TL BOARD UPSET OVER ADIRONDACK COUNCIL MAILING

A recent mailing by the Adirondack Council to residents of Tupper Lake and surrounding communities apparently did not sit well with members of the Tupper Lake Town Board.

The mailing, which focused on the environmental group’s concerns and opposition to the Adirondack Club and Resort project, was harshly criticized by Town Supervisor Roger Amell at Monday’s town board meeting.

“For them to send this flyer out to mislead the taxpayers of Tupper Lake into believing that they’re looking out for our interest in Tupper Lake is bull,” he said.               

Amell took issue with the Adirondack Council trying to steer the economic future of Tupper Lake. “If they want to subsidize our tax base up here then maybe we’ll listen to them,” said Amell.   The group’s main office is in Elizabethtown with a legislative and communications office in Albany.

“I took great offense at much of what was said in that letter,” said Councilman John Button. “Big Tupper is not going to reopen without the second homes to support it and I think it’s too bad to have an organization like this resort to those kinds of tactics.”

The board also referenced when the town tried to have a prison located in Tupper Lake – a proposal that was defeated because of intense opposition. “They don’t want any development is what they want,” said Button.

“They want us out of here,” quipped Councilwoman Kathy Lefebvre.

Village Mayor Mickey Desmarais, who was in attendance, encouraged those who were upset over the mailing to speak their mind. “You can always write a letter to the Adirondack Council and tell them why you’re offended,” he said. 

In other news from last night’s meeting, the state Department of Transportation has approved a request from the town board to reduce the speed limit on a town road.

McLaughlin Avenue is a state owned road that currently has no posted speed limit, making it 55 miles per hour.

The board requested a slower speed citing the amount of pedestrian use on the road and its close proximity to the Tupper Lake Civic Center.

The DOT gave the town the OK to reduce the speed to 45 miles per hour on McLaughlin from the intersection with Pleasant Avenue to Lebouf Street.  “It is the Department’s conclusion, made with the concurrence of the New York State Police that the most appropriate action is to create a 45 mph speed zone,” reads the DOT’s response.

Signs will be posted and the enforcement of the speed limit will be the responsibility of State Police.

-Mike Fritts

SL FIRE DEPARTMENT MAY GET FULL TIME, PAID EMT

The Saranac Lake Village Board took a step Monday night toward creating a full time, paid EMT position, following a request from the Saranac Lake Volunteer Fire Department and surrounding towns.

The board unanimously agreed to submit a job description for the position to Franklin County civil service. 

The move came after the fire department’s rescue chief, Vernon James, outlined reasons why the paid EMT is needed.  James said it can be difficult for volunteer rescue personnel to respond to calls during work hours on weekdays, often because they can’t get time off from their employers. 

Meanwhile, the list of active volunteers has gotten smaller while the number of calls is increasing.  Several years ago the department averaged 500-600 ambulance calls a year.  In 2006 that number climbed to nearly 1000.

“As a department we’d like to keep it all volunteer,” James said.  “But it’s becoming harder and harder to meet those calls during the day.  In the last few years we’ve had some periods where we were uncovered for a while.”

Still, James said they’re meeting Department of Health standards that require a rescue truck to be on the road within 10 minutes of when a call comes in at least eighty percent of the time.

Harrietstown Supervisor Larry Miller, chairman of the fire advisory board, said the board has unanimously recommended the village approve the hiring of a full-time paid EMT with benefits.  Lawyers checked into it and the fire department and the towns can’t do it by themselves, Miller said.

The EMT would receive $13-14 per hour.  Village Treasurer Cindy Moody-Jost said the cost of health insurance, retirement, social security and other benefits for the new position could be an additional 40-70 percent.

On the EMT’s days off, other rescue personnel would be paid a per diem rate, without benefits, to provide weekday coverage.

The village has money in this year’s budget to cover much of the cost of hiring a paid EMT.  Miller said the towns are willing to share any potential cost overruns with the village, including disability coverage, under the fire contract formula agreed upon earlier this year. 

Since the towns are willing to step up to help cover those costs, “you have my support,” said Village Mayor Tom Michael.

The board agreed unanimously to get a job description to Franklin County, although Trustee John McEneany cautioned that civil service could add more requirements that could alter their initial cost estimates.

Miller said it could take two to three months just to get the county to create the position.  By the time interviews are conducted and all the necessary steps are taken “I’m guessing this probably isn’t going to happen until January or February,” he said.

After the meeting Vernon James said he was glad the proposal moved forward.  “I’m pleased we had their support,” he said.

Earlier, Trustee Susan Waters asked for an update on the possibility of billing insurance companies for a patient’s rescue calls.  James said legislation that would have allowed the rescue squad to bill while still remaining part of the fire department was not approved in this year’s legislative session.

But they’re seeking support from several firefighting organizations to get the bill through in the next session.  “We’ve got high hopes,” James said.

-Chris Knight

VILLAGE AWARDS BID FOR SEWER PLANT BRIDGE

Luck Brothers of Plattsburgh was awarded a $1.2 million contract Monday night to build a new bridge to Saranac Lake’s wastewater treatment plant.

Sewer plant operator Kevin Pratt told the village board Monday night that Luck Brothers bid came in $200,000 to $300,000 less than the two other companies that submitted proposals – Reale Construction of Ticonderoga at $1.5 million and Tioga Construction of Herkimer at $1.4 million.

Mayor Tom Michael said the bids were slightly above the original $1 million estimate.  Demolition and survey costs were more than expected.

The contract was awarded to Luck Brothers contingent on a final DOT review of the plans.  The state will be reimbursing the village for 95 percent of the project’s cost.

Pratt said the contractor will be starting work as soon as possible.  This fall they should be able to relocate a temporary bridge to the sewer plant, demolish the old bridge and pour the concrete abutments for the new bridge.  The rest of the work will be finished in the spring.

Luck Brothers was awarded another bid Monday night.  The company will be performing $200,000 worth of work on the grand entrance to the Riverwalk behind the village offices.  The funding came from grants, fundraising by the River Corridor Commission and an additional $35,000 allocation from the village earlier this year. 

Trustee Dan Olson, a member of the commission, said Luck Brothers is ready to go.  “After all the years of talking about this, it appears we’re close to construction and finishing the Riverwalk,” he said.

The grand entrance will include an information kiosk, historical displays and handicapped access.

In other news, the board has scheduled a meeting later this week to interview one of several finalists for the position of community development director.

Trustee Susan Waters said they’ve had another 30 applications for the job of village manager.  The pool has been trimmed to six whose references are now being checked.  Interviews could begin within the next two weeks.

Surprisingly, however, there were no candidates for village manager from the Tri-Lakes, Waters said.  The closest applicants to Saranac Lake were from Ogdensburg and Massena.

The board also invited interested residents of Algonquin Avenue to come to their next meeting to comment on the possibility of restricting parking to one side of the street.  The proposal came in a letter from officials at Trudeau Institute who said allowing parking on both sides has created a bottleneck of traffic, making travel on the road difficult for emergency vehicles and delivery trucks.

-Chris Knight

FOUR INJURED IN TWO CAR CRASH AT DONNELLY’S

Four people were sent to the hospital after a two car crash at Donnelly’s Corners in the Town of Harrietstown on Monday afternoon.

Saranac Lake firefighters were called to the intersection of Routes 86 and 186 at 2:32 p.m.  Three trucks and seven members responded.

State Police in Ray Brook said 69 year-old Marie Voight was driving one of the vehicles with 72 year-old Robert Voight as a passenger.  Both are from Tupper Lake.

They were pulling out of the ice cream stand at Donnelly’s Corners and struck a vehicle driven by 39 year-old Doreen Adams of Paul Smiths, with a passenger 4 year-old Skylar Adams.

The Voights reportedly told troopers they couldn’t see the passing vehicle because of the number of cars parked along the road.

All four people involved were taken to Adirondack Medical Center in Saranac Lake.  State Police said they were treated and released for minor injuries.

Two tickets were issued but a police spokesman didn’t know who was issued the tickets or what they were charged with.

Firefighters provided traffic control and helped clear the road, returning to the fire station by 4:10 p.m.

-Chris Knight

WILD CENTER EXHIBIT HALL HONORS PATAKI

Former New York Governor George Pataki was in Tupper Lake on Tuesday where officials at the Natural History Museum of the Adirondacks named their main exhibit hall in his honor.

The George E. Pataki Hall of the Adirondacks recognizes the former governor for his support of the Wild Center since its inception, helping to bring in millions of dollars in state funding. 

Pataki, in his first visit to the museum since its completion, said he was thrilled to see the success of the Wild Center first-hand and to be honored for his efforts. “This is a wonderful tribute,” he said.  “And I’m very proud on behalf of the people of New York State to accept this designation.”

Pataki helped earmark more than $14 million in taxpayer funds for the project.

The main exhibit hall now named for Pataki includes the museum’s otter exhibit, interpretive displays, photographs, films and videos, and other educational materials.

Wild Center Board President Obie Clifford said they decided that Pataki had done so much to help create the museum that they wanted to honor him. 

The former governor and his wife Libby later toured the grounds of the Wild Center, calling its environmental design “fantastic.”

Stephanie Ratcliffe, the museum’s managing director, said the buildings serve as a model for the region. “One of the things that’s really unique about the bio-building and all of the site is we’re going to interpret all the green building aspects on the entire site,” she said. “As visitors walk around they’re going to be able read about the solar panels, the pond which is part of our stormwater management system, and the parking lot.”

Pataki stayed in Tupper Lake after the visit and had lunch at the Swiss Kitchen on Park Street.

-Chris Knight

POLICE REPORT

Tupper Lake Village Police charged 18 year-old Eric T. Snyder of Tupper Lake with driving while intoxicated and driving without headlights at 12:26 a.m. today.  He was pulled over on a traffic stop and allegedly found to be intoxicated.  Snyder was processed and released to appear in Tupper Lake Village Court on September 17.

Saranac Lake Police charged 41 year-old Joseph W. Boyle of Saranac Lake with second-degree unlawful imprisonment, third-degree assault and endangering the welfare of a child at 2:21 p.m. Monday.  He was arrested on a warrant from village court following investigation of a domestic dispute earlier in the month.  Boyle was processed, arraigned and released on $2500 bail.

Lake Placid Police charged 38 year-old David J. LeClair of Lake Placid with endangering the welfare of a child and unlawful possession of marijuana at 10:30 p.m. on August 23.  Police say LeClair was arrested on a warrant and was found in possession of marijuana.  He was processed and released to return to village court at a later date.