Where we live [The Buffalo News, N.Y.]

By The Buffalo News, N.Y.

McClatchy-Tribune Information Services

Dec. 18--Amherst

The latest news from Amherst and Williamsville is garbage. Garbage pickup, that is.

Starting in January, all town and village residents will see changes in their trash and recycling programs, with both municipalities switching to contracts with Lewiston-based Modern Disposal.

Among the changes:

--Residents will be able to recycle a wider range of material, such as pizza boxes, yogurt containers, plastic bags, metal cookware and rigid-plastic items seen in things like children's toys and furniture.

--Scrap metal pickup will be on a call-in request basis only for non-village residents. Metal pickup policy for village residents will be unchanged.

--Town residents also will no longer be able to put out an unlimited amount of trash. Trash collection will be limited to eight large or container-bound/boxed items in addition to the totes.

--Weekly garbage and recycling pickup days will change for many residents.

More information will be going out to all town and village residents soon regarding the changes in their garbage and recycling collection service.

Also this week:

--The Amherst Town Board will hold its regular meeting at 7 p.m. Monday in the Council Chambers of the Amherst Municipal Building, 5583 Main St., Williamsville. The meeting will be preceded by a work session at 3 p.m.

--The Sweet Home Board of Education will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Norman C. Vergils Community Center of Sweet Home High School, 1901 Sweet Home Road.

Aurora

It's the Roycroft Copper Shop's turn to be reconstructed and work on the $357,000 project is beginning this month.

Plastic buckets to catch leaking water in the shop will become a part of campus history.

"We are very excited to have this project under way," said Christine Peters, executive director of the Roycroft Campus Corp. "Not only will this reconstruction preserve the building for many years to come, but it will measurably reduce both our heating and cooling expenses."

The project will include improvements to the drainage along the perimeter of the building, helping to reduce erosion of the foundation. Repairs to the roof will be done on the building's 1902 cottage section and the 1910 west wing addition. Clay tiles for the 1902 portion are being replicated from original tiles and the 1910 wing will have tiles that also have been installed at the power house. Since the west wing was added during the completion of the power house, it is assumed the tiles were probably the same.

An ice shield and insulation will be added to prevent future leaks. A dormer that was once part of the west wing also will be re-created and added to the current building.

The majority of the work will be completed by the new year and it is hoped that the clay tiles may be installed on sunny winter days, but no later than spring.

The project will be managed by Resetarits Construction, which also is general contractor of the work on the power house. Grants from Save America's Treasures, the John R. Oishei Foundation, the Community Foundation of Greater Buffalo and the Western New York Foundation are helping fund the copper shop work.

Also this week:

--The East Aurora Village Board meets at 7 p.m. Monday in Village Hall, Main and Paine streets.

Boston

The Town Board is considering changes to the town code of ethics, including one that would add a penalty of a fine up to $250 or up to 15 days in jail for violating the code. A hearing on the changes will be conducted at 7:40 p. m. Wednesday, during the board's regular meeting. The new code would formally set up an ethics board to render advisory opinions.

The board will conduct a work session at 6 p.m. Wednesday, followed by its regular meeting at 7:30 p. m. Wednesday in Town Hall, 8500 Boston State Road.

The Conservation Advisory Council meeting scheduled Tuesday is canceled.

Buffalo

Alegal challenge over the city's tax foreclosure procedure heads back to court this week.

The case, brought by the Western New York Law Center, claims the city attached too large of a foreclosure fee and imposed the fee on affected properties too early during the latest foreclosure cycle.

Erie County Judge Thomas P. Franczyk blocked the city in October from auctioning properties that were delinquent on garbage fees.

Attorneys on both sides are scheduled to appear before Franczyk on Monday morning.

Also this week:

--TheAlomaD. JohnsonFruitbelt Community Charter School board of trustees will meet at 6 p.m. Monday in the school, 833 Michigan Ave.

--The Planning Board will meet at 8:15 a. m. Tuesday in Room 901 in City Hall.

--The Council's Civil Service Committee will meet at 9:45 a. m. Tuesday in Council Chambers.

--The Council's Finance Committee will meet at 10 a. m. Tuesday in Council Chambers.

--The Council's Community Development Committee will meet at 1 p. m. Tuesday in Council Chambers.

--The Council's Legislation Committee will meet at 2 p.m. Tuesday in Council Chambers.

--The Buffalo Board of Education will meet at 3 p.m. Wednesday in the boardroom, Room 801 of City Hall, to interview candidates for the at-large vacancy created by Christopher L. Jacobs' resignation. The interviews are open to the public.

--The Buffalo Urban Renewal Agency will meet at 9:30 a. m. Thursday in Room 209 of City Hall.

Cheektowaga

A$216,300 bid for an outdoor target system firing range for the Police Department will be considered when the Town Board meets at 6:45 p. m. Monday in Council Chambers in Town Hall, 3301 Broadway.

The board is expected to award the bid for the modular bullet trap/containment system and fixed-air turning target system firing range to Action Target of Provo, Utah. The cost of the range is to be financed through the Cheektowaga police asset forfeiture fund.

Board members also are expected to set the town's 2012 calendar for Town Board meeting dates and work sessions as well as authorize travel for council members-elect Angela M. Wozniak and Gerald P. Kaminski Sr. to attend a training school for newly elected officials next month in Rochester.

Also this week:

--The Zoning Board of Appeals will consider several applications from 7- Eleven stores for a variance permitting the display and sale of propane canisters outside stores at 1650 Kensington Ave., 889 Beach Road, 1055 Walden Ave., 475 French Road and 2761 Harlem Road. The Zoning Board is scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. Wednesday in Council Chambers in Town Hall.

--The Cheektowaga-Sloan Board of Education will hold a regular meeting at 6:30 p. m. Tuesday in the boardroom at Woodrow Wilson Elementary School, 166 Halstead Ave., Sloan.

--The Cleveland Hill Board of Education will hold a budget community forum concerning building use, transportation and energy at 5:45 p. m. Wednesday, followed by a regular meeting of at 7 p.m. at 105 Mapleview Road.

Clarence

The Clarence Hollow Association will have some new faces on its board of directors next year.

The group, which focuses on revitalizing the Hollow, elected four new members last week: Veronica Jenks of the Eagles' Wings missionary community; Katie Yu of the Hollow Bistro and Brew; Jason Krull of the Valley Bar&Grill; and Richard Rogers of the Bank of Akron.

The association board will meet next month to elect officers and hold a brain-storming session to set its direction for 2012, said Jeff Baran, president.

Baran said the group was pleased with the response to events it held this year. "I definitely think people are in favor of continuing those, with some refinements."

Meanwhile, the Town Board is working on its decisions for appointments, committee and liaison assignments, as it prepares for a Jan. 4 organizational meeting.

Members of the Town Board will meet at 4 p.m. Wednesday in Town Hall to discuss organizational items. They held a similar meeting last week.

The board's makeup is changing. David

C. Hartzell Jr. will become supervisor, and Robert A. Geiger won election as a councilman. Geiger already has been appointed to fill a board vacancy, before starting his term next month.

After discussing organizational items on Wednesday, the Town Board will hold a work session at 6 p.m., prior to its 7:30 p. m. regular meeting.

At the meeting, developer Dominic Piestrak will request preliminary concept approval of future phases of

Spaulding Greens, a new residential subdivision taking shape across from Town Hall along Goodrich Road.

Elma

The Elma Town Board will hold a public hearing at 7 p.m. Tuesday on Verizon Wireless Communications' request to erect a 100-foot communications tower on a site at 1000 Blossom Road owned by the Blossom Fire Company.

Verizon received a variance from the Zoning Board of Appeals last week, which was necessary because the tower exceeds the 50-foot limit in the town code.

The board agenda includes the resignation of James Malczewski from the Conservation Board as of Jan. 1. Malczewski was elected in November to a seat on the Town Board.

The board will discuss a request for a speed study for Girdle Road from the Iroquois School District. The state Department of Transportation is being asked to lower the speed limit because the Boys and Girls Club and Elma Fire Company built along that stretch of road in recent years. The district also has requested a left-hand turning lane at the new light.

Also this week:

--The Planning Board will meet at 7

p. m Tuesday in Town Hall.

--The Town Board will hold a work session at 6 p.m. Wednesday followed by a regular meeting at 7 p.m. in Town Hall.

Town of Evans

Plans for the two county-owned parcels

rie County has turned over 53 acres of land along Lake Erie to the Town of Evans for $1--finally. along Sturgeon Point Road have been in limbo for years, as debate raged over whether to preserve the land or sell it and place it back on the tax rolls.

But the memorandum of understanding was signed by Erie County Executive Chris Collins' administration on Nov. 30, and the paperwork was filed on Dec. 7, said Sandra Brant, the town's director of planning.

"It's wonderful news," Brant said.

The land was acquired by the county decades ago through tax foreclosure, and for years town officials have been trying to acquire the property for the Sturgeon Point Marina.

In the mid-1990s, the county considered selling the property at public auction. At one point, the town claimed the transfer had been made, but the county said it rescinded the offer because it couldn't afford to give away lakefront property.

One parcel is roughly 28 acres set back from the lake and wedged between Sturgeon Point and Larkin roads. The second parcel is about 25 acres, just east of the marina, which includes a small section on a bluff overlooking Lake Erie.

The town would like to use the land for passive recreation, dry docks or more marina parking, but all that will depend on future town finances.

"At least now we own it," Brant said.

Grand Island

Town residents are asked to weigh in Tuesday about the school district's capital project. Two propositions are on the ballot.

The first asks to spend $46.8 million on "critical scope" work in the district: facility repairs and renovations, as well as upgrades to its science and technology programs.

If that proposition passes, it will be paid for with state financial aid and the district's capital project reserve fund. It would result in no tax increase.

A second proposition encompasses a $46 million project to build a "state-of-the- art" athletic field and auditorium. It would result in a 0.2 percent tax increase. Proposition two cannot be passed without proposition one.

The vote will be held from 10 a. m. to 9p.m. in the Grand Island Senior High School gym, 1100 Ransom Road. For more information, visit: www.k12.ginet.org .

Also this week:

--The Town Board will meet Monday in Town Hall, 2255 Baseline Road, for a workshop at 6:30 p. m. and its regular meeting at 8 p.m.

During the regular meeting, the board will hold two public hearings. The first pertains to a bond resolution to raise $150,000 for improvements to the water treatment facility and the installation of a supervisory control and data acquisition system. Another pertains to setting 2012 sewer rents at $5.20 per 1,000 gallons of water usage.

--The town Parks and Recreation Department is sponsoring the following free activities: Crafts for Youth, from 11 a. m. to 1 p. m. Saturdays at the Nike Base on Whitehaven Road for children from ages 8 to 12; Sunday Family Swim at the High School pool from noon to 3 p.m. on Sundays; the Kaegebein gym will also be open for adult basketball on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 p. m. to 8:30 p. m. All activities are ongoing and free.

Hamburg

Children attending the Town of Hamburg's day camp at the Lakeview Road recreation site next summer will go fishing and exploring at Spittler's Pond.

It's a regular summer activity for the children, but now the pond behind the baseball diamond parking area has a new name.

The Town Board named it for Donald

J. "Duke" Spittler of Lake View, who was a member and chairman of the town Conservation Board for more than 35 years.

He was a wildlife biologist who worked for the state Department of Environmental Conservation. He also was a retired Army Reserve colonel who served under Gen. George Patton during World War II. Spittler was 91 when he died last year.

The town's Bicentennial Committee is looking for the resident who has lived in Hamburg the longest to be the grand marshal in the parade next year. Nominees can contact Linda Rogers at [email protected] .

Also this week:

--The Village Board will conduct a work session at 5:30 p. m. Monday in Village Hall, 100 Main St., followed by its regular meeting at 7 p.m.

--The Frontier School Board meets at 7p.m. Tuesday in the administration building, 5130 Orchard Ave., Hamburg.

--The town Planning Board will meet at 7 p.m. Wednesday</chron> in Room 7B in Town Hall, 6100 South Park Ave. The board will conduct public hearings on a site plan and special permit request for South Shore Auto and Detail at 5143 Camp Road and a site plan for the 49-lot Yoviene subdivision on the south side of Taylor Road. The board also will review the prepermitted site plan application for the Bayview Road/Route 5 Business Park.

Lackawanna

The state Department of Environmental Conservation has proposed a series of cleanup actions for a parcel of brownfield property in the former Bethlehem Steel site.

The actions include covering all parts of the site that are not covered by buildings, roadways or parking with at least one foot of clean cover material; implementing a plan that will control any future activities that may disturb the clean cover material or any soils below it; and placing an environmental easement on the property that ensures any owner or future owner follows the site management plan and prohibits the use of ground water for potable purposes.

The "Draft Alternatives Analysis Report" covers the Tecumseh Phase I Business Park at 1951 Hamburg Turnpike.

The DEC will accept written comments through Jan. 27 on the report, which can be found at its website.

The DEC and the state Health Department have determined that the site does not pose a significant health threat. It already has undergone several preliminary cleanups, including the removal of underground storage tanks and the excavation of petroleum-contaminated soil.

The 102-acre site, located west of Route 5, is currently vacant and has natural grasses, shrubs and poplar trees.

The report and other related documents also are available for review in the Lackawanna Public Library, 560 Ridge Road.

Also this week:

--The City Council will meet for the final time in 2011, with a 6:30 p. m. caucus and a voting session at 7 p.m. Items on the agenda include a proposed ordinance that would establish a$25 registration fee and require a certificate of insurance for residential and commercial snowplow operators.

Lancaster

Dino Fudoli is busy meeting with town department heads, discussing his agenda with Town Board members and taking steps to fulfill promises he made during his campaign for Lancaster supervisor.

Fudoli, a Republican, defeated Democratic incumbent Robert H. Giza in November's election and assumes the job Jan. 1.

He's said he has submitted paperwork to the town clerk's office formalizing his pledge to cut the supervisor's $74,441 annual salary by 10 percent and to refuse an $8,122 stipend for serving as town budget officer.

Fudoli said he is asking Town Board members to approve his requests as a resolution.

He also vowed not to use an SUV provided to the supervisor, and said Highway Superintendent Daniel Amatura will sell the vehicle at auction.

The supervisor-elect is meeting with town department heads and wants to meet with every official whose term in office is up at the end of the year.

Many of those officials--including the town attorney, head bingo inspector and the chairmen of the Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals--have written to the Town Board to request reappointment.

Fudoli is asking the four Democrats on the Town Board to delay any reappointment votes until February.

David J. Brown, the town's director of administration and finance, serves at the supervisor's pleasure and Fudoli said he has decided to retain Brown.

Also this week:

--The Town Board will meet at 8 p.m. Monday in Town Hall, 21 Central Ave. A work session at 7 will precede the meeting, Giza's last as town supervisor.

Newstead

Newstead Library, 33 Main St., is holding its annual holiday open house from 1 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, offering cookies and punch for patrons. At the same time, it is collecting donations of nonperishable food items for the Akron-Newstead Food Pantry. And while you're at the library, check out the artwork by June LeClaire in the main reading room and that of former town councilman Harold Finger near the patio. The display will be up through this month.

Also this week:

--Newstead Town Board will hold a work session at 7:30 p. m. Monday in Town Hall, 5 Clarence Center Road.

--Residents of the Akron Central School District can vote on spending $210,000 for new school buses from 6 to 8p.m. Wednesday in the Office of Student Services, Room 196, at the school complex, 47 Bloomingdale Ave.

--The Board of Education will hold its business meeting at 7 p.m. in the boardroom.

Orchard Park

More than 3,000 people visited SantaLand last weekend at Chestnut Ridge Park, and more than $2,000 was raised to benefit domestic violence shelters.

The Verizon Foundation Pioneers have hosted SantaLand, with support from individuals, businesses and the Erie County Parks and Recreation Department, for five years. This was the seventh consecutive year that volunteers from local nonprofit groups revived the holiday attraction at the park. Hundreds of personal toiletry items also were collected at the event.

Donations collected at the event will benefit three domestic violence shelters: Cornerstone Manor, Haven House and Kathleen Mary House.

Also this week:

--The town Economic Development Committee will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the Municipal Center, 4295 S. Buffalo St.

--The town Public Safety Committee will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Municipal Center. The Zoning Board of Appeals will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Municipal Center.

--The Town Board will conduct a regular meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Municipal Center. A work session will precede the meeting at 6 p.m. in the supervisor's conference room.

Town of Tonawanda

Arevised schedule for senior citizen exemptions on town tax bills is up for a public hearing during Monday's Tonawanda Town Board meeting.

In October, lawmakers voted to increase the income limits on exemptions for elderly (those 65 and older) and disabled homeowners, only to later find out they exceeded what was allowed under state law.

"The income limits for the proposed exemptions ... including the sliding scale option, are set forth in the law," said Geoff Gloak, a spokesman for the state Department of Taxation. "There is some flexibility, but ... the maximum between the lowest and the highest [income] for the sliding scale would be $8,400.

"The levels in between are actually set forth [by law], as well," Gloak added.

The revised, 10-step schedule for seniors begins with a 50 percent exemption for those with an annual income of $12,025 or less. It decreases, in increments of 5 percent, until reaching the maximum annual income of $20,424.99, which qualifies for a 5 percent exemption.

Because the exemption schedule for disabled homeowners already was at its limit before lawmakers approved the increase in October, it was rescinded during the last board meeting.

"The good news ... we are increasing the amount [for seniors], but not to the amount hoped for because of state restrictions," Councilman Joseph H. Emminger said during the Dec. 5Town Board meeting.

March 1 is the deadline to apply for exemptions on the following year's town tax bill.

The public hearing will take place during Monday's meeting, which begins at 7:30 p. m. in council chambers at the municipal building, 2919 Delaware Ave.

Also this week:

--The Kenmore Village Board meets at 8 p.m. Tuesday in council chambers at the municipal building, 2919 Delaware Ave. A work session begins at 6:30 in the mayor's office.

West Seneca

The month's only West Seneca Town Board meeting will feature another relatively scant agenda following the board's last two meetings, which each were less than 15 minutes in length.

The meeting, to be held at 7 p.m. Monday in Town Hall, 1250 Union Road, will include the board's approval of minutes from its recent bid opening of the town's 2012 Sanitary Sewer Repair Contract.

Also on the agenda are communications from Councilman Dale F. Clarke regarding a request for proposals governing the town's contract with an ambulance provider, from Police Chief Edward F. Gehen about purchasing in-car video systems for the department and from Town Attorney Shawn P. Martin concerning payment for appraisal services for tax assessment challenges.

[email protected]

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