Press Release, AAA of Western and Central New York
File photo by Tom Rivers: These deer are pictured in March 2015 on Route 98 in Gaines, south of 104.
While any animal on the road is dangerous, deer are most often the cause of collisions. Opening Day of shotgun deer hunting season is Saturday in most areas in Western and Central New York, which will stir the deer population. This is also the height of deer mating season across the region.
AAA analyzed New York crash data and found that November is by far the peak month for deer crashes in the Empire State. In November 2016, there were 4,469 deer crashes – equivalent to one deer crash every ten minutes.
Motorists should be especially vigilant after dark. In November 2016, 83 percent of deer crashes occurred outside day-light hours. Crashes were most common from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., during the evening rush and when darkness has just set in.
“Drivers should always be on the lookout for hazards on the road, but the danger of deer increases every fall,” said Elizabeth Carey, director of public relations at AAA WCNY. “Car-deer collisions can be both deadly and costly. Drivers should pay close attention, avoid distractions and scan the road for deer when traveling on area roadways.”
New York State Police recommend that if you strike a deer, remain at the scene and call 911. An accident report can be completed by troopers if your vehicle has over $1,000 in damage or if an involved person has been injured.
AAA offers the following tips for avoiding or mitigating deer crashes:
• Scan the shoulders of the road in front of you. Deer may dash out from the shoulder or wooded areas adjacent to the road. They often travel in herds.
• Follow the speed limit. Keeping your speed down will give you more time to respond to unexpected wild-life movements.
• If a collision is unavoidable, apply the brakes firmly and remain in your lane. Swerving sharply to avoid an animal can often cause a more serious crash.
The New York State Association of Counties and the NYS Association of County Coroners & Medical Examiners created a public service announcement about the opioid crisis.
An public service campaign has been recognized with a marketing and communication award. The New York State Association of Counties and the New York State County Coroners and Medical Examiners Association teamed for the effort.
They were recognized on Wednesday at the 2018 Capital Region MARCOM Awards competition in Schenectady. This annual event recognizes excellence in marketing and communications through outstanding work in several categories.
The See the Signs, Save a Life campaign received a MARCOM Award in the video category. Four other video campaigns were finalists in this category.
After years of seeing opioid abuse devastate families and their communities, NYSAC and the NYSCCME came together in the spring of 2018 with a common goal: educating the public about the signs of opioid abuse, and getting help to those who need it before it’s too late. The associations sought to do this through a powerful video public service advertisement that didn’t shy away from the reality of the situation: opioid addiction leads to death. (View the video and related resources at www.nysac.org/opioids.)
The public service campaign, created in partnership with Trellis Marketing, ran on television stations throughout New York State, on social media channels, and was shared on local government and association websites. The campaign was also shared with residents directly by local leaders.
NYSAC and its member counties have been battling the opioid epidemic for years, through several agencies, including county social services, health departments, law enforcement, jails, 9-1-1 dispatch, district attorneys, public defenders, probation, coroners, and medical examiners.
NYSAC and NYSCCME are both currently led by Orleans County officials. Chuck Nesbitt, the county’s chief administrative officer, is president of NYSAC. Scott Schmidt, the county’s chief coroner, has been president of NYSCCME the past nine years.
“On behalf of the Association of Counties, I want to express our sincere appreciation to the MARCOM Award committee,” Nesbitt said. “This video public service announcement was designed to better inform our residents of the signs that could lead to saving a life. We’re grateful for this recognition and hope the effort to educate the public continues.”
“The far-reaching effects of a drug overdose death are devastating,” Schmidt said. “NYSCCME felt that by showing the after-effects of using these lethal substances with an ‘in-your-face’ approach, we might be able to save at least one life. We are very proud of the resulting campaign and our partnership with NYSAC and Trellis. Thank you to the MARCOM awards for this recognition. We hope that this video is seen far and wide.”
CARLTON – The New York State Department of Transportation today announced it is preparing for its annual closure of a 2-mile stretch of Lake Ontario State Parkway west of Route 98 in the town of Carlton, Orleans County.
The closure is anticipated to go into effect on Monday, Nov. 26, at 9 a.m. and last until next spring.
A detour will be in place for motorists to exit at Route 98 and take Route 18 to continue west.
The savings in de-icing materials, equipment maintenance, and in repairs to the often damaged pavement come spring is expensive and consumes many hours of manpower. Eliminating excess use of heavy plow equipment would preserve the existing infrastructure including pavement and bridges over Oak Orchard Creek.
About 800 cars travel this section every day and likely even less in the winter. The Parkway already prohibits commercial truck traffic.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 16 November 2018 at 10:39 am
Photo by Tom Rivers: County officials on April 25 break ground on a new $10 million addition to the County Administration Building. The 2019 budget includes the first debt payment of $437,629 for the project.
ALBION – Orleans County officials have put together a tentative $71,031,480 budget for 2019 that increases spending by 1.86 percent and would raise taxes by 2.51 percent.
There will be a public hearing at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 26 on the budget. That hearing will be at the Orleans County Courthouse. To see a copy of the budget, click here.
The tax levy, what the county collects in taxes, would increase by $419,921, from $17,150,323 to $17,570,244 for 2.51 percent. However, the tax rate would go up 5 cents or 0.5 percent, from $10.05 to $10.10 per $1,000 of assessed property.
Chuck Nesbitt, the county’s chief administrative officer, filed a copy of the tentative budget on Wednesday. He is the county budget officer.
“The $71 million budget recommendation continues a consistent and stable approach to investment in the county infrastructure, the organization and ongoing fiscal stability,” Nesbitt said in his budget message.
Nesbitt, county legislators and department heads wanted to maintain core county services and stay within the tax cap. The budget complies with the tax cap, leaving a $25,393 cushion under the cap, Nesbitt said.
The budget bears the burden of funding about 40 state programs, Nesbitt said. The state offers partial reimbursements for some of the programs. But the costs left to the county are a main driver in the tax levy, especially the Medicaid program.
“Counties are charged with responsibilities by New York State,” Nesbitt said. “The state then under funds these programs or doesn’t fund them at all.”
The tentative budget includes $16,662,210 to cover the nine state mandated programs, which is 95 percent of the property tax levy. The county contribution to the state programs is up $359,700 from 2018.
A 23,000-square-foot addition to the County Administration Building is under construction. A new bond payment for the project begins next year at $437,629 for that project. There are two major obligations being retired in 2020 for the courthouse and 2022 for the radio system that should begin to relieve that pressure going forward, Nesbitt said. Those two payments account for $683,693 in the 2019 budget.
The budget funds 430 positions and includes some additions. The Sheriff’s Office has added a School Resource Officer at the Kendall and Lyndonville school districts, with each district paying $100,000 for the deputy. Buildings and Grounds is adding an employee to assist with Solid Waste and Recycling as well as additional maintenance, and the District Attorney’s Office has budgeted for an additional part-time assistant DA to cover new duties related to Raising the Age of Criminal Responsibility.
In his budget message, Nesbitt notes the county continues to share some funds with the towns and villages, including $1,366,671 in sales tax, a number that has been frozen since 2001. However, county officials say many smaller counties do not share any sales tax with towns and villages. The county is budgeting for a $560,000 increase in sales tax next year, which will help absorb some of the rising expenses.
The county will pay $1.9 million for the local chargeback for community colleges in 2019. In some counties, that bill is sent to the towns.
The county will maintain funding to several outside agencies in 2019.
The Cooperative Extension receives the most funding of an outside organization at $240,000. That is the same as 2018. The organization didn’t seek an increase in 2019.
Other funded organizations include:
• The Orleans Economic Development Agency is budgeted for $190,000, up from $180,000. The EDA requested $190,000.
• Soil and Water, $92,500, same as 2018, requested $100,000
• Four public libraries, $10,000, same as in 2018, requested $42,883;
• Mercy Flight $5,000, same as 2018;
• Sportsman’s Federation, $4,000, up from $1,000, requested $4,000;
• GO Art!, $3,000, same as 2018, requested $4,000
• The Cobblestone Museum also requested $7,500 but remains out of the budget as a line item. The Legislature the past two years have approved $3,000 in end-of-the-year funding,
The budget also calls for 2 percent raises for the seven county legislators. Their pay will go from $17,778 to $18,133 for the chairwoman, $13,442 to $13,711 for the vice chairman, and $11,850 to $12,087 for the other legislators.
KENDALL – Five students competed in the American Legion’s Oratorical Conetst at the school on Wednesday. The students who competed include, seated, from left: Victoria Weed, Olivia Reed, Lizzie Sutphen, Hailee Mitchell and Noah Rath.
They are pictured with local veterans and supporters, as well as Kendall High School Principal Carol D’Agostino (left) and Katie Driesel, AP US history teacher, right. Some of the others in the photo include Charles Eberhardt, Robert Miller, John Kenney, Urb Bennett, Sharon Bennett, John Heise, Donna McGee, Alfred Pulcino III and John Pera.
Noah Rath won first place with Olivia Reed in 2nd place, and Hailee Mitchell in 3rd place. They will advance to the county competition next month in Medina.
The students need to give an 8-10 minute prepared speech on the U.S. Constitution and citizen duties and obligations to the government.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 16 November 2018 at 8:10 am
The unemployment rate for Orleans County in September was 3.7 percent, the lowest rate in nearly 20 years. It was also 3.7 percent in October 2000. The 3.7 percent rate is the lowest level for Orleans since at least 1990, according to statistics from the state Department of Labor.
The county’s unemployment rate in September 2017 was 5.2 percent. The number of people working in the county increased from 16,700 to 17,200 from September 2017 to September 2018, while the number of unemployed dropped from 900 to 700.
The unemployment rate for the county has been steadily decreasing in recent years. In Orleans, the annual average unemployment rate has declined from 9.7 percent in 2012, 9.1 in 2013, 7.7 in 2014, 6.4 in 2015, 5.7 in 2016, 5.9 in 2017 and 5.5 percent the first nine months this year.
The county’s unemployment rate was over 10 percent not that long ago. It was 11.2 percent in January 2013 and 10.6 percent in February 2013.
Statewide, the rate fell to 3.8 percent in September, down from 4.6 percent in September 2017.
Bronx had the highest unemployment in the state at 5.4 percent in September. In upstate, St. Lawrence and Allegany had the highest at 4.5 percent. Columbia County had the lowest rate at 2.8 percent.
Other nearby counties and their unemployment rates include: Genesee, 3.3; Livingston, 3.5; Wyoming, 3.2; Niagara, 4.1; Monroe, 3.8; and Erie, 3.7.
MEDINA – Some very generous students at Oak Orchard Elementary School in Medina decided to donate some of their Halloween candy to the men and women who are fighting for our freedom overseas.
“I have heard about how other schools have collected candy for Troops Overseas and I asked our principal, Mrs. Webber, if we can take on this great cause and she graciously accepted,” says third grade teacher Natalie Scott. “I was overwhelmed that the whole school joined together to help out and came up with 257 pounds of candy to send to our military!”
Mrs. Scott delivered the candy to Winning Smiles in Amherst, along with some cards the students made. Every year the dental office holds their Candy-Buy Back where they offer a $1 a pound to be able to send treats overseas to deployed troops. They drive the candy down to North Carolina for Packs4Patriots who also includes hygiene products, socks and shirts, protein bars, snack foods, coffee and cards and letters from children in care packages to brighten their day.
“This was just a great thing to do and the excitement behind all of this was just endearing,” says Mrs. Scott.
MEDINA – Thanks to the generosity of Sigmamotor Inc., in Middleport, the Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering Program at the Orleans Career and Technical Education Center has two HAAS CNC mills.
Don Heschke, owner of the company, said he felt it was important to donate the equipment so the students could continue their learning.
“This program is awesome,” Heschke said. “We have been working with them for a while and we shadow some of the students and I wanted them to explore and get out into the world with what they learn. I want to give everybody a chance to expand upon their learning and give the class some new stuff so more students can work more.”
“I am very appreciative of the donations,” says teacher Bill Rakonczay. “It is going to give my students an opportunity to work on the latest CNC machines. HAAS is made in America and a very important machine controller. It is going to get them ready to enter the workforce.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 November 2018 at 6:35 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Lucy Rivers plays Pinkalicious in the Albion Middle School show, Pinkalicious the Musical, which will be performed at 7 p.m. Friday, and noon and 7 p.m. Saturday.
She is surrounded by bees that think she is a flower. The bees include, from left: Audrey Pask, Alexis Hess and Autumn Flugel.
Pinkalicious starts the show with blond hair but her hair turns pink after eating numerous pink cupcakes despite warnings from her parents. She is shown with her brother Peter Pinkerton (Kelsey Froman), who also loves pink. They are singing “Pinkatastic.”
Danielle Wyant, in back, plays their mother who stresses about housework.
Maia Pate plays Dr. Wink who examines Pinkalicious and declares she has a case of Pinkititis, an affliction that turns her pink from head to toe. Pinkalicious is happy with the diagnosis because she loves pink.
Marli Thrash, left, and Lianna Flugel are birds that are confused when they see Pinkalicious. They bug her, thinking she is a flower.
There are 20 students in the cast and 22 in the crew in the Albion production. The musical is based on the book by Victoria Kann and Elizabeth Kann.
The show is geared to elementary school students but would be enjoyed by people of all ages, said Carrie Kozody, the director.
“It’s a very high-energy show,” said Kozody, who is leading her 43rd production for the school. “There are over-the-top expressions and emotions.”
Pinkalicious keeps eating cupcakes and she turns red. The only way out of the predicament is to eat vegetables.
“Pinkalicious learns there is such a thing as too much of a good thing,” Kozody said.
The uptight parents of Pinkalicious also learn to not fret so much.
“The parents learn just because you’re an adult you don’t have to stop having fun,” Kozody said.
Meganne Moore is one of the dancing vegetables in the show. Pinkalicious is very reluctant to eat green food.
The stage crew makes some set changes during rehearsal on Wednesday.
Tickets for the shows on Friday and Saturday are available at the door.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 November 2018 at 4:26 pm
Photo by Tom Rivers
ALBION – These members of the Albion High School Honor Society, Jessy Cruz and Kirk Ellison, rang the bell for the Red Kettle at Tops in Albion on Tuesday. The Honor Society is volunteering as bell ringers to help raise money through the Red Kettle campaign.
Community Action of Orleans & Genesee manages the Red Kettle in Orleans County and has set a $25,000 fund-raising goal this year. The agency uses the funds to help low-income residents with emergency lodging, food, clothing, some medical expenses and to avoid having their water shut off. Each person is capped at $150 through the emergency fund.
Bell ringers are needed in Albion at Tops, Save-A-Lot and Wal-Mart; in Medina at Tops; in Holley at JP’s and in the Public Square by Sam’s Diner and the Eastern Orleans Community Center; and in Lyndonville at the E-Z Shop gas station.
Community Action also has countertop kettles at other spots in Orleans County. All of the funds from the Red Kettle drive are used to help people in Orleans County. For more information about volunteering, contact one of the coordinators. In Albion, contact Michelle Figueroa, case manager at Community Action, at (585) 589-5605; In Medina, call Ronnie Barhite at 585-233-7249. In Holley, call Rachel Escobar at 585-638-6395.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 November 2018 at 11:04 am
Current zoning caps turbines at 500 feet, which is shorter than nearly 600-foot turbines sought by Apex
Photo by Tom Rivers: Town Supervisor Sean Pogue said the Town Board will consider revisions to the ordinance for wind turbines.
BARRE – The Barre Town Planning decided on Monday that the town’s ordinance for wind turbines is just fine the way it is.
The Planning Board received input from Apex Clean Energy, Clear Skies Above Barre and other residents on possible changes to the ordinance. The Planning Board was going to weigh all the comments and suggestions and make a recommendation by Jan. 1 for possibly revising the town law for turbines.
The board on Monday deemed the current local regulations to meet the needs of the community and a developer of a large-scale wind-energy project.
The Town Board, however, will now look at all the letters and comments submitted to the Planning Board, and may decide on changes, Town Supervisor Sean Pogue said during Wednesday’s board meeting.
The town law caps the turbine height at no more than 500 feet. That would be too small for Apex, which is proposing 47 turbines that would be nearly 600 feet high, at maximum tip height. The Barre turbines also would likely generate 4.2 megawatts per turbine, nearly triple the power from the models from a decade ago which were about 400 feet high.
Barre adopted its wind ordinance in 2008 when a different developer was looking at the town for a project that didn’t end up materializing. Apex has proposed some revisions to the ordinance “to modernize the technological standards of the law,” said Ben Yazman, Apex project manager.
Many Barre residents also want much far setbacks than the current town law. The current ordinance says the turbines need a property line setback of at least 1.5 times the tip height. That is for the property lines where the turbine is located.
The current ordinance also says the turbines need to be at least 1,000 feet from any existing residential or commercial building.
Apex has agreed to 1,500 foot setbacks from residential buildings. Yazman also suggests 1.5 times the tip height for setbacks from property lines for non-participating property owners, or landowners without an Apex lease.
Kerri Richardson, president of Clear Skies Above Barre, said the setbacks should be six times the turbine height. That would be at least 3,600 feet or more than a half mile for 600-foot-tall turbines.
John Metzler, a vocal critic of the project, also wants a noise ordinance to limit the sound of the turbines to 40 decibels, which is less than the 45 decibel cap right now.
Town Board member Tom McCabe said the board members have reams of information to look over.
“We got to sit down and digest them,” he said about all of the written comments and submissions. “We want to dig into some of this stuff.”
Metzler asked the Town Board to inform the community of any meetings where the board will be discussing possible changes in the zoning ordinance for turbines.
“It’s not because we want to cause trouble it’s because we care about our community,” Metzler told the board on Wednesday evening. “People first has always been our main thing.”
Press Release, New York State Association of Counties
By the end of 2018, counties across the state expect to have spent over $121 million on coroner and medical examiner services. This is an increase of 7.7 percent over 2017.
Prior to 2011, county coroners and medical examiners were reimbursed up to 36 percent with state aid from Article 6 funding to local health departments. In 2011, the State Budget shifted reimbursement for medical examiners from the NYS Department of Health to the NYS Department of Criminal Justice Services and the funding was no longer available.
“This is a quintessential state mandate,” said Stephen Acquario, executive director of the NYS Association of Counties. “Counties across the state are responsible for administering a coroner or medical examiner program. These costs used to be eligible for partial state reimbursement, but that funding has since gone away, leaving counties to make up the difference. Autopsy services are triggered when a death is unattended, the result of a car accident, suspected overdose, or suicide. While the state and counties continue to battle the opioid epidemic, costs such as autopsy and toxicology services as well as cold body storage have been on the rise. A shortage of service providers and forensic pathologists has exacerbated the problem.”
Based on these factors, NYSAC is urging the Governor and state leaders to include a 50 percent state funding match for autopsy services as part of the 2019-2020 state budget.
While autopsy costs are a fraction of the net total spent by counties on coroner and medical examiner services, state assistance will go a long way toward easing this fiscal burden on counties.
“The opioid epidemic continues to plague our communities,” Acquario said. “Every level of government needs to work together on this crisis, on all fronts – from first responders to last responders.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 November 2018 at 9:58 am
Photo by Tom Rivers: This toy tractor is decorated in lights at the Barre Town hall to promote a tractor parade on Dec. 15.
BARRE – The newly formed Barre Betterment Committee is planning a tractor parade on Dec. 15 at 5:30 p.m.
The event will start on East Barre Road at the Root Brothers cold storage building. The procession will then proceed on Route 98 to the Barre Presbyterian Church.
There the community is welcome to join in for Christmas carols, hot cocoa, cider and cookies.
“It’s just to get together to enjoy each other’s company,” Barre Town Supervisor Sean Pogue said on Wednesday during the Town Board meeting.
Th Betterment Committee formed after this summer’s Barre Bicentennial Celebration. The group wants to have more community events.
The committee welcomes participants to light up their tractors for the parade. Residents are also invited to be part of the Betterment Committee.
Kelly Dudley and Cyndy Van Lie Shout are heading the parade. For more information, contact Dudley at 746-1677 or Van Lie Shout at 590-7503
The Barre Betterment Committee has its next meeting at 7 p.m. on Nov. 20 at Van Lie Shout’s house on Route 98.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 November 2018 at 9:05 am
Richard DeCarlo resigned from post after moving to Carlton
BARRE – The Town Board has appointed Rick Root to fill a vacant town justice position.
Root was appointed to a one-year term during a meeting last week. He will begin serving as judge on Jan. 1 in a term that lasts until Dec. 31, 2019. The position will be on the ballot next November.
The board interviewed three applicants for judge. The position was vacated with the resignation of Richard DeCarlo Jr. He resigned on Oct. 1 after moving to Carlton in Orleans County.
That resignation came too late in the election schedule to have the position on the Nov. 6 ballot.
DeCarlo, a Republican, was first elected in November 2013. He won a close election, 213-207, over Root, who ran as a Democrat. Sean Pogue, the current Barre Town Supervisor, also ran for justice in that election and received 122 votes on the Conservative line.
Pogue said Root is now retired after a career in the railroad industry. Root’s late father, Pierson, also was a Bare town justice.
Root resigned as an alternate on the Zoning Board of Appeals to take the position as town justice.
ALBION – The Albion Police Department is pleased to announce it has been awarded the 2018 Community Traffic Safety Platinum Award by the America Automobile Association.
This is the eight consecutive year that the Albion Police Department has received the Community Traffic Safety Platinum Award.
The nationally recognized AAA Platinum Community Traffic Safety Award is the highest award AAA can bestow on any Police Department. It’s awarded to departments that have developed and maintained traffic safety initiatives in their communities and who have shown success in those initiatives.
The Albion Police Department has used programs such as Buckle Up New York, Selective Traffic Enforcement Program, Stop DWI , Pedestrian Crossing Safety and Awareness, Targeted School Zone Patrols and the Child Passenger Safety Seat Program to enforce vehicle and traffic laws as well as to educate and assist motorists.
Throughout 2018 the Albion Police Department conducted several targeted details that focused on specific areas of safety for both motorists and pedestrians. These details were done in non-traditional ways to increase their effectiveness. Several more details are planned using techniques that have never been done in our area and will increase awareness and effectiveness with the end goal of making our community safer.
The Albion Police Department is dedicated to making our highways and streets safer for all who use them. Throughout the holiday season we will continue our efforts by adding more patrols and details and we urge motorist to make responsible decisions.
The Holley Police Department, which is under the Albion Police leadership, was awarded the Bronze Award for the department’s efforts in traffic safety.
