The Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office reports 65 year old Andrew Lawrence had been using a tractor on his property on Lamberton Road to try to pull out a different tractor that was stuck in the mud. The tractor Lawrence was operating rolled over backwards.

The Sheriff’s Office said Lawrence was pronounced dead at the scene.

Map showing expansion of South Chautauqua Lake Sewer District

Phase Two of the Westside Sewer Extension project has been awarded $6 million in Water Infrastructure Improvement Grants from New York State.

The funding is coming from the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation and is part of $300 million announced by Governor Kathy Hochul for water infrastructure improvements across the state.

The South and Center Chautauqua Lake Sewer Districts approved the second phase of the project in June with the maximum cost of it being $24 million.

Construction of Phase 1 of the project started in 2021 and will extend the district to the Hamlet of Stow. It is anticipated to be complete in 2023.

Phase 2 will extend the Districts from the Hamlet of Stow to the North Chautauqua Lake Sewer District border, near Prendergast Creek.

The Phase 2 Extension will be comprised of properties on the western shore of the Lake in the Towns of North Harmony and Chautauqua, generally along New York State Route 394. The wastewater collection and conveyance facilities will extend the public sewer and provide direct benefit to the estimated 350 developed parcels. The area is currently serviced by private septic systems and individually maintained by the corresponding property owner.

Also receiving $4.02 million in State Environmental Facilities Corporation grant funds is the town of Chautauqua for the Chautauqua Water District No. 2 Water Supply. Chautauqua is also receiving a $50,000 engineering planning grant for the extension of South Sewer District No. 1.

The Town of Chautauqua is also receiving over $1.8 million in interest-free financing from the Environmental Facilities Corporation Board to decommission the Chautauqua Heights Sewer District Treatment Plant. The town will also construct a pump station and force main.

Other municipalities receiving engineering planning grants include the town of Hanover with $36,000 for the Route 5 & 20 Sewer Line Engineering Planning Study; the town of Pomfret receiving $30,000 for a Public Sewer System Extension Study, and the Village of Westfield will receive $40,000 for an Engineering Planning Grant.

New York State Police

Police say 41-year old Mark Daniels of Fredonia was speeding on Route 20 when the car went off the road on a curve, striking a fence and tree stump, before overturning multiple times.

Daniels was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the Fredonia Fire Department assisted in the investigation.

The funding is part of the $750 million announced for Round XI of the Governor’s Regional Economic Development Council initiative.

The town of Pomfret will receive a $135,000 Green Innovation grant to install water meters with advanced metering infrastructure. This project will increase water conservation by collecting more frequent and accurate readings.

The towns of Mina and Ripley, the village of Westfield, the North Chautauqua Lake Sewer District, and the Portland Pomfret Dunkirk Sewer District will all receive $30,000 each in Engineering Planning Grants to start a planning process so they can be better prepared to seek financing to help them complete their water infrastructure projects.

POMFRET – An elderly Cherry Creek man was fatally injured late last week after getting into an accident with a tractor-trailer in the town of Pomfret. Chautauqua County Sheriff Deputies say 83 year-old Harry Loomis reportedly pulled out in front of the tractor-trailer at about 8:40 p.m. Friday night on Route 5.  The driver of the rig, 31 year-old Jason Gage of Buffalo, was unable to avoid the collision and Loomis was ejected from his vehicle after it went into a ditch. Loomis was taken to Brooks Memorial Hospital, where he died of his injuries. Gage was ticketed for driving with a suspended registration, according to police.

The investigation is continuing, as investigators try to determine the cause of the vehicle crossing into the truck’s path.

EDWARDS REACTS TO GOVERNOR’S CALL FOR MEDICAID REFORM IN 2012-13 BUDGET

MAYVILLE – When Governor Andrew Cuomo released is budget proposal last week, County leaders were relieved to hear issues such as Medicaid and pension reform being talked about by the state’s leader. However, ideas mentioned by Gov. Cuomo don’t look to translate to any immediate cost-savings for counties.  According to an article in today’s Jamestown Post-Journal, the cost of Medicaid will still increase for counties in 2013 and 2014 under the governor’s proposal – just not as much as counties were expecting.

County Executive Greg Edwards is quoted as saying “The good news is, counties won’t have to raise property taxes quite so much to keep up with Albany, but the state can do better.” For the past few years now, counties have been calling for an end and a reversal to the Medicaid mandates which they say drive up the local county property tax rates.

CITY COUNCIL TO HOLD COMMITTEE, WORK SESSION MEETINGS TONIGHT

JAMESTOWN – The Jamestown City Council will hold another round of committee meetings followed by a work session tonight in city hall. Both the Council’s Finance Committee and Public Safety Committee will review an Intermunicipal Agreement Referral for the Town of Busti. In addition, the finance committee will also review the city’s conflict of interest policy and its whistleblower policy.

The Public Safety Committee will meet at 6:45 p.m. tonight in the Police Training Room on the 4^th floor of City Hall, and the city finance committee will meet at 7 p.m. in the mayor’s conference room of city hall. The full council work session will begin at 7:30 p.m. The January voting session will be held next Monday night.

PRENDERGAST LIBRARY ANNOUNCES NEW CLASSES IN FEBRUARY

JAMESTOWN – The Prendergast Library will offer four new classes this spring for the community.  A series called Professional Skills includes three 10-hour courses on Teaching Adult Learners, Effective Communication, and Workplace Skills.

The other series, Role Model Readers, offers classes for adults who want to read to their children or grandchildren and help them be successful readers.

All instruction is free and open to the public. Classes begin in February. For a specific class schedule or to sign up, call 484-7135 – Ext. 225, or stop at the Prendergast Library information desk.

The classes are being held in cooperation with Erie 2-Chautauqua-Cattaraugus BOCES and with support from the New York State Library’s Adult Literacy Library Services grant program.

JCC ANNOUNCES NON-PROFIT CLASSES IN FEBRUARY

JAMESTOWN – Jamestown Community College’s Jamestown Campus will offer a seven-part series focused on non-profit management, beginning February 8.

The series meets from 9 a.m. to noon on Wednesdays, February 8 through March 21. The registration fee is $215 for the series, or $45 for individual sessions.

Sessions include: Introduction to Non-Profit Management, February 8; Strategic Planning for Non-Profits, February 15; Building An Effective Board of Directors, February 22; Recruiting, Maintaining, and Managing Volunteers, February 29;

Also, Grant Writing, March 7; Fundraising and Marketing for Non-Profits, March 14; and Conducting Meetings Using Technology, March 21.

To register, for for more information, call JCC’s Center for Continuing Education, 338.1005.