Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy Conservation Director Twan Leenders discusses clean-up and restoration work scheduled to be done on the Chadakoin River.

Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy Conservation Director Twan Leenders providing information on Chadakoin River work to City Council (March 27, 2023)

Work to remove debris in the Chadakoin River Basin is expected to begin in April.

Jamestown City Council approved an allocation by the Jamestown Local Development Corporation of $327,925 in American Rescue Plan funds to the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy. These funds are in addition to $35,000 approved by the JLDC board to CWC for work on the Chadakoin River.

CWC Conservation Director Twan Leenders said there are three projects that the funding will be used for, with the first being the debris removal, “It has a number of verticle stumps and all kinds of debris that has accumulated over the decades in there. Two of the different projects involve clearing that out as soon as possible. I just had a meeting yesterday with the DEC and we have the greenlight to actually go ahead with those as soon as possible.”

Leenders said that work will make the basin safe for boaters and other recreation activities. He anticipates starting that work the beginning of April.

Leenders said other projects on the Chadakoin River involves bank restoration on the north shore of the basin as well as both the north and south shores between the Warner Dam and Main Street Bridge, “Those three sections are truly at an imminent risk of collapsing, just as a result of the way the Warner Dam is maintained and has been maintained for decades with the water level purposely kept at a certain height every summer between May 1 and November 1, in part to also control the lake level for Chautauqua Lake for recreational uses.”

Leenders said that water height maintenance has caused the banks above the dam to be undercut by several feet. The project will build out the banks with rocks as well as native vegetation being planted.

He added the last project being funded is the removal of two large beaver dams on Canal Street off Jones & Gifford Avenue. This will help with water flow to alleviate flooding in that area.

Leenders said the bank stabilization projects will likely begin late this Fall when the Warner Dam is opened again. Chautauqua County Soil and Water Conservation District will be contracted to do the work.

Jamestown City Council

The City of Jamestown received $1.8 million in Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant Program funds for the eight positions, but council members have raised concerns about having to lay off those positions once grant funds run out in three years.

Also on tonight’s voting agenda is a resolution to use $500,000 in American Rescue Plan funds for the construction of Splash Pads at Allen and Jackson-Taylor Parks. Council also will vote on a total of $221,000 in requests using ARP funds to add a playground at Willard Park, a pickleball court at Roseland Park, repave basketball courts, and buy 18 new planters for downtown.

A proposal to stabilize the banks of the Chadakoin River in the south basin and between the Warner Dam and North Main Street bridge is up for Council approval.

The allocation of $327,925 in ARP to the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy had been approved by the Jamestown Local Development Corporation, but as the request is over the $100,000 threshold, it requires Council approval. Chautauqua County Soil and Water Conservation District would be contracted to do the work.

Council also will review a local law to increase the mayor’s salary to $82,000 and increase city council member’s salaries to $7,000 with council president receiving an additional $1,000.

A second law pertaining to increasing elected officials’ salaries has also been filed per the request of Council Member Bill Reynolds that includes the original recommendation from the Jamestown Salary Review Commission. This local law would increase City Council members’ salaries from $5,000 to $7,500 while increasing the Council President’s salary from $6,000 to $9,000. It also recommends increasing the Mayor’s salary from $72,000 to $82,000.

Both local laws will be tabled for 30 days and be voted on at the April voting session. If approved, the salary increases would not go into effect until January 1, 2024.

A school bus stop arm camera program contract with BusPatrol and a contract with Bird Bike to bring an ebike and escooter program to Jamestown are also up for consideration.

A work session will be held at 7:00 p.m. in the fourth floor Police Training room with the voting session starting at 7:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers on the second floor of City Hall. Both are open to the public with the voting session being livestreamed at jamestownny.gov.

Jamestown City Council

Five of the positions will fill current and anticipated vacancies in the Jamestown Fire Department. Funding is included in the 2023 City Budget for these positions. The other eight positions also will fill vacancies and are being funded through the 2021 Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant Program.

Council also will review a proposal to replace the Assistant Corporation Counsel position with hiring an Ombudsman. Ben Haskins, who is the current Assistant, is leaving City Government for a different job.

A resolution to use $500,000 in American Rescue Plan funds for the construction of Splash Pads at Allen and Jackson-Taylor Parks is now officially on the agenda. Council had heard a presentation on proposed projects earlier this month.

Council also will review a local law to increase the mayor’s salary to $82,000 and increase city council member’s salaries to $7,000 with council president receiving an additional $1,000. These salary increases were recommended by the Jamestown Salary Review Commission and, if approved, would not go into effect until January 1, 2024.

They also will review an amendment to the Jamestown City Code to change the number of appointments to the Human Rights Commission from 12 to 9 members.

Council will review a American Rescue Plan allocation of $327,925 to the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy by the Jamestown Local Development Corporation for Chadakoin River bank stabilization work. As the request is over the $100,000 threshold, it requires Council approval.

Council also will review a resolution to accept a $50,000 from the Chautauqua County Partnership for Economic Growth for a one year tourism and marketing campaign.

The Housing Committee will meet at 6:30 p.m. tonight and their agenda includes continuing a discussion on lead issues. The Finance Committee, which meets at 7:00 p.m., will hear a report on a National League of Cities grant.

Other committee meetings will start at 7:00 p.m. with the full work session taking place at 7:30 p.m. in the Police Training Room on the fourth floor of City Hall. All meetings are open to the public with the full work session being livestreamed at jamestownny.gov.

Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy’s Twan Leenders presents to the Jamestown Local Development Corporation board (March 15, 2023)

The Jamestown Local Development Corporation board has approved over $360,000 toward Chadakoin River bank stabilization and debris removal.

Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy Conservation Director Twan Leenders presented a request for $362,925 in American Rescue Plan funding to remove debris in the Chadakoin River basin as well as do bank stabilization work on the basin’s north shore as well as the north and south shores between the Warner Dam and Main Street Bridge.

Leenders said with the city receiving funding to activate the Chadakoin River basin, there are other projects that should take place first, “It involves items like the existence of tree stumps and vertical spikes in the basin. If you go down to the Chadakoin basin right now, with the water level being as low as it is, you’ll see three, four-foot spikes sticking up out of the sediment. You’ll see tree stumps sticking up. And, you know at this point the dam is still open because it’s on the winter regime, so it’s mostly for flood control just getting water from Chautauqua Lake, melting water, rain water, to feed it out as soon as possible.”

Leenders said the dam will close on May 1, causing water levels in the basin to rise to the same level as Chautauqua Lake and hiding those spikes from boaters. He recommended the debris removal be done as soon as possible given that water levels are low and the DEC will prohibit work in the river come April 1 when fish spawning season arrives.

Leenders said Chautauqua County Soil and Water Conservation District would be contracted to do the work for all of the projects.

JLDC broke up CWC’s request by approving $35,000 for the debris removal project so that that project could begin immediately. They then approved a second resolution for the remaining $327,925 for bank stabilization work.

City Council will review the $327,925 funding request at its work session on Monday, March 20th where Leenders is expected to present on the request.

Council previously approved $277,750 from the Water, Sewer and Broadband funds category to fund phase one of the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy Chadakoin River Stabilization Project. Phase one, which involved the CWC removing debris and clearing trees out of the lower Chadakoin River, was completed in Summer 2022.

Chautauqua Institution‘s Symphony Orchestra was granted $50,000 in Downtown Programming funds for a concert at the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts.

The program will be “The Music of Billy Joel featuring Michael Cavanaugh with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra” and is scheduled to take place Thursday, August 17.

This will be the first time the Chautauqua Symphony performs off the Institution’s grounds. Their previously scheduled performance in 2020 was canceled due to the Pandemic and the performance scheduled for August 2022 was canceled after author Salman Rushdie was attacked at the Institution’s Amphiteatre the same day.

The City of Jamestown, the Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce, and Collaborative Children’s Solutions are hosting the free event along the Riverwalk in Brooklyn Square.

Kids activities will begin at 10:00 a.m., featuring games, tie dye, face painting, and more.

At 11:00 a.m., Jamestown’s own Lucky Leprechaun will Turn the River Green.

Kids activities will continue until noon with a Downtown Scavenger Hunt taking place from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Entry forms will be available at the river event.

Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist delivers 2023 State of the City Address

Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist toted the allocation of American Rescue Plan funds, and investments in public safety and infrastructure in his 2023 State of the City Address.

Sundquist, delivering his address online, called the receipt of over $28 million in ARP funds transformational to the city, “From these funds we’ve helped over 300 senior households with needed home improvements. We’ve replaced over 100 heavily damaged roofs across Jamestown cost-free to working class and middle class homeowners. We’ve given businesses affected by the Pandemic resources and investments to hire more people locally and a substantial amount of funds to demolish blighted buildings.”

Sundquist said other areas that benefited include the Jamestown Police Department which received funding for more police officers, the clean-up of the lower half of the Chadakoin River, as well as needed capital spending in city departments.

With the rise in gun violence nationally, Sundquist said Jamestown was not the exception last year. He said investment in public safety was necessary, “Working with our City Council, we approved new officers to help with the protection of citizens through a new program which brings our police department staffing up to full force. This includes the approval of a Gun Task Force officers which will continue the work of decreasing gun violence in our city as well as a Quality of Life officer to deal with nuisance complaints that continue to plague our residents.”

Sundquist also lauded the Citizen Police Academy starting back up this year for the first time in decades along with the increase in the number of firefighters on staff.

He cited a record year of infrastructure improvements in the city thanks to additional funding from the state and federal government. Sundquist also mentioned the beginning of work on the new Central Garage on Washington Street that is expected to be completed this year.

In terms of what’s in store for 2023, Sundquist said he’s working with the state and federal government on addressing the lack of Essential Air Service and rail service in the area. He said his administration also will be adding new bike lanes, fixing sidewalks, and hoping to install speed cameras in school zones.

The video and text of Sundquist’s address are available at: https://www.jamestownny.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/2023-State-of-the-City.pdf

Jamestown City Council (December 19, 2022)

Jamestown City Council President Tony Dolce said 2022 was a “very challenging year” in his year-end remarks.

Dolce, speaking at the December 19 Council meeting, said deciding how to allocate the $28 million in American Rescue Plan funds the city received has been difficult at times.

He cited the retreat Council had in March at the Robert H. Jackson Center as one of the times councilmembers gathered to discuss possible spending plans for the money, “I’ve always told people in the community that this is like a family member who passes away that leaves all the family the money and everybody fights over it. And everybody in the community wants a piece of it and everybody has an idea of where the money should go.”

Dolce said he thinks Council has done a good job with distributing funds in a way that “touches all areas of the community” so far, “We’ve put quite a bit of programs and quite a bit of money into business and industries, as well as millions of dollars for seniors, and neighborhoods for demolitions. So, through the Department of Development we’re still working on some plans that are going through there. Tonight we passed some more resolutions for ARPA. We touched on public safety. This past year was a very challenging year. We had an increase in gun violence.”

Dolce said public safety investments included the hiring of additional staff for the police and fire departments, vehicle purchases, equipment upgrades, and infrastructure upgrades for the fire department for long needed repairs.

He said a lot of money was spent in the Department of Public Works and Parks Department for badly needed vehicle and equipment replacement. Dolce added the clean-up of the lower section of the Chadakoin River also benefited from use of the ARPA funds.

Dolce said for those who criticized council for moving too slowly in process, that spending $28 million is a daunting task given the need in the community, “To bounce all those balls around and try to hit every department, hit neighborhoods, hit development, hit economic development, hit public safety, as well as other programs that are in the works and still in the works out there; infrastructure, and manpower, all of those. I think Council took their time and did their due diligence in working through those and coming up with the best solutions.”

Dolce commended Council for its work on the ARPA funds as well as on the work done on the 2023 Budget. He said he also feels Council was transparent during the budget process

City Council will hold its first meeting of 2023 on Monday, January 9.

CCIDA CEO, Deputy County Executive Mark Geise and Chautauqua County Partnership Economic Development Specialist Kristy Kathman Show Proposed Upgrades to Chadakoin River Basin (October 5, 2021)

An initiative to increase public access and encourage economic activity around the Chadakoin River has received $361,00 in state funding.

The City of Jamestown received the funding from Empire State Development for the Chadakoin River Basin Activation Initiative. The City had initially only requested $301,000.

The monies will be used to make enhancements to the north shore of the Basin including a signature garden, mural, tiered seating space, and place-making items. The south shore will see the addition of a kayak launch, dock, and welcome center for visitors.

The city had two consolidated funding applications that did not recieve funding in this eleventh round of ESD grants. Those included a $361,473 request for the Chadakoin River West Brownfield Opportunity Area project and a request for $20,000 so the City can enter into the New York Main Street Program.

The Village of Sherman also was approved funding by ESD, receiving $358,283 to assist in the renovation of commercial and mixed-use buildings in the historic downtown commercial core on East & West Main Street.

Officials celebrate the Riverwalk Illumination Project with the Jamestown BPU’s silo lit in the background (November 10, 2022)

The City of Jamestown has officially “flipped the switch” on the Riverwalk Illumination project.

The project, funded through Downtown Revitalization Initiative monies, lights up the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities Coal Silo, Washington Street Bridge piers and abutments, and the Main Street Bridge arches over the Chadakoin River.

BPU Senior Electrical Engineer Kris Sellstrom said he remembers looking at the BPU’s silo and discussing with others what to do with it, “And how are we going to revitalize this river. As the Riverwalk started getting put in and some of the local lighting got put in there was kind of a resurgence of an idea to light up all of this great infrastructure. We came out with a few generators one night and stuck them under the silo and thought that as pretty cool. We ended up playing around a little bit. The Washington Street bridge got pulled into that and that’s probably the keynote now. When you see it tonight, I think you’ll be really surprised how beautiful that looks.”

The City of Jamestown received $10 million through the DRI in 2016.