Mayor says selling the park to a business could be better use for site

Photo by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The Albion Village Board discussed the Santa statue and other Santa-themed items at Waterman Park during the board meeting on Wednesday. The board wonders if it makes more sense to move the statue and other elements about a block south to village-owned green space by the Presbyterian Church.

Perhaps the statue could be part of a space with a Santa House or gazebo, Village Board members said.

Mayor Tim McMurray and Deputy Mayor Greg Bennett said it may be a better asset for the village to sell the pocket park at Waterman, where it could be used for pop-up businesses or other purposes by a business.

The subject was brought up as part of a discussion about different parks in the village. Bennett acknowledged that many community members have worked hard at the site over the past decade or so.

The Albion Rotary Club spearheaded the 24-foot-long mural in 2018 that was painted by artist Stacey Kirby Steward. That mural shows a Santa in a sleigh over the Courthouse Square and downtown Albion. The mural is mounted on a steel frame at the park that is a half block south of the Erie Canal.

The mural honors Albion’s history as home to the Charles W. Howard Santa Claus School from 1937 to 1966. Howard also ran Christmas Park in Albion. Mr. Howard passed away in 1966. The Santa School continues in his name in Midland, Michigan.

The bronze statue of Santa was dedicated on June 10, 2023. It followed an $80,000-fundraising effort by the Albion Betterment Committee that took nearly a decade.

The spot by the Presbyterian Church was considered for the bronze statue, but bronze statue artists thought the statue would be dwarfed being next to the church, which is 175 feet tall. The artists thought the statue would look very small to passersby if it was placed next to the church.

They liked the spot at Waterman where people can walk by close to the statue, which is closer to the street so it doesn’t seem so small to people passing by.

During the statue dedication, many of Howard’s grandchildren and other family descendants attended the event which was held on a Saturday during the Strawberry Festival.

Charles Bergeman, Howard’s grandson, attended the event in 2023. He passed away later than year in October due to cancer. A sleigh was dedicated in Bergeman’s honor this past May. The sleigh was refurbished by Jim Babcock, a local contractor who is on the Betterment Committee’s board of directors.

The Betterment Committee is now working to develop a Santa School museum and visitor center almost across the street from Waterman Park.

MEDINA – New York Lottery is reporting that a winning $50,000 Powerball ticket was sold at the Crosby’s in Medina for Wednesday night’s drawing.

It was one of five third-prize-winning tickets were sold for the Aug. 12 Powerball drawing. Besides the Medina ticket, there were three purchased at 1619 SRS in Brooklyn and one at Millenium Smoke and News in Manhattan.

All five winners were worth $50,000.

The winning numbers for the Powerball game are drawn from a field of one to 69. The red Power Ball is drawn from a separate field of one to 26. The Powerball drawing is televised every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at 10:59 p.m.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Beaver Alley in downtown Albion is a one-lane street of Medina Sandstone pavers.

The Village Board is considering closing vehicular traffic to the street and allowing the site to be used for pedestrians and events, including concerts, a farm market and other community activities.

The sandstone pavers are pictured with a dusting of snow. The street is hard on the village’s plowing equipment.

The board wants to hear from the public about the idea during the Aug. 26 board meeting that begins at 7 p.m. at the Village Hall.

Mayor Tim McMurray said bollards could be put at each end of the alley to keep out cars and trucks. He said the alley, if made more inviting with lights and signage, could be a popular spot for events, providing a boost to the downtown business district.

McMurray said the pavers may need to be reset to be a smoother surface for pedestrians. Weeds also sprout up between the blocks. Herbicides are typically sprayed to battle the weeds.

The street was paved until 2003. When the Pike Company in Rochester, a contractor for the state Department of Transportation, tore up routes 31 and 98 in Albion about two decades ago, there were sandstone pavers under the roads.

Ed Salvatore was the Albion mayor at the time and he negotiated having the Pike Company put 5,500 of the pavers in Beaver Alley. Salvatore said the Medina sandstone blocks provided a sharp contrast between the new style of road construction on Main Street with the style from a century earlier. He also wanted to preserve some local sandstone history and add another element to historic downtown.

Before asphalt and concrete, many of the streets were made of cut Medina sandstone blocks. Salvatore wanted Beaver Alley, a short one-lane street, to resemble a street from the late 1800s.

There have been complaints the street is bumpy and hard to drive on. The DPW says the pavers also damage snow plows.

Village officials envision the site as a possible entertainment area like Jackson Square in the City of Batavia, which hosts a popular concert series.

Project eyed for former fairgrounds site at west end of Washington Street and West State Street

The village zoning map shows the area in green between Washington and West State streets that is currently zoned for Mobile Home Park. It would need to be changed to R-C (Residential/Offices/Limited Business) to allow for a housing project.

ALBION – Land formerly used a horse racing track and the fairgrounds in Albion is being eyed for a 70-unit housing project in Albion.

The zoning for the land in the late 1990s was changed to a “Mobile Home Park” classification to allow for manufactured homes, but that project didn’t happen. The site at the west end of West State Street and Washington streets has remained vacant since.

CDS Monarch sees demand for housing in Albion and Orleans County. The company wants to develop 13.5 acres into a 70-unit housing project with 30 units for seniors and veterans, and the other 40 units for working families.

CDS is based in Webster. It has developed projects in Buffalo, Rochester, Elmira, Endicott and Cicero.

Michael Lill, project associate for CDS, said the company wants to build 8-unit flat level buildings. The company would like to have businesses on site as well, including a pharmacy.

The housing would not be Section 8 or for people in drug rehab, he said.

CDS said Orleans County faces an out-migration of residents, with a shortage of housing a factor in the exodus.

The Albion Village Board held a public hearing on the zoning change on Wednesday. An attorney for ARG spoke against the change, saying putting more housing in the area by ARG may not be the best fit for that area which also includes the village’s DPW facility and the Albion Correctional Facility. The attorney suggested the zoning be changed to light industrial.

The attorney also said the village had the wrong tax map information about the parcels to be rezoned as part of the public notice.

Village Clerk/Treasurer Tracy Van Skiver acknowledged there had been a typographical error on one of the parcels. It was corrected about a week ago on the village website and Facebook page. The Village Board adjourned the public hearing until 7 p.m. on Aug. 26 to ensure it meets the public notice required for the zoning change.

The village sent the zoning change to the Orleans County Planning Board for its input but the board didn’t meet last month due to insufficient items. That board’s decision won’t be required due to the board not meeting, Mayor Tim McMurray said.

He sees the project as a positive for the village and Orleans County, bringing in new investment and housing opportunities. The community has experienced increased homelessness, McMurray said, and the state is trying to increase housing opportunities for people of all backgrounds.

CDS said it will present a detailed site plan for the project if the zoning change is approved. That site plan would then be subject to review by the Village Planning Board and code enforcement officer.

CDS said it has completed a phase 1 environmental impact study and also a wetlands delineation for the site.

CARLTON – North Shore Networks LLC in Medina is responding to an Orleans Hub article on Wednesday about neighbors asking Carlton town officials to halt the project for further review.

North Shore said many of the claims about the tower from residents are not accurate.

The tower is part of a $11,216,500 contract from North Shore Networks with Orleans County to implement faster internet service. The county in November 2024 was awarded a $11,562,698 state grant to upgrade wireless internet service throughout the county.

North Shore said the tower will be 150 feet high, not 160 feet, because there is no 10-foot-high lightning rod on top. North Shore wants to put the tower on land owned by the Village of Albion by the water treatment plant on Wilson Road. North Shore and the village approved a lease on Aug. 5, 2025.

The tower will be owned by Orleans County. North Shore Networks designs, builds and operates the network under contract with the county.

The tower at the Village of Albion Water Department is one of 21 wireless hub sites in a county-wide network designed for Orleans County’s ConnectALL Municipal Infrastructure Program Project. “Existing towers and structures were evaluated for co-location where they could meet the network’s requirements, and siting new sites on municipally owned property was a deliberate element of the design,” North Shore said.

A group of residents in Carlton led by Rick Stacey say there are several procedural errors in the Carlton project that warrant holding off construction. Stacey said there are better sites that would be safer for nearby residents and wouldn’t be a visual blight along the Lake Ontario shoreline.

The Carlton Planning Board last week approved a different driveway path to allow access to the site. Crews will use the driveway for the water treatment plant and won’t be on private property.

Residents say the fall zone for the tower cuts across a private access road for Oak Orchard on the Lake. But North Shore says a full-height collapse would not reach Oak Orchard on the Lake.

Construction began in late July 2026. The only interruption has been the change to the driveway path.

The original site design used Oak Orchard on the Lake for access, and construction vehicles used that road during the first days of construction. After neighbors raised concerns, the access route was relocated, North Shore said.

The amended site plan approved August 3 routes access via the water treatment plant driveway off of Wilson Road. Crews have not used Oak Orchard on the Lake in several weeks and will not use it going forward, North Shore officials said.

“North Shore Networks is not aware of any damage to the road from that brief use, and would repair any that is identified,” the company said.

The tower in Carlton is part of an effort to increase wireless internet speeds from the current 25 Mega Bit Per Seconds (Mbps) to 100 (Mbps).

CORE Environmental Consultants is the project’s environmental engineering firm. It managed the State Environmental Quality Review process, and prepared and presented the updated special use permit materials for the driveway revision. CORE is not the structural engineering firm for this tower.

The neighbors, in a letter presented to Carlton officials, said the tower’s 82-inch diameter pole will be anchored in a 20-foot diameter concrete ballasted base sitting entirely above ground. North Shore said the pole has a diameter of 43.4 inches at its base and tapers to 11.8 inches at the top.

The neighbors cite other concerns, including the fall zone over residential lanes and critical utility paths. The tower would be sited 28 feet from the primary high-voltage overhead power lines feeding the water plant.

North Shore Networks consulted National Grid regarding the design of this site, North Shore officials said. “The overhead lines adjacent to the tower are local distribution lines. They do not serve the Village of Albion water treatment plant, which is fed by three-phase service from Wilson Road, outside the fall radius of the monopole,” North Shore said. “National Grid has confirmed that the tower and its compound fall outside the utility’s easement area for those lines.”

The tower design, the foundation design, and the structural and mount analyses were prepared by professional engineers licensed in New York State, and the construction drawings bear their seals, North Shore said. Those sealed drawings were submitted to the Town of Carlton as part of the special use permit application, and again with the building permit application. Structural and mount analyses are completed for each site in the county-wide network prior to construction, the company said.

The environmental review was conducted under the State Environmental Quality Review Act, with Orleans County as lead agency, and a negative declaration was issued. The application was referred to the Orleans County Planning Board, which recommended approval. The project’s Full Environmental Assessment Form records that no State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit is required for this project, North Shore said.

The neighbors said they were concerned about “extreme ice-fall and ice-shedding projectile.” The tower is 150 feet in total height. “A full-height collapse in any direction would come to rest within the Village of Albion water treatment plant parcel, and would not reach Oak Orchard on the Lake,” North Shore said.

The neighbors also questioned if a multi-ton steel structure should be sited into the Lake Ontario beachfront water table. North Shore said the tower is supported on a ballasted foundation designed by professional engineers licensed in New York State, and selected for stability given the site’s proximity to the lake.

The neighbors also shared concerns about the tower affecting operations for crop dusters and other airplanes. The tower is 150 feet above ground level, below the 200-foot threshold that requires FAA notification. “The site is not within the vicinity of an airport or protected airspace that would otherwise require notification. No FAA notice or determination is required for this facility,” North Shore said.

The article on Wednesday also noted that the Carlton Town Board voted to hire Bridget O’Toole as special counsel for the town regarding the tower. The article initially stated O’Toole was a law partner with town attorney Doug Heath of Holley. They are no longer partners. O’Toole runs the O’Toole Law Group on Latta Road in Rochester.

Pictured from left include Daemon Shatara, Robert Arnold and Oddysee Bennett.

MEDINA – Three people have been arrested on drug and weapons charges in Medina, the Orleans County Major Felony Task Force reported.

After an investigation into the sale and distribution of crack cocaine, this morning at 307 West Center St., Apartment 4, the Task Force executed a search warrant this morning along with the Orleans County Special Response Team, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office and the Medina Police Department.

Police seized over a half an ounce of crack cocaine, a loaded 38-revolver handgun, cash, scales, packaging and other drug paraphernalia, the Task Force reported.

The following were charged:

• Daemon S. Shatara, age 25, of Sawyer Street in Rochester has been charged with 2 counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree (class B felonies), 1 count of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree (a class C felony), and 2 counts of criminally using drug paraphernalia in the second degree (class A misdemeanors).

• Robert W. Arnold, age 20, of 733 Church Street in Medina has been charged with 1 count of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree (class C felony), 1 count of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fifth degree (class D felony), and 2 counts of criminally using drug paraphernalia in the second degree (class A misdemeanors).

Arnold also has two outstanding warrants, the Task Force said.

• Oddysee M. Bennett, age 28, of 307 West Center St., Medina, is charged with 1 count of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree (class C felony).

All three individuals are being held in Orleans County Jail awaiting CAP Court.

Further arrests and charges are pending in this investigation, the Task Force said.

Also assisting in the investigation include District Attorney Susan Howard, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Special Response Team, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office, the Orleans County Sheriff’s K9 Unit, the Medina Police Department, and the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

Fireworks will cap event at 8:45 p.m.

File photo by Tom Rivers: The Buffalo-based band, Bleeding Hearts, played many popular classic rock songs during last year’s 4th annual Street Dance organized by the Town of Yates.

Press Release, Town of Yates

The Town of Yates is very excited to welcome our friends and neighbors to the 5th Annual Street Dance on Saturday, August 15th, from 6 to 9 p.m.  The festivities will be held on Main Street in front of the Yates Town Hall in the Village of Lyndonville.

Main Street in the village will be closed to traffic between Maple Avenue and Eagle Street starting at 4 p.m.

“We are very proud to host this increasingly popular street dance on Main Street,” said Susan Hrovat , deputy town supervisor for the Town of Yates.  “It is a lovely party with lots of fun, food and fellowship!”

This year’s festivities include: music by the Vinyl Recovery band featuring Classic Rock from the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s, kids’ games, a bounce house, Eula’s Baby Ribs, Lyndonville Sports Boosters tacos in a bag, Lyndonville Lions Club hotdogs, and a fireworks display at 8:45 p.m.

The street dance is partially funded by the Town of Yates, and also sponsored by Plummer Orchards, Signature Styles, RLW Cattle Company, and a New York 250 grant.

Bullard hosting picnic for senior citizens on Thursday

ALBION – The thunderstorm has forced the Village of Albion to reschedule this evening’s concert featuring Highway 31. The band will instead perform at 6 p.m. on Aug. 26 from the amphitheater at Bullard Park.

Bullard next week will host the band Swamp Moose beginning at 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 19.

The park on Thursday is hosting a picnic for senior citizens from 4 to 6:30 p.m. The Village of Albion Recreation Department is putting on the event at the east end pavilion at Bullard.

Food and beverages will be served, including chicken barbecue, hot dogs, hamburgers, cucumber, tomato, onion salad, coleslaw with a sweet vinaigrette, water, watermelon and peach apple cherry dump cake.

Live music will be provided by The Hastings Duo. Participants are welcome to bring their own lawn chair but picnic tables will be available.

Severe, prolonged cold spell strained electric system, causing big jump

Photos by Tom Rivers: Jim Stokes, executive director of the Municipal Electric Utilities Association, speaks during the Village of Holley board meeting on Tuesday. In back from left include board members Rochelle Moroz, Jessica MacClaren, Mayor Mark Bower, Brenden Bedard and John Morriss.

HOLLEY – Village residents are accustomed to getting a very good deal on their electric bills. But last winter those costs skyrocketed after a prolonged cold spell in late January and part of February.

There were about two weeks total of very cold weather, and the frigid temperatures affected the Northeast, straining the electric system.

The power stayed on, but the price was up exponentially, even for municipal electric systems like Holley, said Jim Stokes, executive director of the Municipal Electric Utilities Association.

He addressed the Holley Village Board and residents during Tuesday’s Village Board meeting. Stokes said the state has taken some big power plants off line in recent years. That has hurt the in-state power generation capacity.

Jim Stokes said the state’s electric-generating capacity remains vulnerable to peak demand times where the power would need to be purchased from other states or Canada.

During times of peak demand, such as a prolonged freeze, the demand soars, and New York State looks to get power from Canada and neighboring states. Those areas also saw increased demand during last winter’s drawn-out severe cold, Stokes said.

Holley typically gets its electricity at a very lower price through a Niagara hydropower allocation. The Municipal Electric Utilities Association hedges that price and secures a low price for the 51 municipal systems. Holley has 1,008 customers on a 2,400-voltage system.

But the if the power demand exceeds the hedged amount of power, the municipal systems have to get more power from the open market at a time of high demand and very high prices.

“The market price went through the roof,” he said.

A kilowatt hour is typically about 29 to 30 cents in New York State. But in a municipal-owned system like Holley the cost is about 3 to 3.5 cents. During last winter’s severe cold, the price on the open market shot to 60 cents to a $1, causing shockingly high electric bills, even in Holley.

Stokes said the state hasn’t added significant electric capacity and is vulnerable again this coming winter if there is a prolonged cold spell.

He suggests insulating houses and taking other actions to reduce use during a peak demand time.

The best way to avoid the price spike is for an easier winter, without a prolonged deep freeze.

“Milder temps is our best hope,” he said.

He also was asked by Mayor Mark Bower if larger industrial users can cause price spikes. Stokes said the larger users help keep the base rates down because they pay a high percentage of those costs. But if the demand soars and the municipal systems needs power from the open market, a larger user can be a detriment.

“Large uses are not necessarily bad users,” he said. “The systems without industrial users struggle because it’s all on the backs of the residents.”

Jim Stokes presented Holley with two signs and plaques that proclaim Holley’s is a carbon-free electric system. The village gets a hydropower allocation from the Niagara Power Project. Pictured with Stokes include Matt Campbell (left), the village’s electric & water superintendent; and Mayor Mark Bower. The signs will likely be displayed with the Holley welcome signs at each end of Route 31 in the village.

Nesbitt Farms offers alternative land away from water plant, residents’ access road

Photo by Tom Rivers: Rick Stacey speaks to the Carlton Town Board on Tuesday evening, with members including Ryan Woolston, Town Supervisor Gayle Ashbery, Brian McCue and Charlie Ricci.

CARLTON – The Carlton Town Board was asked on Tuesday to have construction halted on a 160-foot-high tower by the Village of Albion water treatment plant. The 150-foot-high tower would have a 10-foot-high lightning rod on top.

A group of residents led by Rick Stacey say there are several procedural errors in the project that warrant holding off construction. Stacey said there are better sites that would be safer for nearby residents and wouldn’t be a visual blight along the Lake Ontario shoreline.

Carlton Town Board members declined to comment on the matter during Tuesday’s Town Board meeting, after Stacey and another neighbor, Dave Coleman, asked questions about the project.

Town Supervisor Gayle Ashbery said any comments will be made by the town’s legal representation. Carlton on Tuesday voted to hire Bridget O’Toole, who used to be a partner with town attorney Doug Heath. O’Toole was appointed special counsel for town regarding the tower on Wilson Road. She owns the O’Toole Law Group on Latta Road in Rochester.

Stacey said he didn’t want to see a legal battle over the issue. He asked the board to halt construction and discuss a better site with the nearby residents. Steve Nesbitt, a local fruit farmer, has offered to allow the tower on his property where he said it would safely be away from any public access roads.

 The Carlton Planning Board last week approved an amended site plan for the project where the access road will be the driveway to the village’s water treatment plant.

Stacey, during Tuesday’s Town Board meeting, reiterated his claims that the nearby residents never received proper notification about the project.

The fall zone for the tower cuts across a private access road for Oak Orchard on the Lake. Contractors are already on site working on the project, and have used private land without permission to access the site, Stacey said.

“Over the last seven days, our local governments have permitted a private contractor to aggressively carve out an unpermitted access road directly to Wilson Road and fast-track the delivery of structural tower components to the site,” Stacey wrote in a letter presented to the Carlton Town Board. “This reckless acceleration is a transparent, bad-faith attempt to manufacture a fait accompli (a done deal) to outrun judicial intervention.”

He presented the letter on behalf of The Neighbors of Oak Orchard on the Lake & Nesbitt Fruit Farms – Steve Nesbitt Sr., Rick Stacey, David Coleman, Gary and Ruth Smith, and Brett and Arona Browning.

“We place the Town, Village, and County on formal record that you are moving forward with an unengineered, non-compliant, and hazardous structure,” their letter stated. “The project contains fatal legal, physical, and safety defects that expose all three municipalities, as well as individual board members, to severe civil liability, state regulatory clawbacks, and insurance coverage forfeiture.”

The tower is part of a $11,216,500 contract from North Shore Networks LLC in Medina to implement the faster internet service. The county in November 2024 was awarded a $11,562,698 state grant to upgrade wireless internet service throughout the county.

The funding came through the Empire State Development’s ConnectALL Municipal Infrastructure Program. This will allow the county to increase wireless internet speeds from the current 25 Mega Bit Per Seconds (Mbps) to 100 (Mbps).

The Carlton tower by the water plant included approvals from the Village of Albion, Town of Carlton and Orleans County.

The neighbors, in their letter, said the project was presented by Core Environmental, engineer on the project, to have “minimal visual impact” on the neighboring properties.

But that assertion “is a fraudulent distortion of the physical reality,” Stacey and the neighbors write. The tower’s 82-inch concrete base with a 20-foot diameter concrete ballasted base sitting entirely above ground.

“This massive, raw industrial mass will sit directly on our lakefront terrain, completely wiping out the pristine aesthetic values of our waterfront, shattering the historic context of the Nesbitt multi-generational homestead, and inflicting an immediate, unstudied economic blight on neighboring home values,” the letter states. “The claim of ‘minimal impact’ is an absolute fabrication.”

The neighbors cite other concerns, including the fall zone over residential lanes and critical utility paths. The tower would be sited 28 feet from the primary high-voltage overhead power lines feeding the water plant.

“Ripping down this primary electrical feed will immediately shut down the Village of Albion Water Treatment Plant,” the neighbors’ letter states. “This introduces a severe, widespread public safety crisis by creating a total loss of water pressure and municipal water supply, completely crippling fire protection services across the entire district during an emergency.”

Stacey and the neighbors also say there is a lack of structural analysis, blueprints and professional engineering seals for the tower. There should be an analysis whether the tower can withstand intense coastal winds and dead-weight loading, the neighbors write.

Other concerns listed by neighbors in their letter include:

• “Complete absence of professional project oversight and mandatory agency reviews.” No NYS Department of Environmental Conservation jurisdictional reviews. Despite sitting on the immediate waterfront of Lake Ontario, the project has completely bypassed mandatory reviews by the DEC for shoreline protection and environmental runoff mitigation.

• “Extreme ice-fall and ice-shedding projectile hazard to human life.” Because this structure sits directly on the open shoreline of Lake Ontario, it is subject to constant winter cycles of heavy freezing spray, severe atmospheric icing, and relentless lake-effect wind vectors.

“Laser metrics confirm the tower base is placed a mere 146 feet from the southern edge of our private residential walking road (the path our families must walk daily to get our mail) and only 160 feet from our eastern property line,” the letter states. “This structure creates an active 94-foot safety shortfall to our road and an 80-foot shortfall to our yards. The Town, Village, and County are actively permitting a predictable, lethal projectile trajectory over our heads and private land.”

•  “Saturated foundation integrity, ballasted foundation hazard and active water table intrusion.” The physical footprint prepared for this multi-ton steel structure requires dropping a ballasted foundation straight into the Lake Ontario beachfront water table.

“Submerging a heavy, multi-ton 20-foot diameter ballasted foundation directly into a flooded hole in shifting, saturated coastal soil that breaches the active water table—without a certified Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) or NYS DEC Coastal Consistency Review—invites catastrophic foundation shifting, buoyancy destabilization, and structural failure,” the letter states.

• “Direct defeat of public safety fall zones and emergency vehicle blockade.”

Town of Carlton Zoning Code strictly dictates that a telecommunications facility’s structural “fall zone” must have a radius of at least 1½ times the height of the tower and cannot include public or private roads. The tower is located only 146 feet from a private access road. If this tower suffers a structural failure or collapse, its 160-foot radius will completely sever and block the sole ingress/egress path for police, fire, and emergency rescue vehicles to reach our five residential households, the neighbors write.

• “Critical public safety aviation hazard and agricultural flight path interference.” The 160-foot vertical structure is completely unlit, unmarked, and utilizes a dull, gray galvanized finish, rendering it virtually invisible against the grey winter skies and water of the Lake Ontario lakefront, the neighbors state in their letter.

Orleans County and Core Engineering bypassed filing a mandatory FAA Form 7460-1 Aeronautical Study, the neighbors say. “There is no FAA Determination of No Hazard to Air Navigation or official Antenna Structure Registration (ASR) on file for this footprint,” their letter states.

Nesbitt Fruit Farms has operated its high-density apple orchards on this lakefront since 1968. Crop-duster pilots navigate this specific airspace at low-altitude elevations of 15 to 30 feet, using the open waterfront to execute critical banking and turnaround maneuvers.

“Placing an unvetted, unlit 160-foot steel needle directly in an active agricultural spray line creates an immediate aviation collision hazard and an uncompensated economic blockade that forces a respected local business to lose essential crop protection,” the letter states.

• “Invalid permits issued by an uncertified code enforcement officer.” The individual acting as the Town of Carlton code enforcement officer, Kevin Sheehan, is not certified for code enforcement by New York State.

“Under New York State Executive Law, an uncertified individual does not possess the legal authority to review structural prints, sign off on site plans, or issue valid building permits,” the letter states. “Every single administrative permission or permit signed by Mr. Sheehan regarding this 160-foot structure is legally void ab initio (invalid from inception).”

• “Fatal multi-agency conflict of interest.” Kevin Sheehan also serves as an Albion village trustee. The village is the property owner of the tower.

“Under New York State General Municipal Law Article 18, this represents a non-waivable, fatal conflict of interest,” Stacey and the neighbors write. “An enforcement officer cannot legally or impartially review code applications or grant zoning exemptions for a project governed by his own elected political board.”

• “Fraudulent blueprints & state grant fraud exposure.” The construction drawings submitted by project planners completely ignored the physical, verified survey concrete corner markers on the property, creating a massive 34-foot dimensional error, the letter states.

“Boundary lines were manipulated on the drawings to falsely manufacture zoning compliance,” the letter states. “Because these flawed layouts were submitted to New York State to secure public grant funding for this broadband project, the entire state grant allocation is now structurally linked to a fraudulent application. Plowing ahead exposes the Town, Village, and County to severe state regulatory audits and mandatory grant clawbacks.”

• “Unlawful fraudulent meeting process & open meetings law violations” The Town of Carlton rescheduled a Planning Board meeting last week from Aug. 5 to Aug. 3 to approve the amended site plan for the tower.

“This is a bad-faith violation of the New York State Open Meetings Law (Public Officers Law § 104), executed specifically to pass an un-referred scope amendment before the public could organize,” the neighbor write.

Stacey was given 5 minutes to speak at the meeting and share concerns, but the neighborhood wasn;t allowed to speak as a group. When Stacey tried to speak beyond the 5 minutes, he was told by attorney O’Toole he would be removed by law enforcement.

“Town Attorney Ms. O’Toole stepped in, acted as judge and jury, instructed the board exactly how to read and accept the amendments like puppets, and threatened to have Rick physically removed by law enforcement if he did not stop speaking,” the neighbors’ letter states.

The neighbors urged Carlton officials to consider Nesbitt’s land as an alternative inland site for the tower.

“This inland location handles the county’s connectivity needs perfectly, but places the structure safely away from the Lake Ontario water table, away from residential property lines, and completely clear of our shared emergency evacuation road and utility corridors,” the letter states. “Let’s do the right thing here.”

To move forward at the water treatment site and not issue a stop work order, represents “willful and reckless negligence, which strips the municipalities of standard governmental immunity, voids your insurance coverage limits, and exposes these boards and their individual members to direct, un-insured civil damages,” the neighbors state.

Over 200 firearms were seized in Bergen, Lyndonville and Medina

Press Release, U.S. Attorney for Western District of New York, Michael DiGiacomo

BUFFALO – U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that Peter Celentano, 37, of Bergen, who was convicted of illegal possession of machineguns, was sentenced to serve 41 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo.

On September 29, 2024, the New York State Police, Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, executed a search warrant at Celentano’s residence in Bergen.

During the search, law enforcement recovered numerous items, including 3D printed pistol frames, firearm parts and accessories, ammunition reloading equipment, tools for constructing privately made firearms, a drill press, and two 3D printed machinegun conversion devices.

Law enforcement also conducted additional searches at properties in Lyndonville and Medina, during which they seized numerous AR-style lower receivers, 3D printed handguns, and additional firearm parts and accessories. In total, law enforcement seized over 200 firearms tied to Celentano.

During the investigation, law enforcement learned that Celentano provided another individual with nine lower receivers, two of which contained the “third pin hole,” qualifying them as machineguns. An individual known by defendant had subsequently discarded these firearms off the Beals Road Bridge into the Erie Canal. A New York State Police dive team searched the Erie Canal beneath the bridge in Medina and recovered a cardboard box containing 10 AR-style receivers, an unmarked handgun, ammunition magazines, and additional firearm parts.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Adler. The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Kevin Sucher, the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Joseph M. Graff, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Bryan DiGirolamo, New York Field Division.

Photos courtesy of Crosby’s and Reid Petroleum: Crosby’s employees joined officials at Cystic Fibrosis Foundation to celebrate the $20,432 raised at Crosby’s stores to support awareness, research and treatment for CF. The Albion store at the routes 31 and 98 raised the most of all the Crosby’s stores. Zoey, a local CF fighter, holds the ceremonial check.

Press Release, Crosby’s and Reid Petroleum

ALBION – Crosby’s and Reid Petroleum successfully concluded their 2026 campaign partnership with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, raising a total of $20,432 to support awareness, research and treatment for CF.

The donation was presented to representatives of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF), as well as Tim, Annelle, and Beth Royer, the grandparents and mother of Zoey – a local CF Fighter supported by the CFF and Crosby’s. The presentation took place at Crosby’s Albion location, which was recognized as the store that had raised the most during this year’s CF Awareness Campaign.

“When the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation was founded 71 years ago, children born with cystic fibrosis were generally not expected to live long enough to attend kindergarten or elementary school,” said Heather McKeever, executive director of the Cystic Fibrosis

Foundation of WNY. “Because of Crosby’s support along with our Western New York community and donors like you, the median age is now 66 years old, and people with cystic fibrosis continue to live longer and healthier lives. Together, we will make CF stand for ‘Cure Found’!”

Crosby’s received a plaque from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The presentation was made last Friday at the Albion store at 204 South Main St. Every year Crosby’s dedicates a campaign month among other outside efforts to raise money and awareness for Cystic Fibrosis, along with the guidance and partnership of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. This year once again, the Albion store raised the most money for CF over the course of our campaign.

Throughout the campaign, Crosby’s customers showed their support by:

• Rounding up at the register
• Purchasing $1 pinups

During the event, Crosby’s Vice President Lenny Smith spoke about the personal and community-wide importance of the partnership, sharing the words of his late friend, who both fought and advocated for CF: “That’s what hope looks like: science, compassionate care, family, and community all coming together. I truly believe that is what we’ve accomplished here.”

The Reid Group, based in Lockport encompasses Reid Stores, LLC d.b.a. Crosby’s and Reid Petroleum, LLC. Crosby’s operates 90 locations throughout Western New York and Northwestern Pennsylvania. Reid Petroleum is a full-service independent fuel marketer providing a comprehensive range of products and services for retail and wholesale customers.

The family-owned business traces its roots to 1922 and is led more than a century later by 3rd and 4th generation members along with over 1,000 dedicated associates.

Provided photo

ALBION – Albion’s Class of 1966 celebrated its 60^th reunion last Friday at the Tavern on the Ridge.

Sitting from left to right include Ann Moore Brown, Donna Howes, Jennifer Buckner Conley, Chris Butcher Matull and Debby Passarell.

Second row from left: Barbara Christopher Dunham, Marcia Telga Stornelli, Sandra Restivo Hinmin, Cris Eddy Haltom, Marie Davis Rice, Bruce Sidari, Rebecca Passarell Daniels, Pat Whipple Clark, Charles Craddock, Patricia Barnum McKenna, Marylin Clark Burgoon, Margie Roth Page, Patricia Mack Halt and Linda Pecorella Freas.

Back row from left: Mark Theodorakos, Tom Gardner, Ernie Katsampes, Robert Parke, Jack Kriss, Dave Canham, Wil Harris, Jack Batchellor, Jim Wells, Phil Coville, Dave Bieber and Mike Elam.