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Opinion

How much do you want to pay for a SAFER Jamestown?

In Our Opinion

In 2023, yellow signs proclaiming the need for a SAFER Jamestown were seen on almost every block in the city. In 2027, we all get to pay for a SAFER Jamestown. Mayor Kim Ecklund’s 2027 budget proposal comes with a 7.4% property tax increase driven by a lot of costs the city doesn’t have much control over - and one big one that the city does control. We’re talking about fire department staffing and the fork in the road the city has reached after hiring four firefighters paid for with American Rescue Plan Act funding and eight firefighters paid for with federal SAFER grant ...

AI & MI : dynamic duo of destruction?

Local Commentaries

"The end is near." That familiar refrain has echoed for millennia without coming to fruition. The argument has been made that the rapid pace of artificial intelligence has brought the world closer to that apocalyptic end. Bill Gates has issued a stark warning that artificial intelligence could cause "a billion deaths" if it falls into the wrong hands. He called for mandatory government regulation and internal monitoring safeguards, stating a bipartisan "kill switch" alone is insufficient. Sam Altman, the chief executive of Open AI, joined others in the artificial intelligence ...

The times are a changin’

Local Commentaries

I enjoyed reading Mr. Kidder’s perspective about the history of public education in our county and his understanding and respect for the value of public education. I also appreciated the piece about the Board of Regents’ decision to decouple Regents exams from graduation requirements. I’d like to provide my perspective on this change. First, I understand the notion that Regents exams can provide a level of rigor and accountability to a school district. After all, when there is a standard students must demonstrate to receive a diploma, it can hold an institution accountable to ...

Visit Adams, Jefferson homes

Local Commentaries

CHAUTAUQUA—In part because of all of the history that fills Boston, it’s a fun American city to visit. If you’re there from April through September, a baseball game at Fenway Park is also good to attend, unless perhaps you’re a fan of a rival of the Boston Red Sox. A short distance ...

SUNY weathers storm, but more clouds on horizon

Editor's Corner

As the leadership team came forward last week for recognition of the State University of New York at Fredonia’s bicentennial year, CHQ Chamber of Commerce President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Heitzenrater made a request to those seated at tables in the audience. If you were a graduate ...

County shouldn’t compound manager’s salary range COLA mistake

In Our Opinion

County Executive PJ Wendel could have exercised a bit of fiscal conservatism by vetoing a Local Law that creates mandatory cost-of-living-adjustments to the top and bottom salary ranges for management employees. Wendel chose not to do so - and it’s something we hope county residents remember moving forward. Let us be clear - we think management employees should be treated fairly. Those who deserve yearly raises should receive them. But management employees also know what the salary ranges for their positions are when they move into management, and the upper ranges of these salary ...