“We’re finding many of our departments are spending a very strong amount of time to write grants and it is in many cases impeding from their general day to day work. And we’re also finding more and more grants are coming up through both the State and Federal level really ever than before.”

Sundquist said the city didn’t necessarily need a full-time person and neither did Jamestown Community College,

“In many cases, the City of Jamestown and the Community College aren’t normally going for the same pools of funding. They’re usually a little bit different, many times the same categories and similar agencies, but not necessarily the same pools.”

Kindberg said the college has had a difficult time attracting the caliber of grant writer candidates they need,

“And we think that that’s been based partly on the fact that our salary range has been in the medium range for this position. And while we’ve had a number of candidates apply for positions they’ve always gone where they’ve been offered more money. There seems to be a shortage of local grant writers and so they have some flexibility in determining where they’re going to work.”

Under the 2-year agreement, the City and College would split the salary costs by 50-percent. The salary range is projected to be from $70 to 90-thousand dollars, with $20-thousand dollars being paid by the Jamestown Urban Renewal Agency. The grant writer would report to both JCC and the City, but would be a non-union employee in the Mayor’s Office.

Hillary Meyer

JAMESTOWN – The Reg Lenna Center for the Arts Board of Directors has named Hillary Meyer the organization’s new Executive Director.

Following a comprehensive search and interview process conducted by the organization’s board of directors, Meyer began in the position on July 1.

Meyer has worked in arts and entertainment for more than 20 years including stints in film and television production (“Mad Men”, “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”, “Kinsey”).

In 2011, she joined the then Arts Council for Chautauqua County and Reg Lenna Civic Center in the accounting department. Meyer has moved up through the merging of the organizations into Reg Lenna Center for The Arts, as she became Business Manager, then Interim Executive Director beginning in September 2019.

She will be in the unique position of taking the helm of “The Reg” as it navigates a post-pandemic landscape. Board Director, Maria Kindberg states, “As the search for an executive director continued and COVID hit, it became clear to us that Hillary possessed the leadership we need to move forward. Over the past several months, her understanding of and commitment to the organization became evident. We are confident that, under Hillary’s leadership, The Reg will thrive.”

Currently The Reg is preparing to reopen upon New York State allowing theaters to resume operations in a fuller scope. It is anticipated that movies will be shown first at reduced audience capacity followed by live events. Safety protocols and procedures regarding COVID-19 prevention will be announced once an opening date is determined. Community radio station WRFA-LP 107.9 FM continues to operate fully as an essential service.

Since the organization has been closed to the public, Meyer has worked to keep The Reg afloat, securing financial support in the form of grants and loans from the Paycheck Protection Program, Chautauqua County Crisis Response Fund, Arts Services Initiative of WNY and Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

A Jamestown native, Meyer is a graduate of Rochester Institute of Technology and is affiliated with a local Leadership Collaborative and Allen Park Women’s Club. She is actively involved in her children’s activities including area sports, Jamestown High School Cross Country team and Marching Band and Scandinavian Folk Festival dancing. Meyer lives in the city with her husband Barry (owner of Let’s Go Video) and daughters Daisy and Ruby.

For more information on Reg Lenna Center for The Arts, visit RegLenna.com.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Reg Lenna Center for the Arts is the license holder of WRFA-LP

JAMESTOWN – Jamestown Mayor-elect Eddie Sundquist has put together a Transition Team and established a series of public input sessions as he prepares to launch his initial mayoral term on Jan. 1.

During a special announcement Friday morning at the National Comedy Center in downtown Jamestown, Sundquist was joined by several supporters and members of his transition team. According to Sundquist, his transition team is a voluntary committee designed to create a community conversation on his priorities, evaluate current city operations, and provide suggestions and recommendations for immediate and long term goals to help ensure a smooth transition from one administration to the next. He also said the team is non-partisan and includes representatives from a variety of community organizations and businesses will be broken down into four subcommittees.

Sundquist said the team will be focused on his top priorities for 2020:

• Creating a City for the Future;
• Strengthening Housing Initiatives and Supporting or Neighborhoods; and
• Tackling Financial Burdens.

“We are embracing openness as we focus on creating the Jamestown of the future,” Sundquist said. “To do that we will build on our strengths, work collaboratively with community partners, businesses, neighborhoods and employee groups. Community input is not only welcome, it is strongly encouraged. We hope to have a good turnout for these public meetings, and I am very pleased with the Transition Team that has been assembled.”

Economic and Business Development Subcommittee

• Rich Dixon, Chief Financial Officer with the County of Chautauqua Industrial Development Agency
• Greg Edwards, Chief Executive Officer of the Gebbie Foundation
• Tory Irgang, Executive Director of the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation
• Ricky Turner, President of Blackstone Advanced Technologies.

Housing and Public Safety Subcommittee

• Len Faulk, Professor Emeritus at SUNY Fredonia
• Rev. Luke Fodor, Rector at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church
• Dr. Lillian Ney, former City Council Chair, and former Medical Director and VP of Medical Affairs and Cardiology at WCA Hospital
• Taylor Scott, real estate agent with ERA Team VP Realty.

Financial Stability Subcommittee

• Tom Benson, Managing Director of Vineyard Group, LLC
• Maria Kindberg, Dean of Arts Humanities, & Health Sciences at Jamestown Community College
• Todd Tranum, President and CEO of the Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce and Executive Director of the Manufacturers Association of the Southern Tier
• Kristy Zabrodsky, shareholder of Buffamante Whipple Buttafaro, P.C.

City Operations and Human Resources Subcommittee

• Andy Johnson, Senior HR Advisor at TitanX Engine Cooling
• Peggy Kaltenmeyer, owner of Forté the Restaurant
• George Panebianco, President of Lewis & Lewis
• Patrick Smeraldo, Teacher/Education Consultant at Jamestown Public Schools/Chautauqua Connections Inc.

Serving as Communications and Public Relations Liaison for the Transition Team is Sheila Webster, Director of Marketing, Communications, and Governmental Affairs for the Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce.

Public meetings have been scheduled for December to get input and recommendations from the community. They will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. as follows:

• Economic and Business Development Subcommittee, Thursday, December 5, at Jefferson Middle School
• Housing and Public Safety Subcommittee, Tuesday , December 10, at Washington Middle School
• Financial Stability Subcommittee, Wednesday, December 11, at Persell Middle School
• City Operations and Human Resources Subcommittee, Tuesday, December 17, at Jamestown High School.

“The purpose of these sessions is to listen and to open a dialogue. Primarily, we are seeking input, recommendations, and comments relative to each subject area. This will provide the subcommittees with crucial information as they begin their evaluation process in early January,” Sundquist said. “The experience and diversity of backgrounds in this group is a great starting point. We not only welcome, but invite, all input from all residents of Jamestown.”

David Wilfong during a 2015 Meet the Candidates Forum when running for reelection for District 11 of the Chautauqua County Legislature

JAMESTOWN – The Chautauqua County legislator from Jamestown who’s now seeking the Republican Party’s nomination as candidate for Mayor is relying on his voting record of reducing taxes in county government to convince voters he’s the right man for the job.

In early February current Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi (D) announced he would not be seeking a sixth term in office, opening the door for new leadership in City Hall. One of the individuals who’s come forward to seek the mayoral position is legislator David Wilfong (R-District 11).

Wilfong first ran for an open district 11 seat in the Chautauqua County Legislature in 2011 after former legislator Maria Kindberg (D) opted not to seek reelection. He was defeated that year by Robert Whitney (D). However, he ran once again in 2013 on a platform of selling the Chautauqua County Home in order to reduce property taxes. He defeated Whitney in that rematch and has been reelected twice since then – both in 2015 (defeating Whitney for a second time) and in 2017 (defeating Democratic challenger Frank Besse).

In a recent interview with WRFA, the three-term Republican said that since he joined the County Legislature at the start of 2014, county property taxes have gone down each year and he’s hoping to use that record to help win over voters in November.

“A lot of people don’t realize that at the county level, we have lowered your property taxes for the last five years in a row. So I have a history of making sure I do what the people sent me to Mayville to do,” Wilfong said.

Wilfong, who also currently serves as the chairman of the Chautauqua County Republican Committee, said he’s also shown he’s willing to work with people from the Democratic side of the aisle.

“I’m going to run on my background and the platform I’m going to run on is that I have the knowledge and the skill to reach across the aisle and get things done for the people of Jamestown.”

Wilfong also said he’s well aware of the financial challenges facing the city of Jamestown, which is currently at its constitutional taxing limit and which also has been working under an extremely tight spending plan for the past several years. Still, Wilfong said he does have some cost-saving proposals in mind and he’ll be rolling them out in the coming months. In addition, he said that if elected he’ll also be asking more from the Jamestown City Council.

David Wilfong (R-District 11) during the October 2018 Chautauqua County Legislature meeting

“One of the things that I’m going to request from the city council is that I need more leadership from them and I need more guidance from them because one of the things I learned, being successful at the county, is we don’t do that by ourselves,” Wilfong said. “Mayor Teresi doesn’t spend a dime.  George Borrello, our county executive, doesn’t spend a dime. It’s the city council and the county legislature that okays purchases. So you can say ‘Sam Teresi did this’ or ‘Sam Teresi did that’ but that’s not the truth. The city council is okayed those expenditures.”

Wilfong is also aware that in order for the city to rebound, it will continue to need help from New York State. During the past three budgets the city has requested a total of more than $2.7 million in supplemental state aid to close annual deficits (the state approved the requests in 2017 and 2018 and appears ready to do so again this year).

Wilfong credits the strong relationship mayor Teresi has with fellow Democrat Governor Andrew Cuomo in helping to get that aid delivered. But he also hopes the state would continue offering support if he were elected to office.

“Mayor Teresi has been a good steward of reaching out the governor and receiving funding so we can pay our bills. I would just hope that if I was elected governor that same courtesy would be extended. I just hope there wouldn’t be political games going on because I would be a Republican mayor,” Wilfong said.

But before Wilfong can even run as a Republican in the November General Election, he will first likely have to win a primary in June. Both he and first-term city councilman At Large Andrew Liuzzo (R-At Large) are seeking the party’s nod for the mayoral race, with Wilfong being the candidate receiving the endorsement of the Jamestown Republican Committee. Both candidates are in the process of gathering signatures on their election petitions in order to qualify for the June primary.

Meanwhile, the City Democratic Committee has selected local attorney Eddie Sundquist as its endorsed candidate and he appears to be unopposed in seeking the full party’s nomination as a candidate for mayor.

JCC president Cory Duckworth, Sheldon Foundation board president Peter Sullivan, Sheldon Foundation executive director Linda Swanson, and JCC vice president of enrollment management and institutional advancement Kirk Young in one of the areas that will undergo renovation as part of the Sheldon Foundation grant.

JAMESTOWN – Jamestown Community College and the JCC Foundation have received a major gift from the Ralph C. Sheldon Foundation for renovation of music facilities on the Jamestown Campus.

The Sheldon Foundation has awarded a $1.1 million grant that will enable JCC to upgrade classrooms, equipment, and facilities for the music program in the Arts & Sciences Center.

For many years and through several important initiatives, the Sheldon Foundation has provided financial support to JCC, noted Kirk D. Young, vice president of enrollment management and institutional advancement.

“The foundation’s contributions have greatly enhanced the college’s ability to perform its critical mission,” said Dr. Young. Throughout its history, the Sheldon Foundation has contributed nearly $5 million to the college.

JCC president, Cory Duckworth said, “The Arts & Sciences Center provides educational opportunities for our students in a variety of academic disciplines. It is essential that we continue to renew this facility to remain at the forefront of providing high quality programs.

“We deeply appreciate the Sheldon Foundation’s commitment to provide over $1 million in private funding to help renovate and expand music education facilities and other sections of the building,” Dr. Duckworth added. “The Sheldon Foundation has been a terrific partner with JCC over the years in providing needed upgrades to our Jamestown Campus.”

Maria Kindberg, JCC’s dean of arts, humanities, and health sciences, stated, “The expansion of, and upgrades to, the music wing will allow for state-of-the-art instruction in a dynamic learning environment. JCC’s music program has served students and the community for many years and we look forward to the program growth that the renovated facility will support.

“We are extremely grateful to the Sheldon Foundation for its continued support of academic excellence at JCC,” Mrs. Kindberg said. “Without the foundation’s support, this project would not be feasible.”

JCC anticipates renovations will begin this summer.

Legislator and minority leader Lori Cornell (D-Jamestown) says Chautauqua County’s retail businesses will benefit from the unique status as a county in Western New York State with no clothing tax. Cornell also praised former County Legislator Maria Kindberg who successfully pushed the permanent clothing tax elimination nearly 13 years ago.

Both Cornell and deputy minority leader Bob Whitney (D-Jamestown) are also against raising the county’s share of the sales tax, saying it wouldn’t be helpful to local taxpayers or businesses. The two say the county should look at other ways to reduce cost to tax payers, including consolidating or sharing municipal services.

County executive Greg Edwards is calling on a sales tax increase to help offset a $14 million budget gap in 2013.

MAYVILLE – The Chautauqua County Legislature has decided to wait on hiring a real estate marketing firm to market the County Home in Dunkirk. By a close vote of 13 to 11, the legislature voted to table a resolution entering into an agreement with the firm Marcus and Millichap.

The motion to table was made by Dunkirk’s Keith Ahlstrom, who thought it may be better to wait until January when eight new people join the legislature.

“The fact of the matter is that eight people sitting here tonight are not going to be here next year or the following year, when, if we do decide to this, the decision is going to have to be made,” explained Ahlstrom. “So we are giving a voice to eight people who don’t have any final say and we are taking away a voice from eight people who are going to be asked to make a [final] decision.”

Jamestown’s Maria Kindberg also supported tabling the measure. But her concern was more with allowing the human services committee an opportunity to discuss selling the home, which she equates to the hiring of a marketing firm.

“I guess I would’ve liked to have seen this first passed through [the Human Services Committee]. I noticed that it failed there,” said Kindberg. “And then what we should have had on the floor was a discussion about whether or not we wanted to sell the home. We seem to have skipped over that critical part of this completely.”

Not every lawmaker was in agreement with tabling the measure. Legislature Chiarman Fred Crosscut of Sherman expressed his concern with the cost of operating the home, saying the county really doesn’t have many other options to explore other than sitting down with employees and asking if they are willing to help find a solution…

“If [Local CSEA President] Rose Conti and other union people have some other alternatives, let’s get them out there,” said Crosscut following the meeting. “[People ask] ‘What’s the hurry up?’ We’ll, we’re not trying to hurry it up, but as you heard tonight, we’re going to lose three million dollars on the county home next year. That is significant money.”

The action to table the motion to hiring the firm came after Marcus and Millichap representative Joshua Jandris spent half an hour discussing his firm, saying that the county would still have control on how the home would be marketing, including setting the terms and conditions of any possible sale.

RIFLE HUNTING AMENDMENT GETS SHELVED

MAYVILLE – The legislature last night also tabled a measure to amend the county hunting law. Under a motion introduced by Sheridan’s Bob Duff and Lakewood’s Rudy Mueller, hunters who use rifles would be required to hunt at least 1,000 feet from the nearest residence. Several hunters spoke against the motion prior to the vote, including Craig Robbins, Chautauqua County Sport Hunting and Fishing Coordinator, who says that until recently, hunters were going elsewhere because of the county’s ban on hunting with a rifle.

“Hunting and fishing in Chautauqua County is big business and it’s something we all take pride in. We’ve got a great area. We’ve got a great resource and a lot of people come in to share that resource,” explained Robbins. “Recently we’ve seen a decrease in the gun season licenses and we attribute that to them not being able to use their firearm of choice. Which is a legal hunting implement: the rifle.”

Robbins said that if the proposed amendment were put into place, it would make it extremely difficult to hunt anywhere in the county with a rifle and hunters would go elsewhere. The potential financial impact of the law may have on the county was the main reason Legislator John Gullo of Fredonia made a motion to table the amendment. It was passed by a vote of 15 to 9.

CITY MAN CHARGED IN DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CASE

JAMESTOWN – A Jamestown man faces charges related to domestic violence after city police responded to an incident Tuesday afternoon. Officers were called to investigate a domestic incident that took place in an apartment at 532 Lakeview Ave shortly after 3:30 p.m. Tuesday. After an investigation, police learned that 24 year-old Aaron Boyd allegedly choked and held a female victim against her will. The female was not injured in the incident and Boyd was charged with criminal obstruction of breathing and unlawful imprisonment.

CRCF CELEBRATES NATIONAL COMMUNITY FOUNDATION WEEK

JAMESTOWN – This week is National Community Foundation Week, and the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation will be holding a special open house from 9 a.m. to noon tomorrow at its office at 418 Spring St.

The open house will offer the foundation officials an opportunity to thank donors for all their generous support and focus on what the foundation has been able to accomplish through the generosity of others. It also provides a forum for area residents to visit the foundation. Refreshments will be served.

This year’s event will highlight the community gems the foundation has helped support throughout the region. For more information, call 661-3390 or visit www.crcfonline.org – or tune in tonight during community matters as WRFA General Manager Dennis Drew interviews Chautauqua Region Community Foundation Executive Director Randy Sweeny.

MAYVILLE – Today is Election Day in Chautauqua County, and while there are many uncontested local races in the area, there is an important proposition on the ballot this year that every voter in the county will have an opportunity to vote on.

Proposition No. 1 will let voters decide whether the County Legislature has no more than 19 members. Currently, there are 25 members on the panel, a number that’s been in place for over 30 years.  The proposition will be available on the backside of all paper ballots used in this year’s election.

Polling offices will be open from now until 9 p.m. this evening. For information on specific voting locations or ballots, contact the Chautauqua County Board of Elections or go online to www.votechautauqua.com.

ONLY ONE CONTESTED RACE IN JAMESTOWN

JAMESTOWN – As far as local elections go, it will be a quiet year in Jamestown, with only one contested race on the ballot. That race is for the Ward 4 seat in the Jamestown City Council, where incumbent democrat Vince DeJoy will be squaring off against challenger Dan Johnson – who’s been endorsed by the Republican, Conservative and Independence parties.

Jamestown Republican Party Chairman Brent Sheldon says he’s excited about Johnson running as a candidate.

The rest of the council, as well as Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi, are running unopposed. Sheldon said the GOP tried to find a challenger but was unable to do so. Teresi is seeking a fourth term in the mayor’s office. He was first elected to that position in 1999.

LEGISLATURE HAS EIGHT CONTESTED RACES

MAYVILLE – There are also several uncontested races in the county legislature. In fact, a total of 17 seats only have one candidate, with seven incumbent Democrats and ten Republicans (Eight incumbents) going unchallenged.

Of the uncontested races, two new candidates are going unopposed – Vince Horrigan in Bemus Point and PJ Wendel in Lakewood. Both are running for the Republican party. Horrigan will be replacing longtime Republican legislator Dick Babbage while Wendel will be taking the seat currently held by Democratic Minority Leader Rudy Mueller.

There will be eight contested races for the legislature, leaves a total of eight actual races for the Chautauqua County Legislature.

In the city of Jamestown, the Legislative District 14 race features Timothy Hoyer on the Democratic line. He faces Republican candidate Michael Haddad for the district currently represented by Scott Stutzman, I-Jamestown.

In District 15, Maria Kindberg, D-Jamestown, is vacating her seat – making the race a first-time election for both Bob Whitney and David Wilfong. Whitney holds the Democratic, Conservative and Independence lines. Wilfong will appear on the Republican line on November’s ballot.

In District 10 – which covers part of Busti and West Ellicott, incumbent Republican incumbent Mark Tarbrake is being challenged by Pat Tyler, who holds the Democratic, Conservative, Working Families and Independence Party lines.

Other Local races of note include District 7, which covers the towns of Cherry Creek, Ellington and Poland. There, incumbent Republican candidate Bob Stewart is being challenged by Democrat Tamara Miles.

In District 8 – which covers the towns of Carroll and Kiantone, incumbent Republican candidate Tami Downey is being challenged by Thomas Erlandson, who holds the Democratic, Conservative and Independence Party lines.

The Democrats in the legislature who are running unopposed are Keith Ahlstrom, Dunkirk; Shaun Heenan, Dunkirk; Vickeye James, Jamestown; Lori Cornell, Jamestown; Paula DeJoy, Jamestown; Chuck Nazzaro, Jamestown; and Tom DeJoe, Brocton.

The Republicans who stand to return unopposed are Bob Duff, Sheridan; George Borrello, Irving; John Runkle, Stockton; Larry Barmore, Gerry; Jay Gould, Ashville; Fred Croscut, Sherman; David Himelein, Findley Lake; and Bob Scudder, Fredonia.

EDWARDS WILL NOT VETO ITEMS IN BUDGET

MAYVILLE – In other news, County Executive Greg Edwards announced Monday that he will not veto any part of the legislature’s 2012 budget. County lawmakers passed the spending plan in a 20 to 5 vote last month. Edwards then had 10 calendar days to review the changes made and issue any vetoes. Edwards used his Monday Morning Memo yesterday to announcing his decision, in which he called the final budget passed by the legislature “a mockery of our fiscal management policy.” Edwards explained that he would not be implementing any line item vetoes because the budget was passed overwhelmingly by the legislature and therefore the 20 who supported it last month could override any vetoes.

Next year’s budget will take the county’s property tax rate from $8.90 to 9.22 per thousand dollars of assessed value, an increase of 32 cents. As proposed by the county executive, the 2012 budget initially started with a $1.13 per thousand tax increase, which would have taken the property tax rate to $10.03 per thousand.

POLICE SEEK ROBBERY SUSPECT

FINDLEY LAKE – The Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Department is investigating an armed robbery that occurred in Findley Lake early Monday morning. According to police, at 5:22 a.m. a white male subject entered the Holiday Inn Express, 3025 Route 426, in Findley Lake, and demanded money from the front desk. Police say he used a semi-automatic pistol to threaten the desk clerk.

The suspect fled in an unknown direction in a vehicle with an undisclosed amount of money.

The suspect is described as a white male, age 20 to 30, 5 feet 8 inches to 6 feet tall, medium build, weighing about 180 to 190 pounds, with grayish-blue eyes and light freckles over the bridge of his nose.

He was wearing a blue winter jacket, knit hat and a scarf over his face to conceal his identity. The hat and scarf were either red or gray in color.

The Sheriff’s office is encouraging anyone with information on this incident to call the We Tip number at 1-800-78-CRIME (800-782-7463) or the Sheriff’s Office at 753-4925. Callers are eligible for a $1,000 reward if the information leads to the arrest and conviction of the person involved. All calls will remain anonymous.

Senator Catherine Young (R-Olean)

Senator Cathy Young is announcing an effort in the state Senate to stop the burden of local Medicaid payments. Yesterday, Young released a statement saying she has signed on as a co-sponsoring to legislation that would require the State to gradually take over Medicaid costs from the counties, an initiative that could save property taxpayers in Chautauqua County millions of dollars each year.  The bill would immediately freeze the rate local governments pay for Medicaid, effective January 1, 2012.  On October 1, 2012, counties’ contributions would be decreased by five percent, with local contributions annually reduced until the state entirely funds Medicaid services by 2019.  The state Assembly has a matching version of the bill which Assemblyman Andrew Goodell (R,C-Chautauqua) is strongly supporting.

The announcement came just one day after County Executive Greg Edwards presented his 2012 budget. During the presentation, Edwards asked the County Legislature to consider withholding weekly Medicaid Payments to the state until lawmakers in Albany allow the county to increase its sales tax rate to 8 percent. Edwards says a sales tax rate is likely the only viable solution to help offset the 12.6 percent property tax hike he has proposed in his 2012 budget.

KINDBERG SAYS OTHER BUDGET OPTIONS SHOULD BE PURSUED

And County Lawmakers will begin budget deliberations next week in Mayville. Long-time Jamestown legislator Maria Kindberg (D-District 15) says it’s going to be an extremely difficult process. And while she agrees state mandates are severely hurting local taxpayers, she doesn’t believe that increasing the sales tax to offset a property tax hike is the best solution. Instead, Kindberg says she’d rather see county lawmakers explore other options.

Kindberg – who is not seeking another term in office this November – adds that even though she will be leaving the legislature at the end of this year, she is still planning to put a lot of effort into finding a solution to the budget crisis.

COUNTY CLERK CRITICIZES STATE DMV

MAYVILLE – Chautauqua County Clerk Sandy Sopak is railing against the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles for a new program that she says will make the roads less safe while also taking money away from local governments. The DMV announced this week that it will allow drivers to renew their driver’s license online by removing the eye exam requirement. Instead, drivers will have the option to self-certify their vision is 20/40 or better when they renew.

Sopak says the new policy, along with other initiatives, could lead to a shut down of some DMV offices in local communities throughout the state.  She is calling on county residents to contact their representatives in Albany and speak out against the new program.

HIGGINS ANNOUNCES $954,000 GRANT FOR COI

WASHINGTON – Congressman Brian Higgins is announcing that Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc. has been awarded nearly one million dollars in grant funding to help continue its services into 2012. The congressman says COI will receive a total of $954,759 in three grants through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  The largest award, totaling $618,031 will go to COI for the Chautauqua Pathways to Responsible Fatherhood Program.  The project will target low-income fathers and expectant fathers ages 16-45 and their families.

COI will also receive $185,000 in federal funding for the Safe House of Chautauqua County Program and $151,728 for the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Street Outreach Program.

YOUNG TO COMMEMORATE WINERY’S 100TH ANNIVERSARY

Senator Cathy Young will be in Westfield later today to help celebrate a major milestone for a local winery. The Johnson Estate Winery is celebrating its 100^th Anniverssary this weekend.  It is the oldest family-owned estate winery in New York. Senator Young will be on hand to help celebrate and also present the Johnson family with a resolution to commemorate the occasion

10,000 MANIACS CONCERT IS THIS WEEKEND

10,000 Maniacs will take center state this weekend at Jamestown Community College. As part of the band’s 30^th anniversary, two concerts will take place in JCC’s Scharmann Theatre on Saturday, Oct. 1 and Sunday Oct. 2.  The Saturday night show is already sold out, but tickets are still available for the Sunday show, which begins at 2 p.m.

And later today, our own Dennis Drew will interview 10,000 Maniacs guitarist Jeff Erickson during WRFA’s Arts on Fire program. In addition, we’ll feature an interview with Vanessa Weinert, who is spearheading the Salvation Army Anew Center’s Arts of the Anew art exhibit in Jamestown, beginning Oct. 14. The project is being held to help raise awareness about domestic violence and assault in Chautauqua County.

Arts on Fire begins at 1 p.m. this Afternoon.

MAYVILLE – A piece of property owned by the county has been approved for sale to the Ashville Fire District for $85,000. The action was taken last night during the monthly meeting of the Chautauqua County Legislature. The panel approved the sale of the property at 2097 South Maple Avenue in North Harmony to the fire department, despite the opposition of several residents – including members of the fire department.

At issue was whether or not the fire department actually needs – or can even afford – the property.  Former Ashville Fire Department Chief Mike Gleason claims the fire commission went ahead submitting a bid before even having it approved in meeting. While the sale was approved by the legislature, the residents of the fire district will have the final say on the purchase when it goes up for a  public referendum this November.

COUNTY TO CONTINUE 7.5 PERCENT SALES TAX IN 2012

MAYVILLE – In other news from last night’s meeting, the Legislature approved a resolution to keep the county’s sales tax at 7.5 percent. The resolution received nearly unanimous support, although Lori Cornell (D-Jamestown) spoke out against the current rate, saying she opposes any tax increase, noting that if the legislature voted against the measure, the tax increase would revert to 7 percent.

However, several legislators disagreed, including Chuck Nazarro (D-Jamestown), who said that maintaining the current sales tax level is far more palatable than the alternative of raising property taxes even higher to offset the difference. Nazarro noted that 7.5 percent is still comparatively low compared to other counties in the state, and if the sales tax were to revert back to 7 percent, the county would be facing a $24 million budget gap instead of the $18 million.

Foreclosed property amendment also debated
There was also a lengthy discussion last night regarding an amendment to a current law dealing with who can purchase foreclosed property from the county. The amendment dealt with several matters, but the final version did not include a stipulation that any purchaser of foreclosed property must not have any outstanding tax payments to other properties they already own. Maria Kindberg (D-Jamestown), along with Cornell, wanted to leave that stipulation in the final version of the amendment, but didn’t receive the needed support. Legislator Larry Barmore (R-Gerry) said that because it would be difficult to track of each purchasers tax records, the county legislature would instead review each property purchase on a case-by-case basis.

Other Legislature Action
Among other items last night, the legislature approved a resolution naming Katherine Tampio as the new clerk of the legislature for the remainder of 2011. She will replace Ron Lemon, who announced he was stepping down from the post at the end of this month.

The legislature also approved a resolution on a one-year lease agreement for space to be used as a restaurant in the Chautauqua County Airport to Teal Wolcott, owner of the Backyard Bar and Grill in Kimblestand – at a cost of $600 per month.

ERIE, PA COMPANY PURCHASES PEEK’N PEAK

FINDLEY LAKE – It looks like the owner of the Erie, Pennsylvania indoor water park will be the new owner of Peek’n Peak Resort in Findley Lake. On Wednesday, Scott Enterprises – which owns the water park located off Interstate 90 along with a string of other hotels – was the high bidder at a court-ordered auction. The Post-Journal reports that the successful bid was for $11.3 million. A total of four participants took part in the bidding process during yesterday’s auction. A Bankruptcy judge in Cleveland is expected to approve the deal for the 1,150-acre ski and golf resort during a hearing later this morning.

COUNTY HUMANE SOCIETY, LAKE MANAGEMENT PLAN TO BE FEATURED ON WRFA

The Chautauqua County Humane Society is asking area residents to turn their carbon footprint into a green pawprint. The organization’s 2nd Chances Thrift Store wants all of your fabric and electronic cast-offs, especially the stuff that would normally be thrown in the garbage. The new initiative has already been launched and we’ll have complete details later today during our Community Matters program at 6 p.m. right here on WRFA.

Also tonight on community matters program, we’ll replay a portion of last night’s county legislature meeting dealing with the progress of creating a Chautauqua Lake Watershed’s Management Plan. Lyle Hajdu of Chautauqua Lake Management Commission and Jeff Diers of the the Chautauqua County Watershed Commission delivered the update.  A management plan is needed before the lake can qualify for state funding to address various issues of concern related its health.