County Legislature approves management salary plan for Media Information Officer in executive's office...
The Chautauqua County Legislature has moved forward on establishing a new Media Information Officer's position in the County Executive's office. Lawmakers in Mayville last night approved a local law setting a management salary plan for the position of between $60,000 and $90,000 a year. Ellicott Republican Lisa Vanstrom fully supported the move... noting that local media do a "great" job covering the county... but, adds sometimes someone has to put information out immediately in cases like power outages, emergency, and the latest on COVID-19. However... the three Democrats at the meeting voted no. Fredonia's Susan Parker noted that while a media or public information officer is a good idea... the county executive's office already has seven employees in it... while there were just three 10 years ago. Parker says that's a 124% increase in personnel in that office. The local law was approved in a 13-to-3 vote with all Republican lawmakers voting in favor of the move.
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At the end of the meeting... the legislature read memorials for four past legislators and other local officials who passed away in 2022. They included former County Executive John Glenzer of Fredonia... and, former Fredonia lawmaker Robert Penharlow... as well as former legislator and Jamestown City Council President John Y. Carlson... and, long-time Ellery Town Supervisor, Arden Johnson.
Tributes coming in with sudden passing of local native, and musician, Jackson Rohm...
The tributes are pouring in on-line for local native and musician Jackson Rohm... a Lakewood-native who died earlier this week at his home in Rosemary Beach, Florida. The website, 'Geniuscelebs,' reports that Rohm passed away tragically after a battle with cancer early Wednesday, Jan. 25. Few details have been released... but, Rohm was a renowned singer and acoustic guitar player. Geniuscelebs says his passing has "left his his family grieving and there is sadness in the community over the loss of this Rosemary Beach artist." Rohm developed his love for music in middle school... and, later developed it into a career. Among those paying tribute today on Facebook is Chautauqua County Executive P.J. Wendel... who attended Southwestern Central Schools with Rohm. He says "your music will live on and always remind us of your talent, passion and true love for life."
Schumer says defaulting on national debt will cause "economic nightmare" for Upstate NY...
A small number of far right, "MAGA" Republicans are threatening to cause Congress to default on the nation's debt ceiling if they don't act soon. That from U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer... who says today that a default would be an "economic nightmare" for the upstate New York region. The Brooklyn-area Democrat says raising the debt ceiling to allow the government to pay it's bills has not been a partisan issue in the past. Schumer says "everyone knew the consequences of default would be so severe." He says even though the "MAGA Republicans are a small majority, they seem to be running the show." Schumer says default means "real dollars" coming out of New Yorker's pockets in higher mortgage rates, and interest rates on everything... especially car loans. He says it could also cut Social Security payments to the regions 1.8-million recipients... who receive $3-billion in benefits each month. Schumer made his comments during a Zoom press conference with state-wide media.
No one arrested, but, drugs and drug packaging items seized during raid on Jamestown apartment...
Members of the Jamestown Metro Drug Task Force and other local drug agents seized quantities of illegal narcotics, and items used in drug trafficking... during an early morning raid on the city's eastside Wednesday. City Police say the task force... with the help of the JPD SWAT Team... made entry into the lower apartment at 616 East Second St., and, found no one inside. However... they searched the residence and found quantities of fentanyl, and methamphetamine... along with cutting agents, packaging materials, scales, and drug ledgers. Police say the investigation is continuing and charges are expected in the future. Those charges will include third and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. The Task Force was assisted by the Sheriff's Department's Narcotics Investigators... Ellicott town Police... and others.
BPU deals with another -- much shorter -- widespread power outage Wednesday...
There was a brief power outage early Wednesday afternoon in the Board of Public Utilities service territory that affected most of the area. BPU Spokeswoman Becky Robbins says the outage occured about 12:10 p.m., and, lasted about five-minutes. She adds it occured while the utility was troubleshooting the cause of last Thursday's outage. Officials add the latest outage involved a new issue at the Dow Street substation. While the power was all back on quickly... Robbins says BPU water customers may see discolored water through mid-day Thursday morning because the outage affected the system's water pumps.
Gas prices in Jamestown hold steady...
While the price of a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline continues to move upward in the U.S., the price remains stable in the Jamestown-area. That from AAA's East Central Gas Price report this week... which says the price remains just under $3.70 a gallon. AAA says drivers seem to be taking advantage of the recent milder weather by fueling up and hitting the road. Officials cite an increase in gasoline demand and slightly more expensive oil pushed the national average 12-cents higher than last week to $3.42 a gallon.
