Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist, Council Members Jeff Russell, Tony Dolce, Brent Sheldon, Kim Ecklund, Parks Manager Dan Stone, City Council member Marie Carrubba, Acting DPW Director Mark Roetzer, City Council member Randy Daversa, and Jamestown Citizen at the Third Street Tree Planting (May 13, 2023)

Several dozen people showed up Saturday to help plant the 37 trees that now line the block of West Third Street where the former Cathedral Oak trees stood.

The “Re-Tree-Ing” event held by the Jamestown Parks Department was part of the annual Arbor Day celebration and designation of Jamestown as a Tree City USA for a 42nd year.

Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist said it was unfortunate to have to remove the 100 year old oak trees back at the end of 2020, “That due to various issues of disease in the root systems, we started seeing trees fall down on properties. It was a very tough decision for the city. Since that time, we’ve been working with the community to redesign West Third Street and make it more of a gateway into the downtown core. And so we’ve been doing just that.”

The redesign project involved the replacement of sidewalks, driveway aprons, new candlestick lighting, and the planting of new trees on West Third Street between Hall and Hallock Streets.

It was funded using $500,000 in American Rescue Plan monies.

Parks Manager and Arborist Dan Stone thanked the many people involved over the years in parks and with the forestry program. He gave special recognition to Chautauqua Art Gallery owner Leslie Calimeri for putting together the Third Street Oak Trees Art Show, “It involved a bunch of other local artists and photographers in the city and throughout the area. With her project, most of these donations, the work that they did and what they sold it for, most of those people did not take money for it. They donated 100% back, or at least a good portion back, of what they had done.”

Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist and Parks Manager Dan Stone recognize Chautauqua Art Gallery owner Leslie Calimeri with the Joan P. Shevory Citizen Forester Award (May 13, 2023)

The art show raised $2,341 dollars for the Urban Forestry Fund. Calimeri was presented with the Joan P. Shevory Citizen Forester Award for her efforts.

The trees planted Saturday include a combination of ‘Columnar’ Sargent Cherry trees, ‘Columnar’ Oaks, ‘Frontier’ American Elms, and ‘Sun Valley’ Red Maple.

The block of West Third Street from Hall Avenue to Hallock street will be closed starting at 7:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 13.

The Jamestown Parks Department will hold a ceremony at 9:00 a.m. at Healing Word Ministries Church recognizing the City of Jamestown as a Tree City for the 42nd consecutive year by the Arbor Day Foundation. Following the ceremony, a community tree planting will take place where four varieties of trees will be planted to replace the Cathedral Oak trees that had to be cut down at the end of 2020.

The trees will be a combination of ‘Columnar’ Sargent Cherry trees, ‘Columnar’ Oaks, ‘Frontier’ American Elms, and ‘Sun Valley’ Red Maple trees.

Motorists must use alternate routes of travel and, as always, motorists should use extra caution while driving near this area.

Jamestown DPW Director Jeff Lehman explains West Third Street Redesign to Planning Commission

The Jamestown Planning Commission unanimously approved the site plans for the West Third Street Redesign.

Planning Commission member and Jamestown Director of Public Works Jeff Lehman said the $500,000 project is set to begin in May and continue until the end of summer.

The project includes new sidewalks, driveway aprons, and new lighting from Hall to Hallock Street. New trees will be planted as well to replace the “Cathedral Oaks” that were removed at the end of 2020.

Funding for the project comes from American Rescue Plan lost recovery monies.

Jamestown City Council

Jamestown City Council members promised “more is to come” after approving over $2 million in American Rescue Plan funded projects Monday night.

While Council members Regina Brackman and Andrew Faulkner voted no, all other council members approved $500,000 toward the redesign of West Third Street.

Council President Tony Dolce said the decision to remove the Cathedral Oaks over a year ago was difficult and emotional, “I know there was a lot of talk of, at that point, of doing some work. That it was a time to start that entrance to the city. To start over. Those sidewalks are in rough shape. It is a major thoroughfare for people to walk and drive, although the street is not going to be reconstructed.”

DPW Director Jeff Lehman said the project will go before the Jamestown Planning Commission in April, with work hopefully beginning in May. He said the new trees will be planted by the Parks Department in the Fall.

Council also approved using $750,000 ARP funds for a Roof, Private Sewer Lateral, Private Water Line Repair/Replacement grant program.

Council member at large Jeff Russell said he was happy to support the resolution as it will help homeowners, “I understand that there has to be equal money that goes toward our businesses and our downtown but I’m surely am not going to forget about the elderly people that might be struggling to make their mortgage payment with super high inflation going on and they can’t afford some of these repairs. And I will push for some of this money to continue to go back to the taxpayers.”

Council member Marie Carrubba said her office often receives calls from seniors, retirees, and veterans with limited funds who are looking for help with housing issues, “And try to get roofs repaired especially in some of the older homes that they occupy is extremely difficult along with replacing water and sewer lines. I’ve heard that excavators, I think, start around $6000 to have one in your front yard. Most of the people that, you know, if you look at the median income around $43,000 in the city, it’s not affordable for individuals to maintain their properties when these kind of emergencies occur.”

Council also approved using American Rescue Plan funds for replacing water mains, equipment for DPW, upgrades to the fire stations, and creating a Tree-Damaged Sidewalk Replacement Rebate program.

Dolce said when it comes to the ARP funds received by the city, the council has a fiduciary responsibility to see that it’s spent wisely and they do get a return on investment, “There are a lot of people who have a lot of needs. $28 million is just a drop in the bucket for what is needed in this community. We’ll do our due diligence and do the best we can to expend the money as we see fit. Again, a delicate balance in neighborhoods versus providing for our business downtown and our industries. There is a lot of need in different areas. We’re looking at all those different areas when we’re making these decisions.”

Council also approved allocating $1.227 million in additional American Rescue Plan funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development toward a Rental Rehabilitation Program. Director of Development Crystal Surdyk said she anticipates submitting the program for approval by HUD by the end of this week.

Under new business, Council will vote on a resolution using ARP funds to establish a Roof, Private Sewer Lateral, Private Water Line Repair/Replacement grant program for the amount of $750,000.

They also will vote on using $500,000 in ARP funds for the redesign of West Third Street that includes new driveway aprons, new sidewalks, new lighting, and the planting of new trees.

Other ARP funded projects up for consideration include $483,000 to replace water mains on May Street and Gwendolin Avenue, $185,000 for a salt brine de-icing system, and resolutions totaling $252,735 to provide back up generators for fire stations, new entry doors, new overhead doors, and the truck floor renovation at Station 5.

A resolution using $100,000 in ARP funds to create a Sidewalk Replacement Rebate Program also will be voted on.

Council also will vote to allocate $1.227 million for a Rental Rehabilitation Program. The funding is coming through the American Rescue Plan Act for jurisdictions that qualified for HOME Investment Partnerships Program allocations. This funding is in addition to what the City received in American Rescue Plan funding. A public hearing on the HOME-ARP Allocation plan will be held at 7:00 p.m., prior to the voting session.

Council also will vote to pay a $51,168 settlement to Royal Housing LLC.

The settlement is in regards to a case between the City and Royal Housing LLC that had been ongoing since 2014. According to the staff report and court filings, the city was found to have violated constitutional rights for condemning an entire multi-unit building located at 1091 East Second Street for drugs under the nuisance ordinance rather than only the impacted units.

The City Council voting session starts at 7:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers on the second floor of City Hall. It’s open to the public and will be livestreamed as well.

Jamestown City Council work session on March 21, 2022

Jamestown City Council discussed the proposal to spend $500,000 on the West Third Street redesign project at its work session Monday night.

Council President Tony Dolce said there has been some confusion over the scope of the project. He said it’s not a street reconstruction but the replacement of curbs, sidewalks, driveway aprons, new lighting, and new trees, “A big chunk of the project is the movement of the backyard services, electrical services, to the front and burying them. So the question that I had earlier today was can the BPU not fund part of that and if not, why not? Since they were planning on, they’ve been talking about doing this in different parts of the city. This seems to be the opportune time to do it cause we’re doing the construction.”

Mayor Eddie Sundquist said they’ll look at the cost and get back to Dolce. Council Member Marie Carrubba, who sat on the BPU board until recently, said in the Council Finance Committee meeting that the BPU had been discussing moving the poles for the last two years.

Council member at large Jeff Russell said while the cost has been contentious to some, he sees the project as benefiting everyone in the city. He said while some think the people on the street are being shown “favoritism” he doesn’t see it that way, “I look at this as something that, in totality, it benefits the entire city, all the citizens. That’s a major artery [‘Coming in’ – Council member Bill Reynolds] and it’s been breathtaking over the years. It was sad that they [the trees] had to come down. It seems some of the same people who were complaining about the trees coming down are now complaining about the cost to replace that which is sad.”

Dolce added he supports the project and that this is the opportune time to do it.

The funding for the project would come from American Rescue Plan lost recovery monies.

Council also reviewed a resolution to use $100,000 in ARP funds to create a Sidewalk Replacement Rebate Program. The pilot program would be used to replace a blacktopped portion of a sidewalk with concrete where a damaged concrete block was taken out due to tree root damage. DPW Director Jeff Lehman said it would be a 50-50 match with the city paying $6 a square foot for the block replacement.

Mayor Sundquist announced that a special retreat work session of the City Council will be held this Wednesday. The meeting will take place at 6:00 p.m. at the Robert H. Jackson Center with discussion centering on American Rescue Plan projects. The meeting will not be livestreamed but is open to the public.

Jamestown City Council

One resolution is to allocate $1.227 million for a Rental Rehabilitation Program. The funding is coming through the American Rescue Plan Act for jurisdictions that qualified for HOME Investment Partnerships Program allocations. This funding is in addition to what the City received in American Rescue Plan funding. A public hearing on the HOME-ARP Allocation plan will be held Monday, March 28.

Two resolutions focus on the Spring Street Parking Ramp with one using bond monies to spent $410,000 to modernize the elevator. The other resolution would be to accept a $5,000 grant from Art Services Inc. through the New York Council for the Arts for the beautification of the ramp.

Council also will review a resolution to spend $232,300 to purchase materials for a pre-engineered metal building that will be constructed on the site of the new Fleet Maintenance Facility on Washington Street. The funding comes from a state grant received in 2019.

Under American Rescue Plan funded projects, a resolution will be presented to use $500,000 in ARP funds for the West Third Street Redesign project. The initial project cost estimate was $479,605 and the resolution’s amount is meant to build in a contingency for the project. The costs include removal and replacement of driveway aprons, sidewalks, new lighting, new tree plantings, as well as landscaping the terrace.

Another ARP funded project resolution would authorize spending $185,000 to purchase a salt brine deicing system. The staff report said this system could save the city up to 10%, or over $40,000, on the City salt budget.

And council will review a resolution that would use $100,000 in ARP funds to create a Sidewalk Replacement Rebate Program. The City would offer $6 a square foot, which is an additional $3 per square feet over the normal sidewalk rebate, to replace tree damaged sidewalks. Homeowners would submit an application for the program and would be reimbursed in a similar fashion to the current sidewalk rebate program.

Public Safety Committee also will review a block party application from the James Prendergast Library as well as special event permit applications from Grow Jamestown Garden Fair Earth Day Event, Gold Star Memorial Day weekend event, and Whirlybird Festival. Public Safety also will continue a discussion on fireworks.

City Council Committee meetings start at 6:45 with the full work session being held at 7:30 p.m. in the Police Training Room on the fourth floor of City Hall.

City officials go over West Third Street redesign with residents

Over 25 people turned out Monday night to learn more about the West Third Street Redesign being proposed by the City of Jamestown.

The public input meeting held at Healing Word Ministries featured city officials giving an overview of the project that includes replacing sidewalks and driveway aprons on the section of West Third Street between Hall and Hallock Streets. New “candlestick” style street lighting also will be installed in addition to the planting of new trees that replace the “Cathedral Oaks” that were taken down at the end of 2020.

DPW Project Engineer Mark Roetzer said the city hopes to have a contractor in place by May and breaking ground by mid-May or early June. He said the project will be done one block at a time as homeowners will not have access to their driveways once digging begins.

Roetzer said doing the work to move electric lines from the backyards of the houses on the southside of West Third Street is a big part of the project, “So, the back lots, the actual moving of the electrical lines is in the future, but we’re getting the infrastructure in place this year. I don’t know when that’s scheduled for.”

Parks Manager and City Arborist Dan Stone said residents on West Third Street will have the option to select from a list of four to five trees which one they’d prefer to have in front of their house, “And with that said, I’d still like to have some kind of continuity on the street as well. For example, over at Lind Funeral Home, I was thinking of planting some American Elm trees. They have a real nice red color to them but a small leaf to them. If you’ve ever driven by, those guys were out there every day when we had the Oaks picking up acorns and leaves. Didn’t matter what time of the year or day of the week. So to make it a little easier on them and have a nice, bright canopy coming on through, but there is room for selection for sure.”

He said a root barrier that’s a combination of metal and plastic sleeves would be put down, which had never been done before, “Back in the mid ’80s, the curbs were all taken up and redone on Third Street. That was part of the issue with the stability of the trees 40 years later. So we’re looking to help avoid those kind of things and the trees be able to live in the situation we put them in. We’re going smaller trees, but they’re still going to be big trees.”

He said the trees should still eventually reach between 40 and 50 feet tall.

Residents requested the information be made available on the city’s website. DPW Director Jeff Lehman added that anyone with questions can call Public Works at 716-483-7545.

DPW Project Engineer Mark Roetzer presents West Third Street Redesign draft plan to City Council

Jamestown City Council got the first look at a draft plan for the West Third Street redesign at its work session Monday night.

The redesign follows the removal of the Cathedral Oaks at the end of 2020.

DPW Project Engineer Mark Roetzer said the project includes new sidewalks and driveway aprons from Hall to Hallock Street. He said new lighting is also proposed, “They’re the typical candlestick lighting that we have down Third Street for the rest of Third Street across the bridge. As well as replacing trees along that stretch of road. The trees will be determined by the Arborist Dan Stone, but they’ll be a variety of different species.”

Director of Public Works Jeff Lehman said Stone will work with individual homeowners to select which trees would go in front of their property.

Roetzer said homes on the southside of the West Third Street block currently get electric from poles behind the houses, which creates an maintenance issue for the Board of Public Utilities, “Because often it’s a small easement that the poles sit on but there’s no way, there’s no easement to get back to the poles themselves. So as part of this project, they’re going to along with installing the lights, they’ll be installing additional conduit underneath our sidewalks that then allows them to feed those houses from the street side still. All the lines will be underground and they’ll work with individual homeowners to get easements to get into their houses.”

Roezter said the BPU will work with homeowners to get easements with hopes to lay conduit this year.

Mayor Eddie Sundquist said the total cost of the project will be determined after public comment is gathered at a community input meeting.

That meeting, which is open to the public, will take place at 6:30 P.M., Monday, March 14 at Healing Word Ministries Church at 1006 West Third Street in Jamestown.

Jamestown City Council

One resolution for $483,000 would replace water mains on May Street and Gwendolin Avenue.

Several other resolutions totaling $252,735 would provide back up generators for fire stations, new entry doors, new overhead doors, and the truck floor renovation at Station 5.

Council also will review resolutions to hire a Personal Computer Specialist in IT Department following the death of a city employee, a School Crossing guard agreement with Jamestown Public Schools, and a contract between Jamestown Police and Jamestown Psychiatric in Lakewood.

Several presentations are on the agenda including a presentation from Chautauqua Opportunities on the proposed homeless shelter for women in Jamestown, the West Third Street Redesign, and a presentation on Jamestown Urban Renewal Agency‘s Action Plan.

The work session takes place at 7:30 p.m. in the Police Training Room on the fourth floor of city hall.