County Airport Manager Shannon Barnhart addresses Public Facilities Committee (June 20, 2023)

The Chautauqua County Airports in Jamestown and Dunkirk have been awarded a total of $306,000 from the FAA for upgrades.

County Airport General Manager Shannon Barnhart asked the Legislature’s Public Facilities Committee to accept the grant, “At Dunkirk, the taxiway Alpha East construction project, we’ll be rehabbing the taxiway. And then, at Jamestown we’ll be rehabbing 34 guidance signs that right now that are in poor to very poor condition. We get docked every year on our FAA inspection, so we were awarded $153,000 per airport that has to be used within a five-year period.”

She said the grant has to be accepted by the County by June 30.

Barnhart added that grant make it possible to do upgrades that are required under FAA safety standards.

The Public Facilities Committee also received an update on the CARTS hub project in downtown Jamestown from Public Facilities Director Tim Card.

Card said bids had been received for the project at 215 East Third Street, “The bids came in just a little over $800,000 and we had budgeted for $500,000. So, we only had one company that bid it. So, upon recommendations from LaBella, the engineers, what we’re going to do is go back out to bid in the fall, probably September, because a lot of these contractors are so busy with school projects and things that they have a timeline with, I think if we wait and go out to bid in the fall we may have a little more success.”

Card said the City of Jamestown is moving forward with removing fuel tanks from the site.

He added that the renovation will include reducing the three bays in the former service garage to two bays with one being a waiting room for passengers and the other being a breakroom for CARTS drivers. He said the parking area also would be redone.

JPS Coordinator of Student Support Services and Equity Tamu Graham-Reinhardt presents first year results of the Community Navigator program to the Jamestown School Board (August 30, 2022)

Attendance and course grades went up for students referred to Community Navigators in the Jamestown Public Schools District.

Community Navigator Carmen Perez and JPS Coordinator of Student Support Services and Equity Tamu Graham-Reinhardt presented the first year results of the Community Navigator program to the Jamestown School Board Tuesday night.

The Community Navigator positions were created to help provide a connection between the district and Latino population, including helping overcome language barriers between families and the schools as well helping navigate the technical aspects of schooling.

Two bilingual navigators were hired for the 2021-22 school year with one navigator working full time at the high school and tech academy and the other navigator visiting the middle schools.

Graham-Reinhardt said attendance, behavior, and core academics will be the focus for this coming school year.

She said for students that were referred to the Community Navigators, there was a 63% improvement in attendance, “Our navigators were very tenacious about the families they worked with – getting students to school, improving their attendance, getting them here, following up, ensuring that they have a way to get here. We even had one of the staff actually worked with CARTS to get one of our English-language learners picked up on the bus to be brought here every day for school.”

Graham-Reinhardt said the behavior rate was at 60%, which was down from the previous year, but she said that was due in part to the 2020-21 school year being a hybrid year for in-person attendance so there weren’t the type of behavior referrals you’d normally expect to see.

She said the really important data point was that 71% of referred students passed all their course grades, “So, that’s very encouraging. Because the more that they come to school, once they’re in school they can get their work done. And so we’re really encouraged about these numbers with just the two people that we had working this year.”

The Jamestown School Board had approved hiring two more Community Navigators for this school year, bringing the total to four. Graham-Reinhardt said one will continue to be at the high school and tech academy with the other three, once hired, mainly at the Middle Schools.

She added that the goal for navigators this year is to continue to reach out to struggling students and families to break down mistrust that parents may have and make them feel welcome in the buildings. They also will be expanding discussions with middle and high school students about planning for what happens after high school graduation.

Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel Delivers State of the County Address to County Legislature

Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel said in his annual State of the County address that the county’s comeback has been far greater than its setback.

Wendel said the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic in 2021 continued to be a challenge for the county, causing his administration to pivot efforts to move forward while protecting residents.

He said that after seeing businesses shut down and people lose jobs in 2020, December 2021 had an unemployment rate of 3.5%, which is the lowest its been since the 1990s.

Wendel announced some changes ahead for 2022 including the rebranding of the Chautauqua Area Rural Transit System, or CARTS, as CHQ Transit, “The construction of a transportation hub in downtown Jamestown, the addition of new technology including a rider’s app and cashless fare system; as well as additions of three trolleys to our fleet.”

Wendel said he also began work with Finance Director Kitty Crow to restructure the Finance Department where departments will no longer have their own fiscal staff, but will have that go through the Finance Department itself. He said this will increase efficiencies, reduce strain on smaller departments, and increase productivity.

In the Department of Public Facilities, Wendel is planning on promoting current employees to Deputy Director positions to form a DPF cabinet, “Instead of overwhelming one DPF Director with multiple departments that were under their control, our Deputy Directors will only focus on their areas of expertise and come together to form the DPF cabinet. This current plan will consist of Deputy Director of Public Facilities in the following areas: engineering, transportation, and environment.”

The position of Director of DPF has been vacant following the resignation of Brad Bentley in November.

Wendel added other goals include expanding sewer and water around the county’s lakes to promote development, expanding the tourism industry, and expand broadband throughout county.

We’ll have the full State of the County address on tonight’s Community Matters at 5 p.m.

Sundquist said he wants to shape a new vision for Jamestown as “a modern city with strong roots.”

His goals include a “Vision Zero Campaign” to have zero fatalities or severe injuries from traffic accidents. Sundquist said the city has applied for a “safe routes to school” grant funding from the state department of transportation to help toward that campaign.

Sundquist also listed connecting and enhancing the waterfront of the Chadakoin River. Projects underway include the clean up of the lower Chadakoin River as well as grant funding received for development of the Chadakoin basin.

Another goal is to market Jamestown as a destination. Sundquist said he could see Jamestown becoming a hub for conventions. He also wants to use $5 million of American Rescue Plan funds toward healthy neighborhoods and housing initiatives.

He said the City administration has taken an aggressive approach toward supporting cannabis-related industries in the city. Sundquist said hundreds of jobs could be added and that new businesses have “already bought millions of dollars’ worth of unused property to redevelop thousands of square feet of currently vacant and underutilized warehouse, manufacturing, and commercial spaces.” He said with properties going back on the tax roll, the local property tax burden will be reduced.

Sundquist said he’s working with the county to secure a permanent location for CARTS in downtown Jamestown and that he’s continuing to work with county officials to restore commercial passenger air service to the Jamestown airport.

Sundquist said the joint municipal broadband feasibility study has been completed. He said the next step is to create an ad hoc committee that will go over the study, speak with experts, and determine a path forward.

The full State of the City address is available to read online at jamestownny.gov.

The Legislature also will see a local law on their desks in regards to a management salary plan for the Undersheriff, Captain, Warden, and Corrections Lieutenant. The plan raises salaries for those positions.

Inflation related costs are stated in the resolution as the reason for the fee increases at the landfill and transfer stations. If the resolution is approved, the new fees would go into effect January 1st.

The legislature also will act on accepting a $1.5 million grant from the State Department of Transportation for the CARTS program. The monies will be used for rebranding, hybrid trolleys, technology upgrades, and consultant routes. There is no local match required under the grant.

A number of resolutions also will be considered that adjust the amount of American Rescue Plan funds needed for a variety of projects. These include Emergency Services Department projects such as purchasing a new fly car and ambulance, a dive boat, do office upgrades, paving projects, and communications projects. The original cost of those projects increased by $601,500 for a total of $1.35 million dollars.

The County Legislature meets at 6:30pm tonight in the Legislative Chambers of the Gerace Office Building in Mayville. The meeting will be streamed on Chautauqua County Government’s Facebook page as well.

CARTS riders must wear their masks/face coverings when boarding the bus and for the duration of their trips as mandated by FTA.

For more information about CARTS, visit chqgov.com/carts/CARTS or https://www.facebook.com/CARTS.NY/ or call 1-800-388-6534.

Concerns that not enough funding was being provided for mental health and addiction services were raised by several speakers. Resident Karen Neil said the city is drowning in a mental health crisis and questioned the usefulness of the proposed funding plan, “You know, this sounds good? But I don’t see that it’s going to actually do something. If you can’t work the health portion of it, the economic portion of it, the society portion of it, the cultural portion of it. You can’t work them all together. It’s a waste of time. Somebody makes some money over here and doesn’t care about that one over there. What do we do in the meantime?”

Mayor Eddie Sundquist responded, acknowledging there were a lot of gaps and that he had been in discussions with the Chautauqua County Mental Hygiene Department about how to handle these issues.
Several speakers brought up the issue of transportation including this woman who did not identify herself, “You can have all the great things downtown or at the arena or even out at the northside but if they can’t get there. What’s cab fare? One way? It’s like, if you have no money, even if the event you want to go to is free, you can’t get there. So if there was a way to support CARTS, maybe free passes for people over a certain age or under a certain age.”

Sundquist said transportation wasn’t currently included in the plan but that the city has been in discussions with CARTS, which is run by the county, to expand services.

Another suggestion made several times was to designate the $1.5 million in housing funds toward specific areas. Pastor Chloe Smith asked if it could directed toward those with low-income and people of color, “How can all these millions and millions of dollars keep processing through the land, but not one person that I know has seen any of it? I’m so sick of that. How do I know that there’s going to be equity and equality in the distribution of these $28 million?”

Sundquist said these concerns are why the listening sessions were held so that the city could get feedback and make changes to the plan. He anticipates it’ll be about a month before City Council makes any decisions on how the money will be allocated.

The funding must be committed by 2024 and spent by 2026 or returned back to the Treasury Department.

Legislator Bob Bankowski said he echoed Legislator Nazzaro’s comments, “One of the first jobs I had after I retired from the prison system was driving a CARTS bus. It was a difficult job. You deal with a lot of different personalities every day and the money will be well earned for these guys.”

The financial impact would be $100,000 on the County’s budget.

The County Legislature also approved transferring 28 properties on the tax foreclosure list to the Chautauqua County Land Bank. The transfer will stop the unpaid delinquent taxes the County is responsible for and allow demolition of structures on the properties so that they could be marketed as sidelots to adjacent property owners.

The rehabilitation of Hangar C at the Jamestown Airport will move forward. This project received $902,000 in Federal funding with the county’s local share coming in at $120,000. The money will come out the County’s contingency fund.

The County Legislature also approved a motion promoting the safe use of legal sparkling devices in the county. Legislator Elisabeth Rankin said she proposed the motion because fireworks are such a big part of celebrations during the summer, “Already in the City of Jamestown, we’ve had over 400 complaints about illegal and inappropriate use of fireworks. And we know that across the country, there were 8,000 injuries and there are people who illegally use or misuse fireworks.”

Rankin said people should use only legal items such as sparklers and flare and encouraged residents to support legal fireworks displays.

Legislators will vote on a resolution to raise CARTS drivers wages from $14.44 to $16.66 an hour. The financial impact would be $100,000 on the County’s budget.

They also will vote to transfer 28 properties on the tax foreclosure list to the Chautauqua County Land Bank. The transfer would stop the unpaid delinquent taxes the County is responsible for and allow demolition of structures on the properties so that they could be marketed as sidelots to adjacent property owners.

The rehabilitation of Hangar C at the Jamestown Airport will be reviewed. This project received $902-thousand dollars in Federal funding with the county’s local share coming in at $120-thousand dollars. The money would come out the County’s fund balance

The Legislature also will vote to approve a lease agreement to move the Veterans Service Agency to Warwick Plaza on Fairmount Avenue in Lakewood. That agency is currently located on West Third Street where it used to co-lease space with the Office for the Aging before the OFA moved to The Chautauqua Center.

The Legislature also will hear a presentation on the Planning Board’s Review of 2022 Capital Projects.

The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. and is open to the public in the Legislative Chambers in the Gerace Office Building in Mayville, or viewable by livestream on the Chautauqua County Government Facebook page.

Bentley said the substitute drivers would remain at that $16.66 an hour rate while the partial full-time employees will have the ability to see wage increases. He said the financial impact will be $100,000 on the operating budget but that CARES Act funding will help this year with reimbursements from New York State possible in the future.

Bentley said the alternative is to cut services, which has already happened in Dunkirk, “CARTS is not something that I would recommend cutting services on. We take people to their doctor appointments, dialysis appointments, we get them to work. It’s the only public transportation system out there. We do it at a very low cost.”

If passed, the pay raise would take effect the beginning of the Third Quarter.

CARTS will resume Saturday service starting July 3rd in the Jamestown, Falconer, Celoron, Lakewood and Dunkirk Areas.

The Lakewood via Fairmount route will run every 45 minutes, the first run will leave the Jamestown Junction at 8 a.m. and the last run will leave the Junction at 5 p.m. every Saturday.

The Willard/Foote Route will also run every 45 minutes the first run will leave the Jamestown Junction at 8 a.m. and the last run will leave the Junction at 5 p.m. every Saturday.

The Falconer Route and the North Main/Baker Route will run opposite each other.

Public Facilities Director Brad Bentley said “Pre-COVID, CARTS Saturday Service was well received and utilized. It is important that we restart Saturday Fixed Route Service as businesses and events return to their normal levels. In addition, CARTS is currently working on more improvements which are expected to be announced later this year.”

To obtain copies of the new and improved Saturday City Route Bus Schedules, please visit CARTS’ Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CARTS.NY or website at https://chqgov.com/carts/CARTS.