ORDA CONTRACT RATIFIED BY UNION MEMBERS

Workers at the Olympic Regional Development Authority have overwhelmingly ratified a two-year contract that ends the long-running labor dispute involving workers at Lake Placid's Olympic venues and Whiteface and Gore Mountain. 

Since April, the more than 300 state workers represented by the Civil Service Employees Association had been without a contract. In August, the union declared an impasse and launched a publicity campaign to put pressure on ORDA's management.

Bill Shurter, a general mechanic at ORDA and president of the CSEA local that represents workers in Lake Placid and Whiteface Mountain said the agreement was a compromise for both sides.

“I think that we both, through the negotiations got some things we wanted and ORDA got some things that they wanted. And I mean, honest to God, that's what a negotiation is. I don't think there was a clear winner.”

Throughout the negotiations, ORDA made it a policy not to comment publicly. On Tuesday afternoon, the authority released a joint-statement with CSEA officially announcing the agreement. Asked to comment, ORDA President and CEO Ted Blazer would only read from the release.

“This organization is only as good as the people making day-to-day operations run smoothly. I am pleased that we have reached an agreement that will acknowledge their loyal and valued efforts,” he read.

Ratification of the deal by employees was overwhelming – the tally was 113 to 28 according to CSEA. The two year term of the contract, which Shurter says is relatively short for a public contract, will give the union time to lobby in Albany and regroup in anticipation for when this contract expires in 15 months. That's because the union says the underlying issue -- inequities between ORDA employees other state workers – has not been resolved.

During the dispute, Shurter says the union learned that lift operators at the state-run ski resort of Belleayre [Bell-air] Mountain in the Catskills start at $11 an hour compared to the $8.50 offered at ORDA's Whiteface Mountain in Wilmington.

“That kind of inequity needs to be brought to light in Albany. There's no reason why somebody in Belleayre standing out in the cold all day long helping customers get on a ski lift should get paid $3 dollars and some odd cents an hour more than somebody at Whiteface doing exactly the same job.”

As state workers, ORDA employees could not legally strike making this a very public dispute that included lawn signs, radio advertisements and public demonstrations.

-Jacob Resneck

TUPPER FIRE DEPARTMENT SEEKS THIRD FIRE DRIVER

Tupper Lake Volunteer Fire Department members asked the Tupper Lake Village Board this week whether they’ve reconsidered hiring a third fire driver.

“We wanted to see what the plans were in the future,” said Fire Driver Mike Rule at Monday’s meeting.

The village fired the third driver a couple years ago and has yet to refill the position, arguing that they’re saving taxpayer money. At one point, the village attempted to hire a part-time fire driver to fill the void but one candidate they had backed out.

Village Mayor Mickey Desmarais reiterated his stance on Monday, arguing that a third driver would cost over $47,000 with benefits.

Newly seated Trustee Leon Leblanc said he would discuss the issue with the fire department. “I would like to sit down with these guys,” he said.

Desmarais asked Leblanc to include the town in those talks. The two governments recently equalized the fire rates for residents living in the town and village.

While the board mulls over what to do, First Assistant Chief Mark Picerno noted that fire calls have increased. “Our structure fires are going through the roof,” he said. “We’ve had some issues where we’ve had to wait for a driver to get to the station to get another truck down there.”

Village Clerk Mary Casagrain said they’ve already spent more than what was allocated in the budget for a fire driver. “We have spent $10,500 in overtime to date and we’re seven-months through our budget,” she said.

“We’ve been trying to figure out a way not to hire fulltime, which has been very uneventful up until this point,” said Mayor Desmarais.

Trustee Marty Hughes said the issue should be revisited. “We definitely have to work something out,” he said. 

In other business, the board commended Jon Kopp of the Chamber of Commerce for a letter he recently sent to Governor Eliot Spitzer. Kopp urged the governor to release the $5 million former Governor George Pataki committed to the railroad expansion project before leaving office last year.

DOT spokeswoman Carol Breen told WNBZ today that the funding for rehabilitating the tracks between Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake was still under review. She said staff would try what they could to honor the commitments made by Pataki in his closing days in office but the money was not a guarantee.

Breen added there wouldn’t be any decisions made until after the New Year. “We hope to have something to say very soon about this,” she said.

The mayor thanked Kopp for his effort. “It was a very well written letter,” said Desmarais.

-Mike Fritts

AIRPORT REPS UNITED IN CONCERNS OVER BIG SKY

Representatives of four North Country airports served by Big Sky Airlines are drafting a letter to the company to outline their concerns over late flights, cancelled flights and stranded passengers.

Officials from Harrietstown, Massena, Ogdensburg and Watertown met on Tuesday in Massena to try and resolve the issues that have been plaguing their airports.  Representatives of Plattsburgh International Airport, which is also served by Big Sky, did not attend the meeting.

Harrietstown Supervisor Larry Miller and Keith Wells, chair of the Saranac Lake Area Chamber of Commerce Airport Marketing task force, were the local attendees.

Wells said today that they’ve agreed to create a coalition of airports and take a “unified front” by writing to Big Sky President Fred deLeeuw.  The letter will outline their common issues, identify the changes they’d like to see and recommend a timeline for those changes to be implemented. 

“The concern we have is we have very poor communications,” he said.  “It’s impossible now to get Fred on the phone or respond to emails or letters.  We also believe management oversight is lacking.  And there are a lot of other little things.  We think we need a little better management and support here.”

Wells said they’d like to see progress in 35 to 40 days.

The letter will also be sent to U.S. Senators Charles Schumer and Hillary Clinton, Delta Airlines and the U.S. Department of Transportation, which manages the federal subsidies Montana-based Big Sky receives for flying out of the North Country airports.

Wells said the issues at the Adirondack Regional Airport in Lake Clear, where Big Sky has been flying for less than two months, are the same as those faced by the airports in Watertown, Ogdensburg and Massena, which Big Sky has served since April.

“Our experiences are almost – you could read the same page five times, it’s so common,” he said.  “We believe our best effort lies in a united front.  We’re interested in working with them but they have to take the lead and show some performance improvements.”

Last week, Big Sky President Fred deLeeuw told WNBZ they had been experiencing operational issues which he blamed on a combination of mechanical problems and weather delays.  He said a series of upcoming schedule changes would resolve the problems.

“Those changes may help,” Wells said.  “But it remains to be seen whether they have the desired effect.”

-Chris Knight

HOCKEY GAME IN TL TO BENEFIT THE TROOPS

A Tupper Lake woman is putting together a hockey game as way to show the community’s support for the troops.

Hockey for Heroes will be held December 30 at the Tupper Lake Civic Center. The game will consist of one team made up of younger skaters while the other will be made up of local heroes like local firefighters, police officers, EMT personnel and schoolteachers.

Tracy Sparks said she came up with the idea as a way to show appreciation for local soldier Tom Barton who is leaving for Iraq in February. “It’s about supporting our servicemen,” she said. “It’s to support the guys and to just say thank you,” she said. “It’s not an opinion (on the war) either way. We everything so negative I thought he could have a positive memory to leave on.”

Ticket revenue from the game will be given to a Malone woman who puts together care packages for area soldiers serving overseas, Sparks explained. “We’re asking for a dollar donation and the money that’s raised from there goes to Gladys Walker,” she said. “She has an adopt-a-soldier program and she send out one box every day for a soldier from the area from Malone down through the Tri-Lakes.”

There will also be an auction of gift baskets filled with goods donated by local businesses. Money raised from the auction will support Christopher’s Haven, a home away from home for children being treated for cancer at Massachusetts General Hospital for Children in Boston. Proceeds from the auction of another gift basket will support the Tupper Lake Varisty Hockey team for donating the ice time.

Afterwards there will be a reception at the local VFW post.

It isn’t the first such event Sparks has put on. This past summer she held a softball game at the municipal park and a few years ago she held a support the troops rally at the Middle/High School.

If you would to help with the event contact Tracy Sparks at 524-2925.

The game is scheduled to start at noon on December 30 at the Tupper Lake Civic Center.

-Mike Fritts

WEATHER CHANNEL TO BROADCAST FROM LAKE PLACID

To mark the first day of winter, the Weather Channel will make a return trip to Lake Placid on Saturday, December 22 with a series of live reports.

Weather Channel reporter Tetiana Anderson will anchor live and taped segments Saturday morning and evening from various locations in Lake Placid. Her crew will spend Friday taping numerous winter activities in the Whiteface-Lake Placid area, including the venues of the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) and Main Street.

This is the third such live visit by the Weather Channel in Lake Placid in recent years. Previously, they aired similar reports in January 2006 and August 2006.

The Weather Channel reaches 90 million homes around the country.

Last winter, the broadcaster commissioned Warren Miller Films to shoot and edit a two-minute segment from Whiteface, featuring local skier Keith Stanton, which can currently be seen on weather.com.

-Chris Knight

POLICE AND FIRE REPORT

Saranac Lake Police were called to a two car motor vehicle accident on Tuesday.  Police say 35 year-old Heidi Schuller of Tupper Lake lost control of her car as she approached the intersection of Main and River Streets.  The vehicle spun around and came to rest in the opposite lane of traffic.  A second vehicle driven by 40 year-old Ronald Sauvie of Tupper Lake veered into the opposite lane to try and avoid Schuller’s vehicle but ended up striking its driver’s side door.  Schuller complained of head, neck and shoulder pain and was taken by the Saranac Lake Volunteer Fire Department Rescue Squad to Adirondack Medical Center in Saranac Lake.  Sauvie told police he was not injured.  No tickets have been issued but police said the investigation was ongoing.

A Saranac Lake man was injured Monday afternoon when a village dump truck slid into the back of his pickup truck.  Saranac Lake Police say 59 year-old Barnard Ziokowski was stopped on Lake Flower Avenue around 3 p.m. waiting to make a left turn onto Edward Street when a village dump truck driven by 46 year-old Dale Tyler of Lake Clear rear-ended his vehicle.  Ziokowski suffered minor injuries and was transported to Adirondack Medical Center in Saranac Lake where he was treated and released.  No tickets were issued.

Saranac Lake Police charged 21 year-old Joseph J. Deyear of Watertown with first-degree aggravated unlicensed operation, driving while intoxicated and following too close at 5:55 p.m. on Tuesday.  Deyear was arrested after police were called to the scene of a property damage auto accident.  Police say Deyear was allegedly operating a motor vehicle in an intoxicated condition and that his license had been suspended pending prosecution for a prior alcohol-related offense.  He was processed and released to appear in village court at a later date.

Tupper Lake Village Police arrested two local residents Tuesday morning on misdemeanor drug charges stemming from an investigation by Franklin County Probation Department and the Franklin County Drug Task Force.  40 year-old Penny Lanthier and 27 year-old Benny Haywood, both of Tupper Lake, were charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and criminal possession of marijuana. Both Haywood and Lanthier were arraigned and posted bail of $5000 and $1500 respectively to appear again in village court at a later date.

Lake Placid Police charged 25 year-old Daniel D. Brzywczy of Lake Placid with second-degree criminal contempt at 4:45 p.m. Tuesday.  Police say he was arrested after they investigated an incident where he allegedly violated a court order.  Brzywczy was processed, arraigned and released to appear in village court at a later date.

Lake Placid Police charged 46 year-old Randy Osgood of Lake Placid with resisting arrest and disorderly conduct at 5:32 p.m. on December 13.  Police say Osgood was arrested after he allegedly became violent and threatened patrols and another individual.  He was processed and released to appear in village court at a later date.

Tupper Lake firefighters were called to 255 Park Street at 4:57 a.m. this morning.  14 members and one truck responded to a report of a tractor trailer with a burning electrical wire.  No action was required by the time firefighters arrived on scene.  They returned to the fire station by 5:21 a.m.

Lake Placid Volunteer Fire Department members were called to 92 Northwood Way at 9:56 p.m. last night.  Two trucks and 14 members responded.  They found a plastic item was left on a burner that was turned on.  Smoke from the burning plastic activated a smoke alarm.  No action was required and firefighters returned to the fire station at 10:19 p.m.