NEWS FEEDS
Here are the most viewed stories on the Watertown Daily Times Web site for the week of Jan. 31-Feb. 6, 2010:
Top news:
- 1. Massena teen dies when car hits pole (11,295 views)
- 2. Son evicts parents from home
- 3. Two restaurants in Colton area closed, for sale
- 4. Hannawa Falls pets saved after 8 days on island
- 5. Malpractice lawsuit filed in woman's 2008 death
Top sports: Do over: Spartans, Vikings at odds
Top breaking news: Jefferson County legislators approve Galloo Island wind farm
Top letter: Demand more from wind developer
Top editorial: Ignore China
Top blog post: Who's playing politics?
Over the weekend, Cape Vincent officials spent about 10 hours working on their wind turbine zoning law. They had a briefing on sound with William J. Elliot, senior consultant for Cavanaugh Tocci Associates, Sudbury, Mass., on Friday, followed by hashing out sound and setback requirements in the law on Saturday.
Like his boss, Gregory C. Tocci, Mr. Elliot talked about the sound study conducted by Hessler Associates Inc., Haymarket, Va. Almost a year ago, Mr. Tocci told Clayton’s wind committee that the sound analysis connecting wind speed to turbine noise was inappropriate because of the method of sampling and the loose correlation between the data.
Mr. Elliot conveyed the same information on Friday. In Cape Vincent, Hessler had four sound monitoring stations and their measurements were compared with wind speed data collected at a different site at different heights. Hessler then picked a wind speed of 6 meters/second, when a turbine would be spinning, to find an average background sound level. The average of the data points at that speed was 37 decibels.
In evaluating the study, Cavanaugh Tocci eliminated the wind speed data and just looked at the sound levels, which showed a background noise level of 25 decibels.
For reference, a difference of 10 decibels represents a doubling or halving of sound as perceived by humans.
What adds flavor to pork and is also used to clear road of slush and other winter detritus?
Salt, and it appears the city is spending a lot less on it this year compared to last.
Public Works Superintendent Eugene Hayes will provide the City Council with an update tonight on the city's salt usage this winter.
Here is a comparison of what the city is facing to date this winter compared to last season:
| 2008-09 | 2009-10 | |
|---|---|---|
| Inches of snow | 165 | 67 |
| Cost of salt per ton | $129.68 | $59.49 |
| Cost of purchased salt | $271,269 | $115,072 |
| Cost to haul snow | $40,820 | $7,600 |
While a memo from Mr. Hayes to the City Council, included in tonight's work session agenda, doesn't specifically address the amount of salt the city has used to clear roads this winter, it does state: “To answer the questions of why we have used as much salt as we have, it is because of the number and frequency of minor/nuisance events (less than 2 inches) experienced…It requires the same amount of de-icers to address a one or two-inch snowfall as it does a 10-inch snowfall.”
When signing a contract with a salt provider, the city must also agree to purchase a minimum amount of material. In the past few years, that has equated to about 2,000 pounds of salt.
Look in the Times this week for an in-depth look at the weather and how it is affecting Public Work departments.
CAPE VINCENT — The town officials working on a zoning law amendment for wind power development will meet with an acoustic engineer from Cavanaugh Tocci Associates, Sudbury, Mass., at 1 to 4 p.m. Friday at the Cape Vincent Fire Hall, Broadway Avenue.
The group will try to finish fine-tuning the law at 9 a.m. Saturday at the fire hall.
After the Lewis County Legislature’s second meeting of the year, the group still doesn’t have a vice-chairman.
In fact, the matter wasn’t even brought up at Tuesday evening’s meeting.
To recap the situation, Rick Lucas, who has served as vice-chairman for the past two years, was the choice of the eight-man Republican caucus to retain that post this year.
However, at the board’s January organizational meeting, Republicans Jerry King and Charlie Fanning joined the board’s two Democrats, John Boyd and newcomer Paul Stanford, in opposition to that nomination, choosing to support Mr. King instead.
And Pat Wallace was unable to attend the meeting since he was undergoing cancer treatments in New York City.
That meant that only five legislators supported Mr. Lucas’ appointment, while six votes are needed for passage on the 10-member board.
On Tuesday, Mr. Wallace again unable to attend the meeting, and Legislator Mike Tabolt, who voted for Mr. Lucas back in January, was out recovering from recent heart surgery.
Mr. Lucas indicated today that the vice-chairman issue wasn’t brought up primarily because of the missing board members.
So, the position — which is really only needed if the chairman is unable to oversee a meeting or perform his other duties — will stay unfilled until at least the legislators’ March 3 meeting.
And, barring a change of heart, that likely will only happen if Mr. Wallace adds his vote to the Lucas side.
Of course, six legislators could also choose to get behind a third candidate, but that obviously hasn’t happened yet. Stay tuned.
Jefferson County administration is preparing for a large crowd at tonight's Board of Legislators meeting. The board will consider the proposed payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for Galloo Island Wind Farm.
Legislators considered moving the meeting, but that requires making a resolution a month in advance, County Administrator Robert F. Hagemann III said this afternoon.
So, similar to the meeting in January, extra chairs will be brought into the board's chambers on the second floor. And overflow will be put in the hall on the first floor.
“We'll do it to the extent that everybody is comfortable,” Mr. Hagemann said. “We can only accommodate as many as we possibly can without putting people at risk.”
The meeting will be video-streamed to the first floor. In January, there was a problem with feedback because the audio had a delay compared to what was said upstairs. That will be corrected by closing the chamber doors when it is filled to capacity.
“It's commendable that so many people want to become involved in a public policy issue,” Mr. Hagemann said.
Two legislators will miss the meeting: Gino M. Zando, R-Deferiet, for health reasons and Robert D. Ferris, R-Watertown, for travel. The resolution still needs a majority of the board, or eight ‘aye' votes, to pass.
The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at the board's chambers on the second floor of the county's historic courthouse, 195 Arsenal St.
The state's Empire State Development Corp. launched its new Web site Monday, reorganized to streamline design and improve access to information in order to best serve the agency's constituents.
The new site features a section on “Why New York,” highlighting information on the high-tech economy and industry clusters; on “Business Programs,” listing incentive, grant and loan programs; new regional office pages and updated international, minority and women-owned business enterprise and small business sections.
The old site was www.nylovesbiz.com.
The state Civil Service Commission found that the Jefferson County Department of Human Resources has administered the civil service appointment process so that it is “generally in compliance” with the Civil Service Law and Rules.
The review, which covered September 2005 to September 2008, found that the merit system generally is administered properly and consistently. The review identified several issues in need of correction. They included a practice of improperly declaring individuals who had not responded to a canvass for one position ineligible for consideration for subsequent position openings. In addition, proper documentation of qualifications was not obtained before appointments were made to certain positions.
The commission periodically conducts reviews of local jurisdictions to ensure that the merit system is administered according to the law. Jefferson County received a score of 66 out of a possible 100 for compliance.
The Jefferson County Department of Human Resources has jurisdiction over a total of 2,800 employees: 922 are employed by the county, 344 by towns, 279 by villages, 1,229 by school districts and 26 by special districts. Of these, 981, or 35 percent, are in the competitive class and are selected by competitive examination.
The report identified nine corrective actions that need to be taken. The State Commission recognized corrective actions already underway and directed submission of a follow-up report by February 28, 2010.
“Municipal civil service commissions generally are dedicated to implementing the Civil Service Law and Rules in a credible, trustworthy, fair, and efficient manner, despite limited resources,” said Civil Service Commissioner Nancy G. Groenwegen. “The New York State Department of Civil Service will help them in every way possible to accomplish this goal.”
You can review the New York State Department of Civil Service's complete report here.
A new discount store for Stateway Plaza on Arsenal Street will open around April 14.
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Harrisburg, Pa., signed a lease last week to occupy part of the former P&C Foods in the plaza.
“It’s a great location,” said Mark L. Butler, president and chief executive officer of Ollie’s, Harrisburg, Pa. “We will help revitalize the center.”
The store is expected to employ 50 to 60 people, Mr. Butler said. The company will hold a job fair in the next few weeks.
“Watertown appears to be a good community and the workforce is tremendous,” he said.
The store will take up about 31,000 square feet. Stateway Shopping Plaza LLC, Montreal, owns the plaza.
According to its Web site, the regional chain has 80 stores in eight states. Other stores in New York include New Hartford, Cicero and DeWitt.
The long-waged debate over opening roads to all-terrain vehicles is a little clearer now, thanks to the town of Lyonsdale.
Article 2405, Section 1 of the state Vehicle Traffic Law says municipalities may open roads to ATVs “when in the determination of the governmental agency concerned, it is otherwise impossible for ATVs to gain access to areas or trails adjacent to the highway.”
More than a decade ago, many towns decided to open all their roads to ATVs using a broad interpretation of this statute. Many of those laws are still on the books, having lasted well beyond the six-year statute of limitations to challenge them.
However, ATV detractors began to challenge some town laws in state Supreme Court, and several have been thrown out, with judges suggesting more specific justification and research into environmental impact was needed. This region has been the hotbed for such lawsuits, with Judge Demarest in St. Lawrence County and Judge McGuire in Lewis County handling the bulk of them.
Which brings us to Judge McGuire’s recently released decision to dismiss a year-old law opening 10 miles of town of Lyonsdale roads to ATVs.
The judge ruled that the town didn’t provide enough specific justification for opening each specific road nor conduct an adequate environmental review.
This decision discusses V&T law more extensively than prior ones did. It advocates a fairly strict interpretation, suggesting towns should open the minimum length of road segments needed to get from one trail area to another and mostly refrain from road-to-road connections.
On the flip side, the judge does note that there is no specific road length specified in state law and says the town could argue that an overriding safety issue (like establishing a safe stretch of road for parking) necessitates road-to-road connections, so long as it is well documented.
To review the full, 40-page decision, click here.
On a side note, Lyonsdale Town Councilwoman Nancy O’Brien-Dailey, who brought the lawsuit against the town, successfully argued her case without the services of a lawyer.
NAUMBURG — Several fundraisers — including a dinner and auction this weekend — are being planned to help fund a Lewis County mission group's relief efforts in Haiti.
A spaghetti dinner will be held from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday in the Naumburg Mennonite Church fellowship hall on Route 410 to benefit Son Light Missions Lacolline Inc.
The food is being provided by New York City area restaurateurs, including Haitian native Demitrus Moustakes.
The cost is a donation.
An auction will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at the neighboring River Valley Mennonite School, with a preview set for 9 a.m.
Anyone willing to donate items for the auction may contact auctioneer Scott D. Zehr at 222-6796 or Paul L. Mast at 378-8498.
Businesses with no product to donate may agree to match the gross proceeds from the auction or make some other cash donation, Mr. Zehr said.
There will be no administrative charges, and all proceeds will go directly to Haiti, he said.
Further details on the auction have been posted on the Auction Zip Web site.
Lighthouse Restaurant on Utica Boulevard in Lowville is hosting a spaghetti dinner from 4 to 8 p.m. Feb. 9, with all proceeds going to Son Light Missions.
The local mission group, which operates a mission compound in the Lacolline Valley, about 85 miles west of the capital city of Port-au-Prince, has been working to send tents and food to Haiti in the wake of the earthquake there earlier this month.
Mark S. Purcell, owner of Purcell Construction Corp., Watertown, has volunteered to buy tents and fly them from Florida to the impoverished island nation.
A rental truck full of food and supplies was sent from the area on Saturday, and plans are to send another truckload, Mr. Zehr said.
Food items like noodles, rice and oatmeal — “stuff that doesn't weigh a lot but makes a good meal” — are good choices for shipping, as are medical supplies, cloth diapers and baby formula, he said.
Anyone seeking more information on the supply drive effort may call Melvin A. Roes at 523-0096.
Many other north country groups are holding fundraisers to benefit the relief effort in Haiti:
- Haircuts for Haiti will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday and Feb. 7 at the Arcade Barber & Beauty Shop, 1 Public Square, Watertown. All proceeds will go to Haiti relief.
- Bottles For Haiti — An account has been set up at the ARC on State Street in Ogdensburg for can and bottle returns through Feb. 7. Recyclable collection drives will be held on Saturday and Feb. 7 in the Ogdensburg area; to schedule a pickup, send an e-mail to bottlesforhaiti@hotmail.com.
- Pennies For Port-au-Prince — Pennies or other change can be dropped off at any of the four St. Lawrence County Newspapers offices or any branch of the St. Lawrence Federal Credit Union through Friday.
- The Brass Horse Grille in Hogansburg will host a benefit fish fry luncheon starting at 11 a.m. Friday. Takeout and delivery is available by calling Ronni or Jami at 1 (518) 358-3365 or 1 (518) 358-6122. It will also hold a DJ'ed dance that night from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. at a cost of $3 per person or $5 per couple. All admission proceeds and a portion of the drink sales will go to the relief effort.
- Aubuchon Hardware is collecting baby supplies to send to God's Littlest Angels, an orphanage in Haiti. Those wishing to contribute may drop off baby supplies at any Aubuchon location or elect to have $1, $5 or $10 added to their bill.
WPBS-TV, Watertown's public television affiliate, will air a discussion on the proposed payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for Galloo Island Wind Farm.
Jefferson County's Legislature Chairman Kenneth D. Blankenbush, R-Black River, and Watertown Mayor Jeffrey E. Graham will be the guests. WWNY-TV7's Jeff Cole will moderate the discussion.
“We hope it's informational for people,” said Lynn Brown, WPBS director of programming and development.
The half-hour program, "North Country Informed: the PILOT Program at Galloo Island," will air 8:30 p.m. Friday, 7 a.m. Sunday and 9 p.m. Monday.
Mr. Graham has been critical of the prospect of losing sales taxes from the project. The developer, Upstate NY Power Corp, could avoid paying sales and mortgage recording taxes through a sale-leaseback agreement with the Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency. The developer asked for the sale-leaseback agreement, but there's been no move towards approval by JCIDA.
Here are the most viewed stories on the Watertown Daily Times Web site for the week of Jan. 17-23, 2010:
Top news:
- 1. Amish families exempt from insurance mandate (5,280 views)
- 2. Monster muskellunge caught in St. Lawrence
- 3. Crane graduate advances in 'American Idol' auditions
- 4. Canton man hit by car
- 5. Case work: Give students reason to read
Top sports: Rautins shoots down doubters
Top breaking news: Ogdensburg fears prison closure
Top letter: Wordsmiths distort abortion debate
Top editorial: Wind PILOT
Top blog post: Farm Bureau, Aubertine slam "compromise" version of farm workers bill
Part of the former P&C Foods in Watertown’s Stateway Plaza may soon be filled with a discount merchandise store.
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Harrisburg, Pa., is signing a lease today, said Jeffrey A. Foster, property manager for Longley Jones Management, Syracuse.
Occupancy could happen sometime in the next two months.
According to its Web site, the regional chain has eighty stores in eight states. Other stores in New York include New Hartford, Cicero and DeWitt. They offer “closeout, surplus and salvage merchandise.”
Stateway Shopping Plaza LLC, Montreal, owns the plaza. The property management firm has been sprucing up the floors and walls so Ollie’s can install fixtures.
Mr. Foster said other new business possibilities in the plaza include a fitness center and a restaurant.
To send in a business tip, e-mail me.
Upstate NY Power Corp is not a foreign entity.
That was another point in the memo to the Board of Legislators from Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency on Tuesday explaining the proposed payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement.
Upstate NY Power Corp, the developer of the proposed Galloo Island Wind Farm, is funded by Pattern Renewables LP, San Francisco. In June, previous backer Babcock & Brown North America sold their renewable energy projects to Riverstone Holdings LLC, New York City. Pattern develops those projects.
According to its Web site, Riverstone has approximately $17 billion under management across six investment funds, including the world’s largest renewable energy fund. Riverstone conducts buyout and growth capital investments in the midstream, exploration & production, oilfield services, power and renewable sectors of the energy industry. With offices in New York, London and Houston, the firm has committed approximately $12.7 billion to 64 investments in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.
“Over the past thirty years, Riverstone's principals have been instrumental in creating several of Wall Street's preeminent global energy and power investment banking franchises,” the Web site says.
Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency sent some more information on the development of a proposed payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for the planned Galloo Island Wind Farm yesterday.
The written responses tried to answer concerns county legislators expressed on Jan. 5 when they didn't vote on the PILOT.
I don't see much new in the five-page answer, but there are a few details that may be interesting.
I reported a little while back that the developer, by taking advantage of state and federal benefits, must enter a project labor agreement with local unions to guarantee a certain proportion of work go to local labor.
Legislators asked for guarantees on local labor. JCIDA wrote that once the county Board of Legislators approve the PILOT, “the Agency will be in a position to approve the undertaking of the project on a schedule and timetable to by determined” by the developer.
Then JCIDA and Upstate NY Power Corp, the developer, would enter a project development agreement, giving the developer two years to secure approvals and funding to begin.
“In addition to memorializing the form of PILOT Agreement and other Agency documents relating to the Project, the PDA also includes affirmative requirements for UNYPC to actively seek to employ, both during the construction phase and during full-time employment for the Project, laborers, vendors and suppliers who reside in Jefferson County,” the agency wrote.
Legislators also asked that the uniform tax-exempt policy for all wind farms be finalized, so that they don't have to give the approval for any one project.
In Tuesday's memo, JCIDA said the policy “will be circulated for adoption in coming months.”
But because the developer formally applied for a PILOT before the policy revisions began and asked for a speedy response, JCIDA decided to move ahead with just the Galloo Island PILOT.
JCIDA “contemplates that this Project will be the only wind-energy project to come before the Board of Legislators for approval of an Agency request for deviation.”
Safeguards on the PILOT payments will include a year's worth of payments, which begin at $2.14 million, to be held in escrow or secured by irrevocable letter of credit. That gives all taxing jurisdiction a full year's payment. There will also be a PILOT mortgage starting at $6 million, allowing JCIDA to “protect the interests of the taxing jurisdictions by foreclosing on one half billion dollars' worth of equipment.”
North country schools would receive a combined $16.98 million less in 2010-11 than they did this academic year under Gov. David A. Paterson's proposed budget.
The average 4.5 percent cut could force boards of education to exhaust reserves or consider cuts to core programs, said Jack J. Boak Jr., superintendent of the Jefferson-Lewis Board of Cooperative Educational Services.
“Superintendents and school boards will likely be looking at things that aren't mandated by law: elective course offerings, athletics and musical programs,” he said. “I'm sure they'll try to preserve the core academics. But in some cases, that may not even be possible.”
Mr. Boak was also disheartened by the Mr. Paterson's plan to reduce universal pre-kindergarten program aid, to use federal stimulus funds to offset aid reductions and to eliminate funding for teacher centers, such as the Jefferson-Lewis Teacher Center.
“School districts will be very lucky if they can maintain the status quo, and that will be almost impossible for some districts,” he said.
Mr. Paterson also proposed cutting $95 million to SUNY senior colleges and an additional $57 million to the state's community colleges during the next fiscal year.
SUNY Potsdam and SUNY Canton officials did not have exact figures Tuesday on how the governor's proposal would impact their campuses, except to say that cuts appear to be in line with what they had anticipated.
“It's as bleak as we thought,” said Deborah L. Dudley, Potsdam's spokeswoman. College officials estimated that they will lose a little less than $1 million from the state under the governor's budget, in addition to last year's cuts. The school recently released a “worst case scenario” list of 59 full-time equivalent positions that it may have to eliminate this year, in order to make up for a $7.5 million budget shortfall.
SUNY Canton officials say that the campus is likely to lose about $450,000 from the latest cuts in state contributions, and will have about $3 million less to work with as it puts together its 2010-11 budget. The college has cut costs and dipped into savings to make up for the loss of revenue, but an increasing number of students have helped buoy the budget with extra tuition dollars.
“I don't think there's ever a good time for cuts, but we're fortunate that we've prepared for them and this does come at a time when our record enrollments will help us manage the transition,” said Randy B. Sieminski, Canton's spokesman.
There was a potential bright spot, college officials said: Mr. Paterson's proposal to allow SUNY to raise tuition without legislative approval. The reform could provide more financial flexibility, they said, and offset some of the pain from slashing budgets.
Assemblywoman Addie J. Russell, D-Theresa, said she did not agree with Mr. Paterson's plan to give SUNY an “unchecked ability to increase their tuition.”
“The authority partially needs to stay with the Legislature,” she said. “I don't want to get into a situation where our average family in New York can't send their child to the college around the corner.”
Sen. Darrel J. Aubertine, D-Cape Vincent, said he had not seen enough details on the tuition proposal to offer his opinion. But he said it was “not fair” to the students if the Legislature went five to 10 years without increasing tuition, only to increase it by upwards of 50 percent.
Both legislators cheered Mr. Paterson's proposal for a four-year moratorium on creating new unfunded mandates for local school districts.
“That was the one shining point in the governor's proposal,” said Mrs. Russell.
Mandate relief, Mr. Aubertine, would help mitigate the negative impact of any cut that is enacted when the Legislature approves the budget this spring.
“Most of the school districts were bracing for this kind of news,” said Mr. Aubertine of the proposed cuts. “But one of the reasons that I and other legislators lobbied not to have mid-year cuts was so fund balances would not be depleted this year and so that they could start at the beginning of the budget cycle.”
In total, Mr. Paterson's $134 billion proposal addresses a $7.4 billion deficit. It increases spending by 0.6 percent. The Legislature traditionally adds 1 percent to 2 percent to the state budget before enacting it.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
The following is the 2010-11 school aid proposed by Gov. David A. Paterson for the 34 school districts in Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties and the percentage change from this fiscal year:
Jefferson County
- Alexandria: $3,724,338, down 9.07 percent
- Belleville-Henderson: $3,428,701, down 9.47 percent
- Carthage: $28,640,773, down 4.63 percent
- General Brown: $10,689,660, down 9.53 percent
- Indian River: $38,273,780, down 0.64 percent
- LaFargeville: $1,075,669, down 2.06 percent
- Lyme: $2,557,697, down 11.39 percent
- Sackets Harbor: $2,839,469, down 10.67 percent
- South Jefferson: $17,584,243, down 8.14 percent
- Thousand Islands: $6,638,203, down 10.29 percent
- Watertown: $33,831,819, down 3.13 percent
Lewis County
- Beaver River: $8,004,251, down 3.85 percent
- Copenhagen: $5,910,917, down 3.62 percent
- Harrisville: $4,388,195, down 5.02 percent
- Lowville: $12,967,536, down 5.16 percent
- South Lewis: $12,058,123, down 5.10 percent
St. Lawrence County
- Brasher Falls: $11,474,733, down 4.78 percent
- Canton: $13,213,139, down 7.18 percent
- Clifton-Fine: $3,845,979, down 7.58 percent
- Colton-Pierrepont: $1,953,393, down 12.27 percent
- Edwards-Knox: $8,744,961, down 0.10 percent
- Gouverneur: $21,360,112, down 3.15 percent
- Hammond: $2,944,284, down 8.80 percent
- Hermon-DeKalb: $5,188,618, down 3.99 percent
- Lisbon: $6,103,509, down 4.30 percent
- Madrid-Waddington: $7,430,066, down 4.81 percent
- Massena: $21,486,940, down 3.44 percent
- Morristown: $4,578,987, down 4.41 percent
- Norwood-Norfolk: $11,450,519, down 1.59 percent
- Ogdensburg: $20,105,184, down 2.12 percent
- Heuvelton: $7,109,752, down 0.82 percent
- Parishville: $5,149,506, down 4.81 percent
- Potsdam: $11,285,981, down 9.80 percent
After a close vote for a wind zoning ordinance was knocked down in state Appeals Court at the end of December, the Lyme Town Council will need to figure out what the next step with the law will be.
I had a brief conversation with Supervisor Scott G. Aubertine this morning and he said the council will talk about the best group to handle some revisions to the law that was passed May 6, 2008. It could be the council or include members of the planning board, like the last committee that worked on the law, or members of the zoning board of appeals, which would actually use the law in site plan reviews.
The supervisor said he didn’t think a lot of changes are necessary.
The council will next meet Feb. 10.
Here are the most viewed stories on the Watertown Daily Times Web site for the week of Jan. 10-16, 2010:
Top news:
- 1. Amish families exempt from insurance mandate (324,076)
- 2. Ogdensburg man arrested three times in three days
- 3. GM plant too tainted to save
- 4. Massena liquor store robbed at knifepoint
- 5. Drug dealer gets four years for cocaine possession.
Top sports: Five players reach first-team mention
Top breaking news: Shapiro Award goes to Plummer (Odd, seeing as that was breaking news on Dec. 8.)
Top letter: Hold Hirschey to his campaign promises
Top editorial: Palin should not be dismissed so readily
Top blog post: For Southern smokehouse fare, head up north
For those who can never read enough about wind power, I just finished looking at the Clayton Planning Board recommendations for zoning regulations on personal wind turbines. The commercial-scale turbine regulations were held up while waiting for this piece.
There can only be one turbine per parcel. Total height cannot exceed 125 feet and 50 kilowatts. Noise cannot exceed 40 decibels of audible noise at the property line. The blades should be at least 40 feet above the highest structure or tree within a 500-foot radius and 30 feet above the ground.
The setbacks are:
- Four times the tower height plus rotor diameter from property lines
- One and a half times the tower height plus rotor diameter from public utility lines
- One and a half times the tower height plus rotor diameter from a road if it cuts through the property
- 15 feet between guy wires and property lines
- Neighboring island properties can establish measurements if land space does not allow for normal setbacks on island property
Among the recommendations, applicants who want to install a small wind turbine must show:
- The proposed tower height is not above manufacturer's recommendations
- The electrical components conform with the state's building code
- The local electric utility knows the applicant will connect to the state's grid system if that is the intent
- A visual impact analysis using techniques such as helium balloons raised to the height of the tower
- Site plan with a plot plan showing setback distances from property lines, roads, utility lines and rights-of-way, existing structures on applicant and adjacent properties, guy wires, trees and sound levels at property lines and existing structures
- Wind turbine and meteorological tower foundation and design stamped by a state-licensed professional engineer
- List of applicable permits and safety standards
Clayton Supervisor Justin A. Taylor said on Monday that the town's attorney is incorporating the small windmill recommendations into a draft zoning amendment, which may be returned to the Town Council in February.
The proposed Beekmantown and Hardscrabble wind farms were awarded contracts under the state's Renewable Portfolio Standard program to produce power. Beekmantown, being developed by Penn Energy Trust LLC, is in Clinton County and Hardscrabble, being developed by Iberdrola Renewables, is in Herkimer County.
Here's a story on the Hardscrabble award and the governor's press release.
The Renewable Portfolio Standard program is run by the state Energy Research and Development Authority. A spokesman there said the contract for the energy production program lasts 10 years. The cost per megawatt for the state is still under negotiation and varies in each contract based on the bid the developer submits and the type of energy it is.
Here are the most viewed stories on the Watertown Daily Times Web site for the week of Jan. 3-9, 2010:
Top news:
- 1. City site will treat mining fluids (6,282 views)
- 2. Hacketts sale to clear way for new merchandise
- 3. Ogdensburg standoff ended by chat, cigarette
- 4. Eatery closed, equipment moved as owner awaits sentencing
- 5. Fire damages ex-chief's home
Top sports: WHS on probation after state violation
Top breaking news: DOT gives $1.4M to link I-81 to Drum
Top letter: Turbine zoning laws should protect local property values
Top editorial: Fallen turbine
Top blog post: FEC says Hoffman finance reports had multiple miscues
So what’s going on with the city’s Planning Department? Two of its four members have left since Dec. 1 and its uncertain if either of them will be replaced anytime soon.
City Manager Mary M. Corriveau certainly isn’t letting on to whether new hires are in the department’s future. The last time we spoke about the subject, she simply said that City Planner Jackie Longton’s resignation hasn’t become effective yet and until then, she won’t publically discuss the department’s future.
“Well, we have a lot of vacancies in a lot of departments,” said the city manager when asked about her plans to fill the two vacancies.
Touché Mary. But not every department has lost 50 percent of its employees in such a short timeframe.
Mrs. Corriveau did let on that she will meet with the department’s members to discuss how responsibilities will be doled out in the future.
Ms. Longton – who worked on grant applications to find funding for the city’s brownfields - announced last week that she is leaving the city to move to Washington, D.C. She said the decision is purely a career move. Her resignation is effective Friday.
In November, Christine Hoffman left to spend more time with her family. She was the city’s downtown development specialist until the position was eliminated in July 2008 and her title was changed to city planner. She was essentially fired and rehired under a new title in a pair of resolutions passed swiftly by the City Council. Her resignation was effective Nov. 30.
Left standing is City Planner Mike Lumbis and City Planning and Community Development Coordinator Ken Mix.
We’ll keep a close eye on what happens to the Planning Department in the upcoming months. Budget discussions begin this spring and with the city’s cash-strapped future, it will be interesting to see what the council decides to do with the department.
Stay tuned.
Money will be the big topic tonight during the City Council’s work session – money needed to invest in aging infrastructure, money needed to further spur proposed development and money to keep the city’s fund balance in the black for the upcoming years.
Money, it seems, is something the city will not have enough of in the upcoming five years without raising taxes substantially. That is, unless major spending cuts are made.
The City Council will discuss its five-year capital plan beginning at 7 p.m. tonight. Major projects – such as rebuilding Breen Avenue and J.B. Wise parking lot and improving sewage infrastructure along Gaffney Drive – are all expected to be on the table. If the city does not have the capital funds to invest in all of the projects, which will make the list this year and which will be delayed?
City Manager Mary M. Corriveau said she will also update the council on the research being done for the Gaffney Drive sewer upgrades. This will be the first time the council gets a look at what it will take to upgrade its underground infrastructure that will allow at least two hotels and a restaurant to be built at Gaffney and Commerce Park drives. If the city does not upgrade its Gaffney Drive pump station and install a larger sewage main along the road, the hotels are dead in the water.
The city manager released a five-year budget outlook last summer that almost exemplifies the end of the Mayan’s 2012 calendar. The budget predicts minimum tax levy increases of 8 percent for the next five years. It also essentially sacks major projects, such as building Western Boulevard, delaying them past the 2013-14 budget.
The five-year outlook estimates the city's fund balance - the account it keeps as a rainy day fund - will be depleted by 2013-14, and the city will have a $2.4 million deficit.
So the basic question lawmakers will need to ask themselves is: Where’s the money coming from?
Besides some resistance from neighbors and an admission from at least one planning board member that the use doesn’t fit area, CowlCo Alloy & Metal Recycling Inc., may have at least one other stumbling block to hurdle before it fires up the furnace for its proposed smelting operation.
If the project is financed through a bank, the lender may want to know the property at 301 Pearl St. is clean, literally.
I’m being told by a City Hall staffer that the property is on the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s brownfields list and that, generally, banks may mandate that a type-2 environmental study is done prior to financing being approved for the project.
Now digging holes around the building and parking lot wouldn’t normally be a problem, but this facility is being proposed on a 14-acre lot, some of which consists of cliffs overlooking the Black River. The site formerly housed a Black Clawson foundry. As history and proximity shows, Black Clawson has a history of not taking care of its properties. A city-owned site across the street from 301 Pearl St. is currently being cleaned by the city. That cleanup was first proposed in 1999 and is scheduled to be complete this summer. That project’s cost was in the neighborhood of $600,000.
So time, and money, will tell if this project takes off. The Planning Board recommended Tuesday that the City Council approve a special-use permit for the project. The City Council will need to schedule a public hearing at its next regular meeting, Jan. 19, and could vote in the permit as early as Feb. 1.
What adds flavor to pork and is also used to clear road of slush and other winter detritus?
Salt, and it appears the city is spending a lot less on it this year compared to last.
Public Works Superintendent Eugene Hayes will provide the City Council with an update tonight on the city's salt usage this winter.
Here is a comparison of what the city is facing to date this winter compared to last season:
| 2008-09 | 2009-10 | |
|---|---|---|
| Inches of snow | 165 | 67 |
| Cost of salt per ton | $129.68 | $59.49 |
| Cost of purchased salt | $271,269 | $115,072 |
| Cost to haul snow | $40,820 | $7,600 |
While a memo from Mr. Hayes to the City Council, included in tonight's work session agenda, doesn't specifically address the amount of salt the city has used to clear roads this winter, it does state: “To answer the questions of why we have used as much salt as we have, it is because of the number and frequency of minor/nuisance events (less than 2 inches) experienced…It requires the same amount of de-icers to address a one or two-inch snowfall as it does a 10-inch snowfall.”
When signing a contract with a salt provider, the city must also agree to purchase a minimum amount of material. In the past few years, that has equated to about 2,000 pounds of salt.
Look in the Times this week for an in-depth look at the weather and how it is affecting Public Work departments.
So what’s going on with the city’s Planning Department? Two of its four members have left since Dec. 1 and its uncertain if either of them will be replaced anytime soon.
City Manager Mary M. Corriveau certainly isn’t letting on to whether new hires are in the department’s future. The last time we spoke about the subject, she simply said that City Planner Jackie Longton’s resignation hasn’t become effective yet and until then, she won’t publically discuss the department’s future.
“Well, we have a lot of vacancies in a lot of departments,” said the city manager when asked about her plans to fill the two vacancies.
Touché Mary. But not every department has lost 50 percent of its employees in such a short timeframe.
Mrs. Corriveau did let on that she will meet with the department’s members to discuss how responsibilities will be doled out in the future.
Ms. Longton – who worked on grant applications to find funding for the city’s brownfields - announced last week that she is leaving the city to move to Washington, D.C. She said the decision is purely a career move. Her resignation is effective Friday.
In November, Christine Hoffman left to spend more time with her family. She was the city’s downtown development specialist until the position was eliminated in July 2008 and her title was changed to city planner. She was essentially fired and rehired under a new title in a pair of resolutions passed swiftly by the City Council. Her resignation was effective Nov. 30.
Left standing is City Planner Mike Lumbis and City Planning and Community Development Coordinator Ken Mix.
We’ll keep a close eye on what happens to the Planning Department in the upcoming months. Budget discussions begin this spring and with the city’s cash-strapped future, it will be interesting to see what the council decides to do with the department.
Stay tuned.
Money will be the big topic tonight during the City Council’s work session – money needed to invest in aging infrastructure, money needed to further spur proposed development and money to keep the city’s fund balance in the black for the upcoming years.
Money, it seems, is something the city will not have enough of in the upcoming five years without raising taxes substantially. That is, unless major spending cuts are made.
The City Council will discuss its five-year capital plan beginning at 7 p.m. tonight. Major projects – such as rebuilding Breen Avenue and J.B. Wise parking lot and improving sewage infrastructure along Gaffney Drive – are all expected to be on the table. If the city does not have the capital funds to invest in all of the projects, which will make the list this year and which will be delayed?
City Manager Mary M. Corriveau said she will also update the council on the research being done for the Gaffney Drive sewer upgrades. This will be the first time the council gets a look at what it will take to upgrade its underground infrastructure that will allow at least two hotels and a restaurant to be built at Gaffney and Commerce Park drives. If the city does not upgrade its Gaffney Drive pump station and install a larger sewage main along the road, the hotels are dead in the water.
The city manager released a five-year budget outlook last summer that almost exemplifies the end of the Mayan’s 2012 calendar. The budget predicts minimum tax levy increases of 8 percent for the next five years. It also essentially sacks major projects, such as building Western Boulevard, delaying them past the 2013-14 budget.
The five-year outlook estimates the city's fund balance - the account it keeps as a rainy day fund - will be depleted by 2013-14, and the city will have a $2.4 million deficit.
So the basic question lawmakers will need to ask themselves is: Where’s the money coming from?
Besides some resistance from neighbors and an admission from at least one planning board member that the use doesn’t fit area, CowlCo Alloy & Metal Recycling Inc., may have at least one other stumbling block to hurdle before it fires up the furnace for its proposed smelting operation.
If the project is financed through a bank, the lender may want to know the property at 301 Pearl St. is clean, literally.
I’m being told by a City Hall staffer that the property is on the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s brownfields list and that, generally, banks may mandate that a type-2 environmental study is done prior to financing being approved for the project.
Now digging holes around the building and parking lot wouldn’t normally be a problem, but this facility is being proposed on a 14-acre lot, some of which consists of cliffs overlooking the Black River. The site formerly housed a Black Clawson foundry. As history and proximity shows, Black Clawson has a history of not taking care of its properties. A city-owned site across the street from 301 Pearl St. is currently being cleaned by the city. That cleanup was first proposed in 1999 and is scheduled to be complete this summer. That project’s cost was in the neighborhood of $600,000.
So time, and money, will tell if this project takes off. The Planning Board recommended Tuesday that the City Council approve a special-use permit for the project. The City Council will need to schedule a public hearing at its next regular meeting, Jan. 19, and could vote in the permit as early as Feb. 1.
Three days after learning the city will begin treating “flowback” fluid from a hydraulic fracture mining operation, Mayor Jeffrey E. Graham still has more questions than answers about how the city came about treating the potentially hazardous liquids.
“I just don’t know enough about it, and the fact that it was even brought up in a memo says something,” the mayor said Wednesday morning, while standing in line at the bank. “When I heard about this whole thing a few red flags went up.”
It’s safe to say the mayor and other four City Council members were caught with their heads buried in the sand Monday night after learning from City Engineer Kurt W. Hauk that the particulates in the water may not only be harmful, but could also contain small amounts of naturally-occurring radiation.
“I’m not an environmental alarmist, but he said several things that caught my attention and probably the council’s as well,” the mayor said.
City staff accepted a request last month to treat 35,000 gallons of “hydro-fracking” fluid at the Coffeen Street sewage treatment plant. While the plant can treat as much as 12 million gallons daily, the shipment raised eyebrows when the lawmakers learned it was being hauled all the way from Otsego County, roughly 180 to 200 miles, depending whether the trucks take the Thruway or Interstate 81.
The price the city is charging to treat the fetid fluids: $1,225.
The council is now asking itself whether the risks outweigh the rewards.
“Assuming this stuff is safe then, yes, we’re charging too little,” the mayor said. “We’re not taking any more if this proves to be dangerous though.”
Councilman Jeffrey M. Smith also said the city should charge more, but only if the treatment plant can effectively clean the fluids.
City sewage treatment plant Supervisor Michael J. Sligar is expected to be at the council’s Jan. 19 meeting to discuss the treatment process and how the city came about treating the hazardous fluids.
Monday night’s City Council session showed that what the group lost in the reserve of Jason R. Burto – whose term ended Jan. 1 – it picked up in the gregarious nature of Councilwoman Theresa R. Macaluso. With Monday being her first meeting, you would think she’d relax and watch events unfold.
No so.
Ms. Macaluso pitched her opinion a number of times during a 45-minute debate about the city’s ability to pay upfront for a few pieces of equipment instead of bonding for the purchases.
“Do you think I was out of line?” she asked after the meeting.
She quickly responded: “I mean, I’m going to state my opinion if it adds to the discussion.”
While Ms. Macaluso’s opponents have said she will be a rubber stamp vote for Mayor Jeffrey E. Graham, it appears she will have a very independent presence on the council. The mayor initially approached Ms. Macaluso during the summer about running for City Council.
Ms. Macaluso, who owns Brew Ha Ha, 468 Coffeen St., said she has a busy four years ahead of her. She admittedly arrives at work most mornings before sunrise and will now need burn the midnight oil on most meeting nights.
“I’m just a busy person; I like to keep moving,” she said. “I do a lot better when there are a lot of things on my plate.”
Ms. Macaluso said the skull sessions hosted in December by City Manager Mary M. Corriveau helped her learn the basic functions of City Hall and how meetings are run.
“The people who work here have a tremendous amount of talent,” she said. “There are some very smart people that work here who really care about their jobs.”
Ms. Macaluso also showed flashes of humor after the meeting. When asked about her feelings of the first meeting, she responded: “Well I didn’t get arrested, so it went well.”
The Watertown City Council, and more specifically Mayor Jeffrey E. Graham, has big issues with the economic benefits being offered to the developers of the Galloo Island Wind Farm project.
The mayor has lashed out on his WATN 1240-AM radio show, his blog and Monday night at the City Council dais against the proposed payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement because, he says, it will minimize the amount of sales tax that flows through the city.
The Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency, which crafted a 20-year PILOT for the wind farm's developer Upstate Power Corp., has been asked by the developer to abate roughly $19.6 million in sales tax while the project is being constructed. That means the city would lose out on about $4.7 million in sales tax revenues during the three years after the construction begins.
“The folks are tired of bailouts...tired of transferring of wealth through PILOTS....tired of sales tax abatements that flow straight to the bottom line of the well-to-do,” the mayor wrote earlier today on his blog, "Mayor Graham's View." “We are sick of slick lawyering to come up with tax avoidance schemes. And we are sick of being told it ‘creates jobs.' The County Legislature needs to take control.”
While the mayor has been lobbing bombs at the county Board of Legislators, his issue should be with the JCIDA.
The JCIDA - which acts at the county's economic arm - has the sole power to decide whether to offer sales tax abatement to the Galloo Island developer.
The county Board of Legislators meets tonight and may vote on the PILOT agreement that would make way for the JCIDA to offer the PILOT and sales tax abatement to Upstate Power Corp.
The legislature, however, appears to be split whether it will vote, table or send the unconventional PILOT back to the JCIDA to get redrafted. Legislators could also consider two resolutions that would protect the county in case the project shut down.
The proposed PILOT deviates from most agreements in that it pays out specific, preset percentages to municipalities, rather than being based on the proportional distribution of property taxes among the jurisdictions. Its life extends 20 years, instead of the conventional 15 years.
Thousands of gallons of water laced with potentially hazardous chemicals will make its way down Coffeen Street on Tuesday.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation has given the city the go-ahead to treat waste water at the Watertown Sewage Treatment plant from an Otsego County natural gas well that utilizes a controversial hydraulic fracturing – also known as hydro-fracturing - drilling process. The treated water would then be discharged into the Black River.
The city will treat and dispose of 35,000 gallons of “flowback” waste water generated at the Ross #1 mine located in the town of Maryland. More coverage about the well can be found here.
The hydro-fracturing process involves pumping thousands of gallons of water, sand and a mixture of chemicals into bedrock located thousands of feet below the surface. The method forces methane gas found in shale out of the rock. The methane is collected and a large amount of “flowback” then makes its way to the surface.
The water that surfaces includes a number of chemicals such as: diesel fuel, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, methanol, formaldehyde, ethylene glycol, glycol ethers, hydrochloric acid, and sodium hydroxide. Very small quantities of chemicals such as benzene, which causes cancer, are capable of contaminating millions of gallons of water. Exact contaminants in the water depend on the chemicals used by the company and natural substances found in the bedrock.
Michael J. Sligar, treatment plant supervisor, said Monday the state has given the city permission to treat 35,000 gallons, a drop in the bucket compared to the 12 million gallons it treats daily.
The developer, Covalent Energy, of Arlington, Va., and the city would need to obtain state approvals to treat any more water.
Covalent has been approved to develop five wells at the site. The water being treated in Watertown represents the amount used for one of those wells, the supervisor said.
After a more than four month hiatus from Watertown, the owners of the Friendly’s restaurant on Arsenal Street were in City Hall Monday morning to drop off plans to expand the building.
Kenneth A. Mix, city planning and community development coordinator, confirmed this morning that representatives from Kessler Family LLC made the drive from Rochester with site plans in hand.
Larry Ross, the company's director of marketing, admitted last month that plans were “a little bit up in the air,” but assured the Times that the expansion will take place as soon as next spring.
Mr. Ross has said the 2,700-square-foot Friendly's now standing on the property will be replaced with a 4,000-square-foot building. The restaurant will be closed during construction and, once reopened, 50 new hires will be added to the staff.
In July, Friendly’s representatives fought a very public battle against neighbor Kevin M. Fear last summer for the right to purchase city-owned land abutting both properties. The City Council ultimately sold the two-thirds-acre lot to Kessler Family for $15,000.
With the land, Kessler Family plans to expand the parking lot, giving the larger restaurant enough spaces to fulfill the city’s requirements. Following the sale, however, Kessler Family made little publicly known about the timeline of their project.
The Planning Board and City Council will need to approve the proposed plans before a new restaurant can be built. The Planning Board, which makes recommendations to the council, will meet Jan. 5.
How about a standing deck proposed to be built along the third base line?
The Watertown City Council is expected to discuss a proposal made by Wizards CEO Paul A. Simmons at tonight’s meeting/work session. If approved, the deck will be built next to, and on the outfield side of, the dugout and can be moved and taken down if needed, according to a request.
“This is a place for sponsors to bring their employees and families and show off their business while having a great view of the Wizards game,” Mr. Simmons wrote in a letter to the council. “This will be a gift to the city of Watertown from the Watertown Wizards and can be used at any time when not being used by the Wizards.”
The city owns and maintains the grandstands, field and locker rooms. The Wizards then lease the facilities each summer from the city.
“We feel this will be beneficial to both the city and obviously the Watertown Wizards, as the crowds at the fairgrounds, for not only our games, but concerts or other events require special or VIP seating,” Mr. Simmons wrote.
Over the weekend, Cape Vincent officials spent about 10 hours working on their wind turbine zoning law. They had a briefing on sound with William J. Elliot, senior consultant for Cavanaugh Tocci Associates, Sudbury, Mass., on Friday, followed by hashing out sound and setback requirements in the law on Saturday.
Like his boss, Gregory C. Tocci, Mr. Elliot talked about the sound study conducted by Hessler Associates Inc., Haymarket, Va. Almost a year ago, Mr. Tocci told Clayton’s wind committee that the sound analysis connecting wind speed to turbine noise was inappropriate because of the method of sampling and the loose correlation between the data.
Mr. Elliot conveyed the same information on Friday. In Cape Vincent, Hessler had four sound monitoring stations and their measurements were compared with wind speed data collected at a different site at different heights. Hessler then picked a wind speed of 6 meters/second, when a turbine would be spinning, to find an average background sound level. The average of the data points at that speed was 37 decibels.
In evaluating the study, Cavanaugh Tocci eliminated the wind speed data and just looked at the sound levels, which showed a background noise level of 25 decibels.
For reference, a difference of 10 decibels represents a doubling or halving of sound as perceived by humans.
The state's Empire State Development Corp. launched its new Web site Monday, reorganized to streamline design and improve access to information in order to best serve the agency's constituents.
The new site features a section on “Why New York,” highlighting information on the high-tech economy and industry clusters; on “Business Programs,” listing incentive, grant and loan programs; new regional office pages and updated international, minority and women-owned business enterprise and small business sections.
The old site was www.nylovesbiz.com.
The state Civil Service Commission found that the Jefferson County Department of Human Resources has administered the civil service appointment process so that it is “generally in compliance” with the Civil Service Law and Rules.
The review, which covered September 2005 to September 2008, found that the merit system generally is administered properly and consistently. The review identified several issues in need of correction. They included a practice of improperly declaring individuals who had not responded to a canvass for one position ineligible for consideration for subsequent position openings. In addition, proper documentation of qualifications was not obtained before appointments were made to certain positions.
The commission periodically conducts reviews of local jurisdictions to ensure that the merit system is administered according to the law. Jefferson County received a score of 66 out of a possible 100 for compliance.
The Jefferson County Department of Human Resources has jurisdiction over a total of 2,800 employees: 922 are employed by the county, 344 by towns, 279 by villages, 1,229 by school districts and 26 by special districts. Of these, 981, or 35 percent, are in the competitive class and are selected by competitive examination.
The report identified nine corrective actions that need to be taken. The State Commission recognized corrective actions already underway and directed submission of a follow-up report by February 28, 2010.
“Municipal civil service commissions generally are dedicated to implementing the Civil Service Law and Rules in a credible, trustworthy, fair, and efficient manner, despite limited resources,” said Civil Service Commissioner Nancy G. Groenwegen. “The New York State Department of Civil Service will help them in every way possible to accomplish this goal.”
You can review the New York State Department of Civil Service's complete report here.
A new discount store for Stateway Plaza on Arsenal Street will open around April 14.
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Harrisburg, Pa., signed a lease last week to occupy part of the former P&C Foods in the plaza.
“It’s a great location,” said Mark L. Butler, president and chief executive officer of Ollie’s, Harrisburg, Pa. “We will help revitalize the center.”
The store is expected to employ 50 to 60 people, Mr. Butler said. The company will hold a job fair in the next few weeks.
“Watertown appears to be a good community and the workforce is tremendous,” he said.
The store will take up about 31,000 square feet. Stateway Shopping Plaza LLC, Montreal, owns the plaza.
According to its Web site, the regional chain has 80 stores in eight states. Other stores in New York include New Hartford, Cicero and DeWitt.
WPBS-TV, Watertown's public television affiliate, will air a discussion on the proposed payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for Galloo Island Wind Farm.
Jefferson County's Legislature Chairman Kenneth D. Blankenbush, R-Black River, and Watertown Mayor Jeffrey E. Graham will be the guests. WWNY-TV7's Jeff Cole will moderate the discussion.
“We hope it's informational for people,” said Lynn Brown, WPBS director of programming and development.
The half-hour program, "North Country Informed: the PILOT Program at Galloo Island," will air 8:30 p.m. Friday, 7 a.m. Sunday and 9 p.m. Monday.
Mr. Graham has been critical of the prospect of losing sales taxes from the project. The developer, Upstate NY Power Corp, could avoid paying sales and mortgage recording taxes through a sale-leaseback agreement with the Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency. The developer asked for the sale-leaseback agreement, but there's been no move towards approval by JCIDA.
Part of the former P&C Foods in Watertown’s Stateway Plaza may soon be filled with a discount merchandise store.
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, Harrisburg, Pa., is signing a lease today, said Jeffrey A. Foster, property manager for Longley Jones Management, Syracuse.
Occupancy could happen sometime in the next two months.
According to its Web site, the regional chain has eighty stores in eight states. Other stores in New York include New Hartford, Cicero and DeWitt. They offer “closeout, surplus and salvage merchandise.”
Stateway Shopping Plaza LLC, Montreal, owns the plaza. The property management firm has been sprucing up the floors and walls so Ollie’s can install fixtures.
Mr. Foster said other new business possibilities in the plaza include a fitness center and a restaurant.
To send in a business tip, e-mail me.
Upstate NY Power Corp is not a foreign entity.
That was another point in the memo to the Board of Legislators from Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency on Tuesday explaining the proposed payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement.
Upstate NY Power Corp, the developer of the proposed Galloo Island Wind Farm, is funded by Pattern Renewables LP, San Francisco. In June, previous backer Babcock & Brown North America sold their renewable energy projects to Riverstone Holdings LLC, New York City. Pattern develops those projects.
According to its Web site, Riverstone has approximately $17 billion under management across six investment funds, including the world’s largest renewable energy fund. Riverstone conducts buyout and growth capital investments in the midstream, exploration & production, oilfield services, power and renewable sectors of the energy industry. With offices in New York, London and Houston, the firm has committed approximately $12.7 billion to 64 investments in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.
“Over the past thirty years, Riverstone's principals have been instrumental in creating several of Wall Street's preeminent global energy and power investment banking franchises,” the Web site says.
Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency sent some more information on the development of a proposed payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for the planned Galloo Island Wind Farm yesterday.
The written responses tried to answer concerns county legislators expressed on Jan. 5 when they didn't vote on the PILOT.
I don't see much new in the five-page answer, but there are a few details that may be interesting.
I reported a little while back that the developer, by taking advantage of state and federal benefits, must enter a project labor agreement with local unions to guarantee a certain proportion of work go to local labor.
Legislators asked for guarantees on local labor. JCIDA wrote that once the county Board of Legislators approve the PILOT, “the Agency will be in a position to approve the undertaking of the project on a schedule and timetable to by determined” by the developer.
Then JCIDA and Upstate NY Power Corp, the developer, would enter a project development agreement, giving the developer two years to secure approvals and funding to begin.
“In addition to memorializing the form of PILOT Agreement and other Agency documents relating to the Project, the PDA also includes affirmative requirements for UNYPC to actively seek to employ, both during the construction phase and during full-time employment for the Project, laborers, vendors and suppliers who reside in Jefferson County,” the agency wrote.
Legislators also asked that the uniform tax-exempt policy for all wind farms be finalized, so that they don't have to give the approval for any one project.
In Tuesday's memo, JCIDA said the policy “will be circulated for adoption in coming months.”
But because the developer formally applied for a PILOT before the policy revisions began and asked for a speedy response, JCIDA decided to move ahead with just the Galloo Island PILOT.
JCIDA “contemplates that this Project will be the only wind-energy project to come before the Board of Legislators for approval of an Agency request for deviation.”
Safeguards on the PILOT payments will include a year's worth of payments, which begin at $2.14 million, to be held in escrow or secured by irrevocable letter of credit. That gives all taxing jurisdiction a full year's payment. There will also be a PILOT mortgage starting at $6 million, allowing JCIDA to “protect the interests of the taxing jurisdictions by foreclosing on one half billion dollars' worth of equipment.”
After a close vote for a wind zoning ordinance was knocked down in state Appeals Court at the end of December, the Lyme Town Council will need to figure out what the next step with the law will be.
I had a brief conversation with Supervisor Scott G. Aubertine this morning and he said the council will talk about the best group to handle some revisions to the law that was passed May 6, 2008. It could be the council or include members of the planning board, like the last committee that worked on the law, or members of the zoning board of appeals, which would actually use the law in site plan reviews.
The supervisor said he didn’t think a lot of changes are necessary.
The council will next meet Feb. 10.
For those who can never read enough about wind power, I just finished looking at the Clayton Planning Board recommendations for zoning regulations on personal wind turbines. The commercial-scale turbine regulations were held up while waiting for this piece.
There can only be one turbine per parcel. Total height cannot exceed 125 feet and 50 kilowatts. Noise cannot exceed 40 decibels of audible noise at the property line. The blades should be at least 40 feet above the highest structure or tree within a 500-foot radius and 30 feet above the ground.
The setbacks are:
- Four times the tower height plus rotor diameter from property lines
- One and a half times the tower height plus rotor diameter from public utility lines
- One and a half times the tower height plus rotor diameter from a road if it cuts through the property
- 15 feet between guy wires and property lines
- Neighboring island properties can establish measurements if land space does not allow for normal setbacks on island property
Among the recommendations, applicants who want to install a small wind turbine must show:
- The proposed tower height is not above manufacturer's recommendations
- The electrical components conform with the state's building code
- The local electric utility knows the applicant will connect to the state's grid system if that is the intent
- A visual impact analysis using techniques such as helium balloons raised to the height of the tower
- Site plan with a plot plan showing setback distances from property lines, roads, utility lines and rights-of-way, existing structures on applicant and adjacent properties, guy wires, trees and sound levels at property lines and existing structures
- Wind turbine and meteorological tower foundation and design stamped by a state-licensed professional engineer
- List of applicable permits and safety standards
Clayton Supervisor Justin A. Taylor said on Monday that the town's attorney is incorporating the small windmill recommendations into a draft zoning amendment, which may be returned to the Town Council in February.
North country schools would receive a combined $16.98 million less in 2010-11 than they did this academic year under Gov. David A. Paterson's proposed budget.
The average 4.5 percent cut could force boards of education to exhaust reserves or consider cuts to core programs, said Jack J. Boak Jr., superintendent of the Jefferson-Lewis Board of Cooperative Educational Services.
“Superintendents and school boards will likely be looking at things that aren't mandated by law: elective course offerings, athletics and musical programs,” he said. “I'm sure they'll try to preserve the core academics. But in some cases, that may not even be possible.”
Mr. Boak was also disheartened by the Mr. Paterson's plan to reduce universal pre-kindergarten program aid, to use federal stimulus funds to offset aid reductions and to eliminate funding for teacher centers, such as the Jefferson-Lewis Teacher Center.
“School districts will be very lucky if they can maintain the status quo, and that will be almost impossible for some districts,” he said.
Mr. Paterson also proposed cutting $95 million to SUNY senior colleges and an additional $57 million to the state's community colleges during the next fiscal year.
SUNY Potsdam and SUNY Canton officials did not have exact figures Tuesday on how the governor's proposal would impact their campuses, except to say that cuts appear to be in line with what they had anticipated.
“It's as bleak as we thought,” said Deborah L. Dudley, Potsdam's spokeswoman. College officials estimated that they will lose a little less than $1 million from the state under the governor's budget, in addition to last year's cuts. The school recently released a “worst case scenario” list of 59 full-time equivalent positions that it may have to eliminate this year, in order to make up for a $7.5 million budget shortfall.
SUNY Canton officials say that the campus is likely to lose about $450,000 from the latest cuts in state contributions, and will have about $3 million less to work with as it puts together its 2010-11 budget. The college has cut costs and dipped into savings to make up for the loss of revenue, but an increasing number of students have helped buoy the budget with extra tuition dollars.
“I don't think there's ever a good time for cuts, but we're fortunate that we've prepared for them and this does come at a time when our record enrollments will help us manage the transition,” said Randy B. Sieminski, Canton's spokesman.
There was a potential bright spot, college officials said: Mr. Paterson's proposal to allow SUNY to raise tuition without legislative approval. The reform could provide more financial flexibility, they said, and offset some of the pain from slashing budgets.
Assemblywoman Addie J. Russell, D-Theresa, said she did not agree with Mr. Paterson's plan to give SUNY an “unchecked ability to increase their tuition.”
“The authority partially needs to stay with the Legislature,” she said. “I don't want to get into a situation where our average family in New York can't send their child to the college around the corner.”
Sen. Darrel J. Aubertine, D-Cape Vincent, said he had not seen enough details on the tuition proposal to offer his opinion. But he said it was “not fair” to the students if the Legislature went five to 10 years without increasing tuition, only to increase it by upwards of 50 percent.
Both legislators cheered Mr. Paterson's proposal for a four-year moratorium on creating new unfunded mandates for local school districts.
“That was the one shining point in the governor's proposal,” said Mrs. Russell.
Mandate relief, Mr. Aubertine, would help mitigate the negative impact of any cut that is enacted when the Legislature approves the budget this spring.
“Most of the school districts were bracing for this kind of news,” said Mr. Aubertine of the proposed cuts. “But one of the reasons that I and other legislators lobbied not to have mid-year cuts was so fund balances would not be depleted this year and so that they could start at the beginning of the budget cycle.”
In total, Mr. Paterson's $134 billion proposal addresses a $7.4 billion deficit. It increases spending by 0.6 percent. The Legislature traditionally adds 1 percent to 2 percent to the state budget before enacting it.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
The following is the 2010-11 school aid proposed by Gov. David A. Paterson for the 34 school districts in Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties and the percentage change from this fiscal year:
Jefferson County
- Alexandria: $3,724,338, down 9.07 percent
- Belleville-Henderson: $3,428,701, down 9.47 percent
- Carthage: $28,640,773, down 4.63 percent
- General Brown: $10,689,660, down 9.53 percent
- Indian River: $38,273,780, down 0.64 percent
- LaFargeville: $1,075,669, down 2.06 percent
- Lyme: $2,557,697, down 11.39 percent
- Sackets Harbor: $2,839,469, down 10.67 percent
- South Jefferson: $17,584,243, down 8.14 percent
- Thousand Islands: $6,638,203, down 10.29 percent
- Watertown: $33,831,819, down 3.13 percent
Lewis County
- Beaver River: $8,004,251, down 3.85 percent
- Copenhagen: $5,910,917, down 3.62 percent
- Harrisville: $4,388,195, down 5.02 percent
- Lowville: $12,967,536, down 5.16 percent
- South Lewis: $12,058,123, down 5.10 percent
St. Lawrence County
- Brasher Falls: $11,474,733, down 4.78 percent
- Canton: $13,213,139, down 7.18 percent
- Clifton-Fine: $3,845,979, down 7.58 percent
- Colton-Pierrepont: $1,953,393, down 12.27 percent
- Edwards-Knox: $8,744,961, down 0.10 percent
- Gouverneur: $21,360,112, down 3.15 percent
- Hammond: $2,944,284, down 8.80 percent
- Hermon-DeKalb: $5,188,618, down 3.99 percent
- Lisbon: $6,103,509, down 4.30 percent
- Madrid-Waddington: $7,430,066, down 4.81 percent
- Massena: $21,486,940, down 3.44 percent
- Morristown: $4,578,987, down 4.41 percent
- Norwood-Norfolk: $11,450,519, down 1.59 percent
- Ogdensburg: $20,105,184, down 2.12 percent
- Heuvelton: $7,109,752, down 0.82 percent
- Parishville: $5,149,506, down 4.81 percent
- Potsdam: $11,285,981, down 9.80 percent
Local school groups have gotten together in the spirit of giving this holiday season to raise money and donate gifts to Toys for Tots for children who won't receive gifts for Christmas.
Sackets Harbor first-graders took a shopping trip to Kmart Monday where they spent the $285 they raised in a bake sale to buy gifts for kids who may not otherwise get anything for Christmas.
In spite of these efforts, there has been a marked decrease in donations to Toys for Tots since last year, Jefferson County Toys for Tots coordinator Ernest D. Ross said. At the same time, the number of Jefferson County kids Toys for Tots is collecting for this year has nearly doubled.
“Donations are way down,” Mr. Ross said. “There are places where we were collecting three overflowing donation boxes last year. This year, we're lucky if we get one from those same places.”
He is collecting toys for about 3,000 kids this year, compared to 1,784 last year.
If you want to make a monetary donation to Toys for Tots in Jefferson County, make checks payable to Toys for Tots, and send them to Mr. Ross at P.O. Box 114, Depauville, NY. 13632. If you wish to donate toys, contact Mr. Ross by e-mail at edross22000@yahoo.com to make arrangements for a toy pick up. Toys will be distributed before Christmas.
In my six weeks of reporting on education for the Times, I can say this for sure: Rachel’s Challenge has caught on like wildfire in north country schools.
I went to see Darrell Scott, the founder of Rachel’s Challenge, speak at Jefferson Community College last month. Mr. Scott is the father of Rachel Scott, who was the first student killed in the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. Rachel’s Challenge is a presentation based on ideals found in Miss Scott’s writings after her death. They include increasing acceptance of others and doing small acts of kindness.
I’ve gotten numerous phone calls, faxes and e-mails about schools hosting the challenge, and how great their experiences have been. Sackets Harbor Central School even modified their character education program to reflect the ideals of Rachel’s Challenge.
Some of the local school administrators I’ve talked to said they saw a change in the school halls after they’ve hosted Rachel’s Challenge — people were just being nicer to each other in the halls, cafeteria and classrooms.
So my question is, are our local schools onto something here? Should we devote more time to character and community-building activities and presentations, even if it means a little less time for instruction? Give me your thoughts.
Have an education story idea? E-mail me.
Where Jefferson Community College sees more students in a modern campus, Jefferson County legislators see a 1.5 percent increase on the property tax levy.
Looking beyond the $4 million the county already set aside and the college wants to spend on necessary maintenance, JCC’s President Carole A. McCoy showed legislators last week a plan of the top projects from JCC’s facilities master plan at the Finance and Rules Committee meeting. (The legislature approved the plan, sans figures for the county, in 2008.)
The estimates for the top projects now stand at $12.5 million for the new Collaborative Learning Center, $1.3 million for the renovation of the Dewey Library as classrooms and offices and about $4.5 million in maintenance, including central air and heating renovations in several buildings.
Finance and Rules Committee Chairman Scott A. Gray pointedly reminded fellow lawmakers Tuesday night that the first two items would total nearly $14 million. And if the county funded half of those projects, it would pay $700,000 in debt service every year, which is about 1.5 percent of the county’s property tax levy.
The quandary is that community colleges have inverse relationships with the economy as a whole, meaning when times are good for the country, students go to pricier four-year institutions. When times are tough, students – both those right out of high school and those who have left other jobs or been laid off – go to community college.
But the state and counties and other institutions that support community colleges don’t necessarily have the cash to keep pace with the growth.
The full Board of Legislators will discuss the maintenance package during its meeting Tuesday night. What should the board be willing to commit to the college for expanding its classroom space?
Tonight, Jefferson Community College, Watertown, is putting figures to capital projects that will start work according to the facilities master plan.
The County Legislature approved the updated facilities master plan in 2008 and put about $3.8 million in the budget to cover capital costs.
According to a resolution that will be considered at tonight’s finance and rules committee meeting, JCC has asked that $2.1 million go towards renovations of the McVean Student Center, $1.4 million go towards renovations of the Dewey Library Building, $238,000 for renovations of the modular building for the interim Higher Education Center and $3,859 for a storage building upgrade.
The Legislature set aside about $3.9 million in the 2008 budget – just a start on the entire $62.7 million plan. About $40 million is eligible for state and county aid.
JCC President Carole McCoy will talk about the projects at the committee meeting, 7 p.m. in the Board of Legislators’ Chambers, 195 Arsenal St.
This video is quite possibly the most disturbing thing I’ve ever seen (WARNING: It’s very graphic, which is why I’m not embedding the video in the post).
It’s a very convincing reenactment of a three-car accident that was a result of a teen driving and texting on her cell phone.
The clip is from a 30-minute video being shown to teenagers in the UK.
Do you think it could ever be shown to students in the US?
I recently spent the morning at SMC with Watertown driver’s education students. Each year the students visit the hospital for the “Let’s not meet by accident” program.
They see a presentation on how “six seconds can save your life” (the six seconds it takes to type a text), tour the ambulance bay, morgue (yes, morgue!) and see a simulated trauma where one of their classmates is strapped to a gurney. See the story here.
What do you think is the most effective way to show teenagers the danger of texting, drinking or taking part in another other distracting activities while driving?
Is taking them to the morgue too far? What about this video?
With State University of New York Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher passing through the north country, colleges are doing their best to impress the new boss. Today, she’s visiting Jefferson Community College in Watertown before heading to SUNY Potsdam on Wednesday through her statewide 64-campus tour.
SUNY Canton President Joseph L. Kennedy wanted to show her that his college is following a new path for higher education by concentrating on practical, high-demand degree programs, online coursework and international partnerships with developing countries.
So the first thing he did was show the chancellor this commercial.
The ad is for Kaplan University, a for-profit national online college linked to the test-prep company Kaplan Inc., which is owned by the Washington Post Company. Along with another video, it has drawn controversy for its broad critique of the traditional higher education system — and its theory about the future of our country’s colleges.
Mr. Kennedy and his staffers tweaked the spot with footage from SUNY Canton when they showed it to the chancellor. The president said that the commercial might as well have been about his institution.
“The ad is very controversial. It says that we have failed the students,” Mr. Kennedy said. “The point we wish to make is we’re not a traditional university anymore. We’re a new kind of university we hope will serve the state of New York and the world well.”
Through SUNY Canton OnLine, the has been offering a growing number of courses via the Internet since 2002. The online classes have become more and more popular, as students both here and abroad use them to catch up. Here’s a story I wrote a couple months back about SUNY Canton OL:
Just to seal the deal, Mr. Kennedy gave the new chancellor a special parting “gift” Monday. He lent her an iPod Touch loaded with photos of the SUNY Canton campus, a PowerPoint presentation about the college and the commercials he discussed with her that morning.
Mr. Kennedy has heard a lot from other college administrators lately about a comment he made off-hand at a conference: “I said, ‘I’m lucky, because I’m not bound by the traditions of traditional colleges.’”
What do you think? What will the higher education system of the future look like? Are we seeing a preview today at SUNY Canton? Where does that leave public universities that focus on liberal arts, like SUNY Potsdam? What do you think will happen to private institutions, like St. Lawrence University, Canton, or Clarkson University, Potsdam?
You can send feedback to Ms. Zimpher as she crafts her strategic plan for SUNY here.
--Alex Jacobs
What’s going on with your children’s education? Why are your school taxes going up? What programs are available to your children?
I’m Kelly Reynolds, the education reporter for the Times. In the new education blog, you’ll find answers to these questions and more.
I’ll post regular updates on programming, curriculum, board meetings, school budgets and after school activities. I’ll even give you a behind-the-scenes look into what’s going on at the schools and the new stories I’m working on.
School’s out, but that doesn’t mean I’m not working hard to bring you up to date on education trends.
I’m currently working on a story about how schools are spending their stimulus money. The Secretary of Education is pushing school officials to use the money on new, innovative programming or technology.
Are north country schools following his directive?
Submit an education news tip to kreynolds@wdt.net
It's that time of year again. No, I'm not talking cider at the Burrville Mill - although I like the way you think.
It's time again for the Jefferson County Senior Health and Information Fair. This year, it will be held from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Watertown Muncipal Arena at the Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds, Coffeen Street. The event is sponsored by the Watertown Daily Times, the city of Watertown and state Sen. Darrel J. Aubertine.
The fair will feature more than 60 vendors, live entertainment from both Ray Sabre & the Country Stompers and a free lunch.
"This is a great opportunity for area seniors to have a good time and learn more about what's available in the community to cater to their needs,” Mr. Aubertine said in a statement. "It's a free event and I certainly hope every senior in the area takes this opportunity to stop down, have lunch with us, listen to some live music, get a free health screening, a flu shot and more."
Here's who is expected to come:
- 911ai.com
- AARP Chapter 346
- Alcohol Substance Abuse Council
- Alzheimer's Association
- American Red Cross of Northern New York
- Assemblywoman Addie J. Russell, D-Theresa
- Assemblywoman Dierdre K. Scozzafava, R-Gouverneur - ask her about NY-23!
- Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired of Jefferson County
- Bolton's Pharmacy
- Brayton's Therapeutic Massage & Body Works
- Carthage Area Hospital
- Central Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired
- Clarence Henry Coach
- Community Action Planning Council of Jefferson County Inc. Nutrition and Outreach program
- Consumer Credit Counseling Service of CNY
- Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County's nutrition program
- Curves for Women
- Guilfoyle Amublance Service
- Homemakers of Western NY, Caregivers
- Hospice and Hospice Foundation of Jefferson County
- Howard Orthotic & Prosthetics
- Innovative Physical Therapy Solutions
- Ives Hill Retirement Community
- Jefferson Community College - Continuing Education and Nursing divisions
- Kinney Drugs
- Lewis County Opportunities Housing Assistance Program
- Mercy of Northern NY
- National Kidney Foundation of CNY
- Natural Serenity Reiki
- Neighbors of Watertown
- New York State EPIC
- New York Statewide Senior Action Council - North Country Chapter
- North Country Library System
- Northern Lights Chiropractic and Disk Regeneration Center
- New York State Attorney General's Office
- New York State Division of Veteran Affairs
- New York State Public Service Commission
- North Country Regional Office of Gov. David A. Paterson - say hi to Steve for me!
- PathStone
- Resolution Center of Jefferson & Lewis Counties Inc.
- Samaritan Medical Center
- Sam's Club
- Social Security Administration
- STAT Communications
- The Country Manor Nurising and Rehabilitation Center
- The Mustard Seed
- Volunteer Transportation Center
- Walgreen's
- Watertown and Northern New York Area Tremor support group
- Watertown Daily Times
- Watertown Family YMCA
- Watertown Police Department
- Watertown Urban Mission
- Wellness Connection of Lewis & Jefferson - New York State Department of Health Cancer Screening Program
- WWNY-TV 7
- C Tech
- Watertown Citi Bus
- Jefferson County Office of the Aging
- Lincare
- Sen. Darrel J. Aubertine
I'd imagine these events, much like the career and business fairs, are great for collecting schwag. Has anyone gone in previous years? Which agencies were helpful? Which were not?
The topic for this blog stems from a recent minimum $285 consultation for a pediatric orthopedic surgeon for my daughter plus the cost of an x-ray, a $120 recent visit to an obstetrician/gynecologist, a $260 visit to my daughter’s pediatrician, two prescriptions each around $30 per month, among other medical needs (we won’t go into the two crowns and other dental needs).
The cost of healthcare continues to rise, and it’s not only on my mind. Healthcare reform is a hot-button topic on the national level. The plan President Barack Obama has been discussing over the past several months aims to provide “affordable healthcare for all Americans.”
The 10-year, $630 billion plan would strive to make health coverage affordable by reducing high administrative costs, unnecessary tests and services, waste and fraud. Public health measures would increase under the plan and it would reduce increasing premiums and related costs. The plan is outlined here.
Do you think a plan such as this is actually feasible? Do you have a story of a certain physician visit or hospital procedure that you really had to dig deep in your pockets for? What needs to change? How could it work? Tell us what you think the kind of healthcare the nation needs and how this reform would or wouldn’t work.
Wondering what’s going on will all of the building at SMC? Have you and your friends been chatting about the swine flu outbreak? Wondering how the Girl Scouts did in their cookie sales?
The health section is where you’ll find answers to these questions and much more!
Rebecca Madden covers hospitals, health-related trends like AIDS in the north country and the nursing shortage, and all of the non-profit organizations in the north country.
E-mail Rebecca a story tip at rmadden@wdt.net
After the Lewis County Legislature’s second meeting of the year, the group still doesn’t have a vice-chairman.
In fact, the matter wasn’t even brought up at Tuesday evening’s meeting.
To recap the situation, Rick Lucas, who has served as vice-chairman for the past two years, was the choice of the eight-man Republican caucus to retain that post this year.
However, at the board’s January organizational meeting, Republicans Jerry King and Charlie Fanning joined the board’s two Democrats, John Boyd and newcomer Paul Stanford, in opposition to that nomination, choosing to support Mr. King instead.
And Pat Wallace was unable to attend the meeting since he was undergoing cancer treatments in New York City.
That meant that only five legislators supported Mr. Lucas’ appointment, while six votes are needed for passage on the 10-member board.
On Tuesday, Mr. Wallace again unable to attend the meeting, and Legislator Mike Tabolt, who voted for Mr. Lucas back in January, was out recovering from recent heart surgery.
Mr. Lucas indicated today that the vice-chairman issue wasn’t brought up primarily because of the missing board members.
So, the position — which is really only needed if the chairman is unable to oversee a meeting or perform his other duties — will stay unfilled until at least the legislators’ March 3 meeting.
And, barring a change of heart, that likely will only happen if Mr. Wallace adds his vote to the Lucas side.
Of course, six legislators could also choose to get behind a third candidate, but that obviously hasn’t happened yet. Stay tuned.
The long-waged debate over opening roads to all-terrain vehicles is a little clearer now, thanks to the town of Lyonsdale.
Article 2405, Section 1 of the state Vehicle Traffic Law says municipalities may open roads to ATVs “when in the determination of the governmental agency concerned, it is otherwise impossible for ATVs to gain access to areas or trails adjacent to the highway.”
More than a decade ago, many towns decided to open all their roads to ATVs using a broad interpretation of this statute. Many of those laws are still on the books, having lasted well beyond the six-year statute of limitations to challenge them.
However, ATV detractors began to challenge some town laws in state Supreme Court, and several have been thrown out, with judges suggesting more specific justification and research into environmental impact was needed. This region has been the hotbed for such lawsuits, with Judge Demarest in St. Lawrence County and Judge McGuire in Lewis County handling the bulk of them.
Which brings us to Judge McGuire’s recently released decision to dismiss a year-old law opening 10 miles of town of Lyonsdale roads to ATVs.
The judge ruled that the town didn’t provide enough specific justification for opening each specific road nor conduct an adequate environmental review.
This decision discusses V&T law more extensively than prior ones did. It advocates a fairly strict interpretation, suggesting towns should open the minimum length of road segments needed to get from one trail area to another and mostly refrain from road-to-road connections.
On the flip side, the judge does note that there is no specific road length specified in state law and says the town could argue that an overriding safety issue (like establishing a safe stretch of road for parking) necessitates road-to-road connections, so long as it is well documented.
To review the full, 40-page decision, click here.
On a side note, Lyonsdale Town Councilwoman Nancy O’Brien-Dailey, who brought the lawsuit against the town, successfully argued her case without the services of a lawyer.
NAUMBURG — Several fundraisers — including a dinner and auction this weekend — are being planned to help fund a Lewis County mission group's relief efforts in Haiti.
A spaghetti dinner will be held from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday in the Naumburg Mennonite Church fellowship hall on Route 410 to benefit Son Light Missions Lacolline Inc.
The food is being provided by New York City area restaurateurs, including Haitian native Demitrus Moustakes.
The cost is a donation.
An auction will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at the neighboring River Valley Mennonite School, with a preview set for 9 a.m.
Anyone willing to donate items for the auction may contact auctioneer Scott D. Zehr at 222-6796 or Paul L. Mast at 378-8498.
Businesses with no product to donate may agree to match the gross proceeds from the auction or make some other cash donation, Mr. Zehr said.
There will be no administrative charges, and all proceeds will go directly to Haiti, he said.
Further details on the auction have been posted on the Auction Zip Web site.
Lighthouse Restaurant on Utica Boulevard in Lowville is hosting a spaghetti dinner from 4 to 8 p.m. Feb. 9, with all proceeds going to Son Light Missions.
The local mission group, which operates a mission compound in the Lacolline Valley, about 85 miles west of the capital city of Port-au-Prince, has been working to send tents and food to Haiti in the wake of the earthquake there earlier this month.
Mark S. Purcell, owner of Purcell Construction Corp., Watertown, has volunteered to buy tents and fly them from Florida to the impoverished island nation.
A rental truck full of food and supplies was sent from the area on Saturday, and plans are to send another truckload, Mr. Zehr said.
Food items like noodles, rice and oatmeal — “stuff that doesn't weigh a lot but makes a good meal” — are good choices for shipping, as are medical supplies, cloth diapers and baby formula, he said.
Anyone seeking more information on the supply drive effort may call Melvin A. Roes at 523-0096.
Many other north country groups are holding fundraisers to benefit the relief effort in Haiti:
- Haircuts for Haiti will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday and Feb. 7 at the Arcade Barber & Beauty Shop, 1 Public Square, Watertown. All proceeds will go to Haiti relief.
- Bottles For Haiti — An account has been set up at the ARC on State Street in Ogdensburg for can and bottle returns through Feb. 7. Recyclable collection drives will be held on Saturday and Feb. 7 in the Ogdensburg area; to schedule a pickup, send an e-mail to bottlesforhaiti@hotmail.com.
- Pennies For Port-au-Prince — Pennies or other change can be dropped off at any of the four St. Lawrence County Newspapers offices or any branch of the St. Lawrence Federal Credit Union through Friday.
- The Brass Horse Grille in Hogansburg will host a benefit fish fry luncheon starting at 11 a.m. Friday. Takeout and delivery is available by calling Ronni or Jami at 1 (518) 358-3365 or 1 (518) 358-6122. It will also hold a DJ'ed dance that night from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. at a cost of $3 per person or $5 per couple. All admission proceeds and a portion of the drink sales will go to the relief effort.
- Aubuchon Hardware is collecting baby supplies to send to God's Littlest Angels, an orphanage in Haiti. Those wishing to contribute may drop off baby supplies at any Aubuchon location or elect to have $1, $5 or $10 added to their bill.
While comprehensive plans aren't typically the most sexy story topics, the final draft of Lewis County’s countywide comprehensive plan does include one proposed action step that addresses a long-standing topic of discussion in this rural area. In the plan, consultants propose the creation of a “Brain Gain Commission” to discuss ways to stem the exodus of young people from the county. Or, as the phenomenon is more commonly known, brain drain.
Local politicos have long lamented the loss of the county’s best and brightest students to more job-heavy locales, many of them also having warmer climates and lower snowfall totals.
Ned Cole from the Lewis County Industrial Development Agency, during a recent conversation, suggested that many natives move away but eventually wish to return to be closer to relatives, raise a family, etc., and that jobs must be available for those folks, in particular.
Do you think a Brain Gain Commission (presumably consisting of volunteer board members already involved with education, economic development, workforce development, etc.) would be a useful exercise?
By the way, if you’re so inclined, you can look over the draft comprehensive plan here.
Last week, I wrote a story story on a developer’s plans to build a Tractor Supply Co. store at Number Four and Ross roads just inside Lowville’s village limits. The Lewis County and Lowville planning boards will probably review the plans toward the end of August, and the developer hopes to turn the store over the Tennessee-based company next March.
While I’ve never actually set foot in a Tractor Supply store, I happened to talk with someone yesterday who has. And it sounds like the proposed store could offer some products not found in other area shops, plus give folks a place to buy their tractor parts, horse feed, etc. during off-hours when other places may be closed.
Plus, according to the developer, it’s supposed to create 14 to 17 new jobs, and Tractor Supply tends to support the scouts and 4-H groups in the places where it locates. And I would suspect that the village, town, county and school will collect a bit more in taxes off a brand-spanking-new store than it does on a few acres of hay.
Any thoughts?
Welcome to the inaugural Lewis County posting on the Writer's Bloc blog.
My name is Steve Virkler, been covering Lewis County in one capacity or another for the better part of two decades. Ok, it won't officially be two decades unless I make it to the fall of 2012, but who's counting?
Anyhow, I guess that makes me somewhat of an expert on county happenings.
Through this blog, I'll attempt to provide more colorful and conversational insights into some of the issues I'm writing about in the paper... and probably some that I'm not. And, while I don't plan to ruin whatever reputation of fairness and objectivity I've gained over the years by spouting my opinions all over cyberspace, I am hoping to foster some comments, opinions and even outright debates from you, the readers.
You can e-mail me at svirkler@wdt.net.
Stay tuned!
BLOG ARCHIVE
- Your favorite WDT content
- Rehashing sound studies
- City spending less on salt this year
- Cape officials work the weekend to hammer out wind law
- Lewis legislature still lacks second-in-command
- Jefferson legislators brace for a crowd
- Empire State Development Corp. streamlines its Web site
- Jefferson County has few corrections after Civil Service review
- Details on Ollie’s
- Lyonsdale helps clarify decade-old debate about ATV rules
- Looking to help Haiti? Here's how.
- PBS to air debate on Galloo Island PILOT
- Your favorite WDT content
- New retailer for Stateway Plaza
- Galloo’s backers are from Wall Street, not another country
- Clarifications and re-hashings
- North country schools face 4.5 percent cut from Paterson budget
- Lyme to get back to work on wind law
- Your favorite WDT content
- Better late than never
- Two more wind farms added to state's Renewable Portfolio Standard
- Your favorite WDT content
- City manager mum on plans to replace planning staff
- Money, mon, mon, money
- Smelter may have to prove old foundry site isn't contaminated
- City Council left with more questions than answers about Otsego waste
- Oswego County group links with Golden Crescent group
- Macaluso outspoken in first City Council meeting
- Watertown mayor vocal opponent of wind deal
- Otsego County's dirty water coming to Watertown Tuesday
- Busy week for Galloo Island
- The Times' top 10 stories of 2009
- The latest on Galloo Island wind project
- Toys for Tots donations are "way down," chief says
- Watertown: Trend setter in sales
- Holding Galloo ‘til after the holidays
- Golden Crescent launches Web site
- Galloo Island hearing planned
- More on those Carl's Furniture City grocery vouchers
- Wind resistance groups get an umbrella
- Friendly's gives expansion plans to City Council
- Wind developer acknowledges Cape's conflicts of interest
- Supervisor: Sacket schools will get too much money from Galloo PILOT
- Inside the IDA on the Galloo Island PILOT
- Need an incentive to go to a Watertown Wizards game?
- Amelio Sewing and Vacuum Center expanding
- Wind law further delayed
- Another club at a familiar location
- Business notes
- A yummy arrangement
- City Council will review bus fares, eatery idea turned car shop
- Galloo Island wind farm PILOT deal
- City engineers busy with 10 projects
- Watertown mall hosts nonprofits' fundraiser Sunday
- City FD light on leadership
- Grand opening and free food
- Fort Drum soldier plans roller rink in former Hacketts
- Burns and Macaluso making history with joint Council stint
- Rules for Galloo Island PILOT hearing
- 'Blight' on agenda for city planning board
- Time pressures on Galloo Island wind project
- Higher home sales reported locally
- Who needs paper? City agenda now online
- Nickel and diming?
- Is it time for more character building in north country schools?
- Moontide Arts returns
- JCIDA faces tension between money and jobs
- Galloo Island developer hurrying to take advantage of tax credits
- Full speed ahead on Galloo Island
- More incubators?
- Urban Mission, barber shop honored as best businesses
- Shining a light on Watertown's missing bulbs
- First National Beef & Brew under new management?
- See a crow? Call it in.
- Watertown only NNY city to feel brunt of Paterson's proposed cuts
- Some in Henderson don’t ♥ wind power
- Wind support gathering speed in Clayton
- City DPW ready to pick up your leaves, branches and other debris
- More from Emerge: Regional Issues
- Emerge NNY: How to start a business
- Read Orleans' recommendations for wind turbine zoning
- Fall is store-opening season
- Finding the right price for JCC upgrades
- Now the fun begins
- To loan or not to loan
- JCC capital plan taking shape
- Martial arts and Moons over My Hammy
- Watertown built it
- Wind support mounting
- Getting fit under new management
- A slew of business openings
- 3+3 adds up for bargain hunters
- Can't miss event for seniors Wednesday
- WWTI's new look
- Sandwiches over subs
- Postscript on Cash for Clunkers
- Looking for your hidden fees
- Rod Stewart tribute band will rock out at Bonnie Castle
- What's the most effective way to show teens the dangers of distracted driving?
- Thinking pink
- Bras sought at the TI Arts Center
- Will healthcare reform also reform our wallets?
- New Business Note
- Redneck Alert!
- Question: Has the city become a nicer place to live in recent years?
- Brain Gain Commission
- Who says art belongs indoors?
- Postscript on WPBS
- TI Music Festival is worth the drive across the border
- Tractor-Sized Development
- Odds and Ends
- Two concerts - Polar opposites
- SUNY Chancellor gets to see future of education at NNY colleges
- No more construction does not mean more business
- 'The Audition' plays tonight at the Roxy in Potsdam
- Health matters
- Welcome to The Bloc
- Covering Watertown like nobody else
- Livin' La Vida Lewis
- Inside education
- Open for business
