PAUL SMITH’S COLLEGE TO PURCHASE WIND POWER

Paul Smith's College announced Wednesday that it will purchase wind-generated power to provide all of its electricity, joining just a handful of colleges and universities nationwide.

The college will purchase the electricity from Community Energy Inc., a Pennsylvania-based wind-energy marketer and developer.

“Purchasing renewable energy is an important step that the college can take to preserve our natural resources,” said John Mills, president of Paul Smith's. “We're excited to take this step and hope that others might follow.”

Based on its past usage, the college expects to purchase 3,625 megawatt-hours of electricity a year. 

Because of the nature of the electric grid, college spokesman Ken Aaron says the actual wind-generated power the college purchases won't be delivered to campus. “We can’t guarantee that the energy generated by that wind farm will make its way over the power grid and magically light a light bulb on campus,” he said.  “What it does mean is our commitment displaces an equal amount of energy that may have been generated at a coal-fired or natural gas-fired plant."

Aaron says that when that electricity is generated using renewable resources rather than fossil fuels, it offsets approximately 5 million pounds of carbon dioxide per year – equivalent to removing 357 cars from the road.

The college will be paying four to five percent more to purchase wind-generated power.

As part of the switch, Paul Smith's has joined the Environmental Protection Agency's Green Power Partnership program. As of March 30, just 13 other colleges and universities in the partnership relied entirely on renewable power for their electricity needs.

“Paul Smith's College has stepped up as a leader in New York,” said Brent Alderfer, president of Community Energy. “As more customers choose to follow their lead and purchase renewable energy, we can bring more clean power resources online to meet that demand.”

In addition to the green energy purchase, Aaron says the college is pursuing several other initiatives to preserve the environment. “This semester, we’ve been composting all the waste that has come out of our culinary labs,” he said.  “And our President has just signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment.  It states our concern about climate change and we commit to doing something about it.  Purchasing wind power is definitely a way we’re doing that.”  

Additionally, Paul Smiths College will be hosting a Step It Up rally this Saturday, an action aimed at encouraging Congress to reduce carbon emissions.

TL RESORT PROJECT REDUCED BY 36 UNITS

Developers of a resort project in Tupper Lake have revised some of their plans in response to issues raised by the Adirondack Park Agency.

Thomas Ulasewicz, attorney for developer Michael Foxman, says they have withdrawn plans for a 36-unit “East Ridge” development as part of the Adirondack Club and Resort project.  They’ve also scrapped the smaller of two proposed wastewater treatment plants.

Ulasewicz, in a March 29 letter posted on the APA website last week, said the changes were offered “as mitigation to what has been perceived as potential adverse impacts to its application and not application amendments.” 

The East Ridge units, along with two other higher-elevation developments, had been identified by the APA as one of the issues for an upcoming adjudicatory hearing.  Concerns about visual impacts, storm water runoff and impact on soils and vegetation had been raised.

The agency had also raised concerns about the impacts of the sewer plant near Lake Simond Pond on neighboring water bodies.  Now, instead of building the second sewer plant, the developers plan to connect their Simond Pond view subdivision to sewer district 23.

Ulasewicz, in his letter, also said they’ve eliminated lots in the Moody Pond area and are considering donating the land to the Natural History Museum of the Adirondacks or placing it in an open space conservation easement.

The APA, in a public hearing notice, described the mitigation measures as having a “positive environmental impact” though the proposed sewer connection will undergo further review.

A public hearing as part of the adjudicatory hearing on the resort project is scheduled for April 18 to be followed by a pre-hearing conference on April 26.

Meanwhile, the Plattsburgh Press-Republican reports the developers plans to finance the resort’s infrastructure and create a payment in lieu of taxes plan through the Franklin County Industrial Development Agency has moved forward.

The IDA Board passed a resolution Wednesday finding it “desirable and in the public interest” to move ahead with issuing $50 million in bonds.  A notice of public hearing was also approved.

IDA Executive Director Brad Jackson said the decision means the board found the project consistent with the Industrial Development Authority Act.  He described it as a first step that will allow them to move forward with a cost-benefit analysis on the project.

ARRESTS MADE IN STRING OF SL BURGLARIES

Saranac Lake Police say they’ve arrested two men responsible for a rash of burglaries last month.

30 year-old Christopher J. King and an 18 year-old male youthful offender, both from Saranac Lake, were taken into custody on Tuesday at 1:50 p.m.

King was charged with third-degree burglary and fifth-degree conspiracy.

The youthful offender, whose name was not released, was charged with three counts of third-degree burglary, three counts of petit larceny, two counts of fourth-degree criminal mischief and one count of fifth-degree conspiracy.

Police say the two were arrested following an extensive investigation by the Saranac Lake Police Department into a string of recent burglaries and larcenies in the village.

Four break-ins at area businesses were reported between the night of March 22 and the early morning hours of March 23.

King was processed at the police station, arraigned and released to the supervision of probation.

The youthful offender was processed, arraigned and remanded to the Franklin County Jail on $10,000 cash bail or $20,000 bond.

SPRING SNOW COVERS THE ADIRONDACKS

High-elevation areas in the Adirondack Mountains received 8 inches or more of snow Thursday as a spring storm swept across the state.

Areas around Albany received just a bit of wet snow and commuters over much of eastern New York drove to work through a melting, slushy mix.

“It was just too warm,” said National Weather Service meteorologist John Quinlan, “temperatures hovered above freezing in most places.”

But it was colder at higher elevations. Caroga Lake in Fulton County received 8 inches of snow before the storm tapered off Thursday afternoon. There was 8.2 inches of snow in Wells and 7.5 inches in Speculator, both in Hamilton County. Middle Grove in Saratoga County had 8 inches.

National Grid reported several hundred customers without power in the Adirondacks, mostly in Warren County.

Most schools in upstate New York are on spring break this week. A few in the eastern part of the state that were in session either canceled classes or delayed their start by an hour or two.

NEXT MEETING SET ON HILTON CONDO PLAN

The Hilton Lake Placid Resort’s latest plans for a complex of condominiums will be presented to community members later this month.   

Bill DeForrest, CEO of Lane Hospitality, the Hilton’s management company, will outline revisions to their plan April 25 at the hotel.

The Hilton had planned a five-story, 46 condominium complex on the site of the existing Lakeview Motel.  But the plans were withdrawn in December after nearby residents raised concerns about the size and scope of the project.

In early March, revised designs for a three-story, 37-unit building were presented. The new plan is based on a cluster concept, with the units staggered, stepped and, in some cases, pushed out.

Buy some of the neighbors raised concerns about the visual impact of two loft condominiums on the roof of the structure along with a plan to have a section of the parking lot encroach 15 feet into a required 100 foot buffer with adjacent properties.

DeForrest, in an e-mail to Rob Grant, one of the concerned neighbors, said the feedback has been helpful to the planning process.

 “We believe we have now designed a facility that will allow us to meet the future desires of the Lake Placid visitor, improves the quality of the site and minimizes the impacts of our neighbors and meets many of the objectives we set out to attain after our discussions,” DeForrest wrote.

The April 25 meeting is scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.

CONDITION OF SHOOTING VICTIM IMPROVES

The condition of a Bombay man shot in the face earlier this week continues to improve at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington.

59 year-old Stephen Ingle was rushed to the hospital Monday night after he was shot by 48 year-old Dan S. Smith of Bombay at a residence on Kibbie Road.

The two had been drinking alcohol throughout the day but became involved in a verbal dispute.  Police say Smith pointed a rifle at Ingle in an attempt to get him to leave and shot him once in the face.

Ingle was initially in critical condition at the Vermont hospital but has now been upgraded to good condition as of Thursday night\

Smith was charged with first-degree assault, a felony, and taken to the Franklin County Jail on $50,000 cash bail or $100,000 bond. The investigation is continuing.

POLICE AND FIRE REPORT

Lake Placid Police charged a 17 year-old female youthful offender from Lake Placid with third-degree assault at 6:19 p.m. Wednesday.  Police say she allegedly assaulted another female.  The teenager was arraigned in village court and released to appear at a later date.

Lake Placid Police charged 30 year-old Michael J. Lewis of Lake Placid with fourth-degree criminal mischief, endangering the welfare of a child and second-degree harassment at 2:25 p.m. Wednesday.  Police say Lewis was arrested following a reported domestic dispute which occurred in the presence of a child.  He was arraigned in village court and released to appear at a later date.

Tupper Lake Village Police arrested 38 year-old Rene Bullard of Tupper Lake at 7:55 p.m. last night.  She was charged with driving while intoxicated after police were called to a property damage auto accident on Park Street.  Bullard was released to return to village court May 7.

Two people suffered minor injuries after their vehicle crashed off State Route 3 in the Town of St. Armand last night.  26 year-old Tery S. Lamb of Plattsburgh told State Police she was westbound on Route 3 when a car crossed the road in front of her causing her to swerve and go off the side of the highway.  Lamb complained of hip pain.  A passenger – 33 year-old Eric Lamb – complained of back pain.  Both were taken by ambulance to Adirondack Medical Center in Saranac Lake.  Police say Tery Lamb was ticketed for inadequate brakes.

Lake Placid firefighters were called to a one-car rollover accident at 9:54 a.m. yesterday.  One truck and 18 members responded to Route 86, just before Wilmington Notch.  No injuries were reported.  Firefighters provided traffic control before returning to the fire station by 10:31 a.m.

A public hearing has been set for later this month on a change to the motor vehicle impound law in the Village of Saranac Lake.

Village Manager John Sweeney says the revised law would allow the village police department to impound any vehicle found parked on a public street if it has three or more outstanding and unpaid parking violations.

The owner would also have to pay a storage fee of $10 for every day the vehicle is kept in the village impound. 

Sweeney said the new law gives the village “more teeth” to go after people who don’t pay their parking tickets. 

Under current law, he said, the process of prosecuting a “scofflaw” by getting their driver’s license revoked for not paying parking tickets can take as long as 18 months. 

Having their vehicle impounded after three or more unpaid tickets is more of an “immediate” penalty, Sweeney said.

At the same time the measure could also lead to increased revenues for the village. “We didn’t do it make money,” Sweeney said.  “We did it to enforce the law.  But the end product of that is the potential for revenue.”

In order to get a vehicle out of impound, the owner would have to pay any fines due for parking violations, the $10 per day impound charge and any costs incurred to the village or towing service for having the vehicle towed.

If those stipulations are not met, the village will declare the vehicle abandoned after twenty days in the impound.  The village will then be able to go after the vehicle’s title and sell it at auction.  Or, if its not suitable to be driven, the vehicle would be sold for scrap.

Sweeney said the updated law was based on similar measures already in place elsewhere around the state.  “This is very common,” he said.  “We got a list of 15 communities that have similar laws, put them together and made one law.”

He described it as just one step in trying to curb parking problems in the downtown, where some business owners have complained that vehicles are parked illegally and longer than allowed in village parking lots and spaces.

The village has set aside $10,000 in the proposed village budget for creating the position of seasonal parking attendant to enforce the revised impound law and other existing parking regulations.

The public hearing will be held April 23 at 6:30 p.m. in the village offices.

COUNTY TO USE SAME VOTING MACHINES

Essex County will reportedly be using the same lever-action voting machines for at least two more years.

A plan to purchase new electronic voting machines will probably be delayed until 2009 – one year longer than county election officials expected.

The Plattsburgh Press-Republican reports that delays at the state Board of Elections in approving machines for purchase is the main reason why the county will have to use the lever-type machines this year and next year. 

But, board of election officials say they were expecting the new machines to be ready so they didn’t budget for the supplies needed for the lever-action machines.

Lewis Sanders, Republican Election Commissioner, tells the Press-Republican that the supplies have doubled in price.  He’s estimating the supplies and other costs will leave the Board of Elections with a $40,000 budget shortfall.

The county will also have to appoint seven new voting machine custodians, who Sanders and Democratic Election Commissioner David Mace want to send to a two-day training course at a cost of $8000.

But since its not mandatory, some supervisors were against spending the money.  Democrat Gerald Morrow of Chesterfield called it a waste of time.  Republican Thomas Scozzafava of Moriah suggested sending a couple custodians to the training session and having them return and train the rest.

The county reportedly will also need to hire new election coordinators to be at the polls all day.  That responsibility used to be handled by town clerks until the county took over running local elections last year.

PUBLIC HEARING HELD ON TL VILLAGE BUDGET

The Tupper Lake Village Board held a public hearing last night on the tentative 2007-2008 budget.

The $2.2 million spending plan represents $96,000 more in appropriations than the current budget. The levy, or amount to be raised by taxes, would increase 5.6 percent from $1.69 million to $1.79 million.

The increase is in part attributed to this coming budget year consisting of an extra pay period, something Village Clerk Mary Casagrain said happens every five years.  This year it amounts to about $22,000.\

A large portion of the increase was blamed on rising worker’s compensation costs and retirement expenses.  But the town agreeing to equalize fire rates with the village cut the budget by about $80,000.

A few people showed for last night’s public hearing including Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Marty Modzier, Chamber President Don Dew Jr. and village resident Jeanne Vincent.

Modzier suggested the village and town schedule employees in shifts to cut down on overtime expenses. “Is there a possibility of scheduling a certain number of the staff to be on duty during those weird hours,” she asked.

“That’s what we’re working on with the town,” answered Mayor Mickey Desmarais.

Dew said he’d like to see a long term capital plan in place.  The mayor said that’s one of the things they’re working on with Owen Goldfarb, Director of the Local Government Assistance Program at SUNY Albany. “He started working on this just before Christmas and he suggested some of this long term planning,” he said.

Casagrain added that a long term plan could become more of a reality in a couple years. “A lot of our debt is paid off in next year’s budget,” she said.

The board also discussed the fire department’s budget request. A starting salary of just under $30,000 a year was kept in the village’s budget for hiring a possible third fire driver to fill a vacant position.

The board asked Tupper Lake Fire Chief Ken Gravlin a few questions regarding the budget, but ultimately agreed that the requested expenditures were needed to sustain a fire department. “The fire budget has always been the toughest because you don’t just sit there and cut things out,” said Desmarais.  “Most of these [things] are a necessity.”

The village board also scheduled meetings with the Police Department and Department of Public Works for this coming Monday to discuss their budget requests, to be followed by the board’s monthly meeting.

The budget needs to be adopted no later than May 1.

CORRECTION OFFICER SENTENCED FOR SMUGGLING

A veteran correction officer was sentenced to state prison time Wednesday for trying to smuggle heroin into Bare Hill Correctional Facility in Malone.

43 year-old Michael Bradish of Plattsburgh was given concurrent terms of 1 and 1/3 to four years in prison after pleading guilty in February to first-degree attempted promotion of prison contraband and fifth-degree possession of a controlled substance.  Franklin County Court Judge Robert Main also gave Bradish an additional year for official misconduct.

The 16-year Department of Corrections employee had admitted to smuggling small packets of heroin into Bare Hill in exchange for money and gifts from inmates.

Bradish apologized during Wednesday’s court proceedings and said he had humiliated his family.

His attorney Greg LaDuke asked the judge for a year sentence in jail and probation given his client has a wife and two small children.

But Judge Main said his actions violated the trust of the courts, the corrections departments, his co-workers and inmates. “He has brought shame onto the department and, more tragically, embarrassment to the thousands of correction officers who every day and night put themselves on the line to appropriately exercise their responsibility to the care and custody of inmates,” Main said.

Two other people were charged as part of the four-month investigation.

A 15-year veteran with the Corrections Department, Lieutenant Timothy Flint was charged with official misconduct and second-degree obstructing governmental administration for allegedly alerting Bradish that he was the focus of an internal investigation.

Scott Monroe of Brasher Falls was charged with third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and fourth-degree conspiracy for allegedly accepting the mailed packages of drugs and supplying them to Bradish. 

The investigation was launched when the Franklin County District Attorneys Office wanted to learn why there were so many prison contraband arrests being made at Bare Hill.

DEC ISSUES DRAFT PLAN TO CUT MERCURY IN NY WATERS

The new head of the Department of Environmental Conservation has announced a draft plan for reducing mercury emissions to the point that New York fish are safe to eat again.

New York and six New England states are collaborating on the plan, titled the Northeast Regional Mercury Total Maximum Daily Load.

DEC Commissioner Pete Grannis said the plan would be a tool to further the implementation of a nationwide mercury reduction strategy. “New York and the New England states have made great strides in controlling mercury, but there is more that can and must be done,” he said.

In December, New York issued final regulations to require coal-burning power plants to cut mercury emissions by 90 percent by 2015. Its 12 coal-burning plants supply about 10 percent of the state's power.

Gavin Donohue, president of the Independent Power Producers of New York, had said the new emissions regulations will raise costs to consumers.

But elevated mercury in fish species has resulted in advisories for more than 10,000 lakes and ponds and 46,000 river miles in the seven state region, especially in the Adirondacks and Catskills.

Children and fetuses are particularly vulnerable to mercury's effects, which include damaging the development of the nervous system.

The draft plan says overall mercury deposition in the region — most from outside sources — would have to be cut by 86 to 98 percent to put an end to the fish advisories.

The draft plan is being applauded by environmental groups like the Adirondack Council. “Commissioner Grannis is off to a fine start by working with neighboring states to address the serious impacts of mercury contamination,” said the Council’s Executive Director Brian Houseal.

Three public meeting are scheduled for Syracuse, Westchester County and Ballston Spa. Public comment on the draft is being accepted until May 25.

ARSON RULED OUT IN FIRE AT PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE

Investigators have ruled out arson as the cause of a Wednesday morning fire that damaged the Tupper Lake law office of Franklin County Chief Assistant District Attorney Jack Delehanty.

It took about 100 gallons of water to extinguish the blaze in the front wall of the building at 56 Lake Street.  Firefighters had to use a chainsaw to open up the wall from the outside. 

The damage was limited to the outside of the building.  A resident living in an upstairs apartment was able to escape uninjured

The Franklin County Cause and Origin Team was investigating the cause of the blaze.

Tupper Lake Police Chief Tom Fee said today that the fire was not arson and is believed to have been “electrical in nature.”

POLICE REPORT

Saranac Lake Police charged 22 year-old Gregory J. Hayward of Lake Placid with failure to pay fines at 7:05 p.m. Wednesday.  Police say Hayward was arrested with the assistance of the Lake Placid Police Department.  He was arrested on a bench warrant from Saranac Lake Village Court and transported to Saranac Lake.  Hayward was brought to court where he plead guilty to lesser charges and was fined a total of $250 and released.

Saranac Lake Police charged 47 year-old Alexander M. Cerza of Saranac Lake with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest at 7:20 p.m. Wednesday.  Police say Cerza was arrested after police responded to a rescue call at a village residence.  He was allegedly acting in a loud and threatening manner to people in his vicinity.  Cerza allegedly resisted officers attempts to restrain and handcuff him.  He was processed at the police station, arraigned in village court and released of his own recognizance to reappear at a later date.