows The Big Apple, a sculpture by Richard Bannister.
The State Canal Corp. announced that the boating season for 2019 will go from May 17 to Oct. 16, and again won’t include tolls or fees.
Additionally, many locks and lift bridges will operate on demand from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. from May 17 to Sept. 11, the Canal Corp. announced on Thursday. That includes all seven lift bridges in Orleans County.
The hours of operation for the 2019 season are as follows: May 17 to Oct. 16 from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 1 March 2019 at 9:40 am
Photo by Ginny Kropf: Jonathan Incho of Medina, a member of Medina’s Masonic Lodge, pours coffee for Pete Lockner of Batavia during a Lenten fish fry last year at the Cataract Masonic Lodge in Middleport. The fish fries will again be served this year from 4:30 to 7 p.m. every Friday at the Lodge, 20 Main St.
With the arrival of Lent comes another tradition – Friday night fish fries served by several non-profits in the area.
The Millville/Knowlesville United Methodist churches and Medina United Methodist Church each put their own spin on the weekly dinners, which not only serve the community, but help put money in their coffers.
One of the longest running organizations to continue the tradition is Middleport’s Cataract Lodge No. 295 Free and Accepted Masons.
After Medina’s Masonic Lodge sold its building, its members now meet in Middleport, with plans to merge with the Middleport Lodge.
As is customary for “brothers” in the lodge, Medina Masons have long supported the Cataract Lodge by attending the weekly fish fries, and many, such as Jonathan Incho, Frank Berger and Scott Mason of Medina regularly help out with the meals.
It was 40 years ago when Leonard Shepard and F. Fred Johnson, now both deceased, organized the first fish fries as a fundraiser during the Lenten season, according to Herb Koenig of Middleport.
Robert Rook made the first custom-built stainless steel cooker to fit the stove.
The menu has not changed much since 1979, Koenig said.
Deep-fried haddock is still the most popular fish, however, shrimp and chicken have been well received.
Marge Perry’s potato salad is a side dish which people rave about. Other choices include French fries, macaroni salad and coleslaw.
For many years orange blossom ice cream was the perfect ending to the meal, but in recent years that has been replaced with a variety of homemade desserts and donuts.
The dinners are truly a community event, with volunteers from Boy Scout Troop 23 and members of the Roy-Hart National Honor Society having assisted as waitresses, waiters and table setters, much to the delight of diners.
The venue has also provided a place for Girl Scouts to sell their cookies.
Serving will be from 4:30 to 7 p.m. every Friday during Lent at the Lodge located at 20 Main St.
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo on Thursday launched a Tax Fairness for the Middle Class Campaign to make the property tax cap permanent and cut middle class taxes.
To illustrate the benefits of a permanent property tax cap, Governor Cuomo unveiled a digital tax calculator to showcase estimates of how much taxpayers have saved under the property tax cap and will continue to save over the next 10 years with a permanent property tax cap.
“New York has some of the highest property taxes in the nation and people were being taxed out of their homes until we passed our historic 2 percent local property tax cap,” Governor Cuomo said. “Now the federal government is taking us backwards and effectively increasing taxes on New Yorkers with its devastating cap on state and local tax deductions. We need to make the local property tax cap permanent, cut middle class taxes and fight SALT so that working people know we are on their side.”
In 2011, Governor Cuomo vowed to bring property taxes under control once and for all. After years of trying to cap property taxes, New York passed the first ever 2% property tax cap. Since the implementation of the tax cap in 2012, local property tax growth has averaged 1.9%, compared to 5.3% average growth from 2000 to 2010, and the tax cap has produced $24.4 billion in taxpayer savings statewide. The property tax cap changed long-term trends and the trajectory of the state.
As part of the campaign, the Governor remains committed to the phase-in of his historic middle class tax cuts. Under these reforms, middle class tax rates will drop to 5.5 percent and 6 percent, depending on income, when the cuts are fully phased in – an up to 20 percent cut in income tax rates for the middle class – and produce a projected $4.2 billion in annual savings for six million filers by 2025. As the new rates phase in, they will be the state’s lowest middle-class tax rates in more than 70 years.
Governor Cuomo also launched a nationwide Campaign for Tax Fairness following his meeting with President Trump on the devastating impact of the elimination of full state and local tax deductibility, which disproportionately impacted New York and other predominantly Democratic states.
New York has observed a decline by $2.3 billion in estimated payments of Personal Income Tax receipts in December and January. New York’s revenue loss is consistent with results for the same period in similarly situated states. The Governor has called on Congress to restore full SALT deductibility and stop the disproportionate economic attack on predominately democratic states.
Photo by Sawyer Braley: This photo was taken Thursday evening by Sawyer Braley, a 14-year-old from Carlton. He said the winter has been good for people who enjoy snowmobiling.
Today is a break from bitter cold temperatures with a high near 34, followed by another high of 34 on Saturday and then a high of 29 on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service in Buffalo.
The high temperatures will be lower after that in Orleans County. Monday will only reach 20, followed by highs of 18 on Tuesday and 20 on Wednesday.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 28 February 2019 at 4:49 pm
ALBION – Orleans County legislators on Wednesday approved a contract for up to $393,000 to design and provide technical support for a $6 million improvement project with the county’s emergency communications system.
The Legislature hired Tim Warth from Radio Technologies in Rochester to provide project management and technical services for the design and installation of the system.
Orleans County on Nov. 28 was awarded a state grant for $5,897,141 for new 180-foot-tall radio towers in Albion, Lyndonville and Kendall, as well as technology to connect separate radio systems and new radio channels to strengthen communications between multiple jurisdictions and agencies.
The project will also add radio equipment to the Holley water tower to improve coverage in the Holley area.
The project will fund software and other upgrades for the system, which serves firefighters, law enforcement, highway employees, probation and some other municipal workers in the county.
The system currently has poor coverage in the Holley area, along Lake Ontario and some other isolated locations in the county, especially in buildings with thick walls.
The county in August submitted a grant application through the 2018 Statewide Interoperable Communications Targeted Grant through the NYS Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services Office. The state is allowing a maximum of $6 million per county for the grants.
Warth, a consultant for the county with Radio Technologies, said in August that Orleans is one of 10 counties in the state identified as “in need.”
The project will also improve interoperability with neighboring Monroe and Niagara counties, allowing personnel to cross county boundaries and still have a radio signal.
The new tower in Albion will be at the Public Safety Building on Route 31. The site in Kendall hasn’t been determined for the new tower, county officials said. The Lyndonville tower will likely be on West Avenue.
The two new 180-foot-high towers in Lyndonville and Kendall would enhance coverage by the lake, and allow a lower strength signal so Orleans isn’t interfering with Canada’s system.
The county currently has towers in Shelby on Maple Ridge Road by the Medina water tank, on Countyhouse Road in Albion by the Emergency Management Office and on Route 31A by the Clarendon Highway garage.
When the upgrades are complete with the grant, the county may pursue another grant to add a tower in Carlton by the town highway building on Route 98.
Genesee/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse is very pleased to announce that it has been named one of the Best Companies to Work for in New York State for 2019 for the second year in a row. Best Companies Group analyzes employee survey data to determine what companies are selected and how they are ranked.
“We decided to participate again this year because the feedback we received last year was really helpful,” said John Bennett, GCASA’s executive director. “We continue to look for opportunities to enhance employees’ day to day job satisfaction in meaningful ways.”
GCASA will be honored at a public awards dinner to be held at the Albany Marriott on Wednesday, April 24. During the event, GCASA will learn its rank among the 26 companies in the category for small employers with 15-99 U.S. employees.
“This honor is because of our amazing employees and board of directors,” said Shannon Ford, director of Communications and Development for GCASA.
GCASA has been serving Genesee and Orleans Counties for over 40 years. Services include prevention education and outpatient and residential treatment for individuals with substance use disorders; and an employee assistance program.
Press Release, U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr., Western District of NY
Andrew Campbell
BUFFALO – U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Andrew Campbell, 32, of Albion has been arrested and charged by criminal complaint with possession of child pornography. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth R. Moellering, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, in July 2018, an individual (witness) contacted the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office after discovering a disturbing video on a desktop computer that belonged to the defendant.
The witness and Campbell lived together on and off and Campbell left the computer at the residence when he was made to vacate the residence by the witness in June 2018. The video depicted a 14-year-old girl going to the bathroom. In addition to the desktop computer, Witness 1 also turned over a laptop computer and hard drive.
A forensic analysis of the desktop, laptop, and hard drive revealed 100 image files and 20 video files that contained child pornography.
The defendant made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael J. Roemer and is being held pending a detention hearing on March 1, 2019.
The complaint is a result of an investigation by the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Randy Bower, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Loeffert.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Editor’s Note: Campbell in November was arrested by the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office for the unlawful videotaping of minor children. He was charged with two counts of unlawful surveillance in the second degree (felony) and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child. That arrest was the result of a three-month investigation by the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office and the Albion Police Department.
MEDINA – Students at the Orleans and Niagara Career and Technical Education Centers are getting ready for the Regional SkillsUSA Competition.
The competition will be held at Alfred State University in March and students from the Western New York area will be competing against one another in their fields of study at their BOCES and high schools.
Students in James Atzrott’s Culinary Arts program, at the Orleans Career and Technical Education Center, have been perfecting the three-course meals that they will be creating for their competition.
Courtney Lang of Medina, Marie Reynolds of Albion and Zach Richbart of Barker each created a plate for the presentation: appetizer, main dish and dessert.
State Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia), along with his Assembly Minority colleagues, is introducing the “Budget Blueprint for a Better NY,” a tax relief and funding package that will provide aid to students, homeowners, infrastructure needs, direct care workers, local governments and middle-class families. The enacted state budget is due April 1.
“I believe in a New York that focuses on middle-class taxpayers, students struggling to afford college, repairing our unsafe roads and bridges and giving direct care workers a living wage – not fringe political issues coming out of New York City,” Hawley said. “We have a serious exodus problem in this state of people and businesses and we should be putting every resource into making our state a place people want live and work, rather than grow up and move from. This is a comprehensive list of bipartisan priorities, and I am hopeful legislative leaders and Gov. Cuomo will join us in making these part of the enacted budget.”
Assembly GOP “Budget Blueprint for a Better NY” includes:
• Make the 2 percent property tax cap permanent
• Provide a living wage for direct care workers
• Keep the middle class tax cuts on track
• Increase funding for CHIPS
• Increase library aid
• Provide unfunded mandate relief
• Give help to small businesses
• Improve the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) and offer student loan relief
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 28 February 2019 at 11:21 am
ALBION – A man from Queens admitted in Orleans County Court today to taking $7,778 in merchandise from the Albion Walmart on Oct. 4, 2017.
Ralph Saintilus, 45, pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a stolen property in the third degree. He faces a minimum of a year in state prison and maximum of 3 years when he is sentenced in May 23.
In another case in county court today, a Churchville woman was sentenced to 1 to 3 years in state prison, including six months of shock treatment which will include drug addiction treatment.
Vanessa Trouerbach, 27, already has been in the county jail for about a year. She pleaded guilty to third-degree burglary for entering a garage on Monroe-Orleans Countyline Road on June 21, 2017. She and a co-defendant took tools. She will pay $1,000 in restitution at $50 a month, beginning two months after she is released from prison.
Trouerbach was in a diversion program but didn’t complete the program successfully.
Judge Charles Zambito said he wanted his sentence to include help for Trouerbach and her drug addiction.
Trouerbach apologized in court to the family that was victimized in the crime. She said she is committed to being a better person and would like to be a nurse.
“I’ve learned how to cope with life’s challenges,” she told the judge at sentencing.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 28 February 2019 at 9:14 am
ALBION – The Orleans County Department of Social Services will soon have a registered nurse available to help families with addiction issues, including babies born as addicts.
The county has a received a $50,000 state grant to fund a part-time RN. The nurse will be based out of the Public Health Department but will accompany DSS caseworkers on home visits.
Caseworkers are seeing more families affected by substance abuse, withdrawals issues and babies with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Those babies have mothers who drank alcohol during pregnancy.
“Our caseworkers are finding serious drug issues right before their eyes,” Tom Kuryla, commissioner of the DSS in Orleans County, told county legislators on Wednesday. “Every other day now there’s a baby born in the hospital that is an addict.”
The caseworkers aren’t qualified to assist families with addiction issues, he said. Kuryla estimated about 25 percent of the caseloads involve families with drug issues.
Orleans and other counties have been pressing the state for help with the problem the past five years. Kuryla would like to see a longer funding commitment from the state on the issue. The $50,000 grant is for one year.
The RN will work with families to develop plans to treat the addictions, including for the babies.
The RN also can educate families on other important issues, including immunizations, lead safety and how to fight chronic health issues, said Brendan Bedard, director of community health services for the Public Health Department.
Lynne Johnson, chairwoman of the Orleans County Legislature, praised DSS and Public Health for working together on the issue.
“What a great tool for Orleans County in our tool belt against the opiate crisis,” she said.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 28 February 2019 at 7:52 am
ALBION – Bigger recycling carts are headed to Orleans County. The County Legislature on Wednesday approved spending $776,500 for 15,444 recycling carts.
The new carts, at $50.28 each, will hold 96 gallons. The county is leasing them from Rehrig Pacific Company of Erie, Pa.
The county will make a $400,000 down payment on the recycling carts, and will then make three annual payments of $134,720. The state is expected to pay half of the costs for the new recycling totes. Residents won’t be directly billed for the new recycling containers.
Photo by Tom Rivers: The smaller recycling bins will be replaced by much larger totes this year.
The switch to the larger carts will make it easier for Modern Disposal to pick up recycling, and should hold off increases in the costs for picking up garbage and recycling for the next few years, county officials said.
The new totes are expected to be in place by July 1. The county and Modern will have public information meetings before July to prepare residents for the change.
County Legislator Ken DeRoller, R-Kendall, said the county’s recycling rate is currently only 20 percent. That is a low number and he wants to see it go up. Part of the education effort will be encouraging residents to recycle more plastic, paper and metal materials.
Residents currently use recycling bins that are emptied weekly by Modern. The company has two employees per truck, with a driver and another employee grabbing and emptying the bins. It takes about a minute for each stop in the county.
The 96-gallon totes will have covers. Those totes can be grabbed by a mechanical arm, lifted up and emptied into the recycling truck.
Fred Miller, D-Albion, was the only legislator to oppose the agreement for the new recycling carts on Wednesday. Miller thinks the bigger size will be “cumbersome” for many residents. He wanted to look at some other options.
The change to the bigger carts will allow Modern to staff each recycling truck with one employee. The company can also speed up the collection effort, spending an every of 12 seconds per stop. The company will pick up the recycling every two weeks, instead of weekly, once the totes are in place.
“We’re saving the county substantial money,” DeRoller said about the bigger recycling totes.
Residents in 2018 paid $212 for annual garbage and recycling collection. The cost will stay about that price for the next few years with the recycling change, said Chuck Nesbitt, the county’s chief administrative officer.
Without the change, the county would have faced a 10 to 15 percent increase, he said. The County Legislature in October approved a new five-year contract with Modern for garbage and recycling collection. The annual cost is $3,001,495 with the current system of weekly recycling, but drops to $2,707,160 when the new system is fully phased in with the larger recycling totes.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 27 February 2019 at 9:12 pm
Orleans County officials hope Lake Ontario doesn’t turn destructive to property along the southshore this year.
Two years ago the lake was much higher than normal, especially in the spring, and the high waters eroded big chunks of backyards and shoreline.
Many property owners are still waiting to put in stronger breakwalls and other protections to safeguard their land, said Dale Banker, the county’s director of emergency management.
He said the lake levels are up about 15 to 16 inches above the average for this time of year. In 2017 there was record rainfall in the spring which caused the lake to rise well above average.
County officials also fault Plan 2014, which was approved by the U.S. and Canadian governments, for the rising waters two years ago.
There is a supply of sandbags and aquadams – tubes filled with water – that can be deployed to help protect property if the lake turns destructive, Banker said.
The current lake level is a concern for the southshore emergency management officials, he told county legislators this afternoon.
“We’re watching it,” he said. “If it stays a foot and a half higher than usual, we’ll get our rear ends handed to us again.”
