Breaking News

Opinion

Dissenting legislators have opportunity to keep tax foreclosures fair

In Our Opinion

Chautauqua County has approved the tax auction sales of 130 properties throughout the county - but the decision wasn’t unanimous. Nor, in our opinion, should it have been. There were enough complaints from property owners of properties ending up at the tax auction with a lack of notice or other issues that property owners say they weren’t aware of to raise questions. The property sale the legislature didn’t approve last week involved a property in which one of the bidders alleged the original property owner, who shouldn’t have been allowed to bid on the property, drove the ...

Another Great Summer In Bemus Point

Letters To The Editor

To The Reader’s Forum: As a life-long resident of Bemus Point, I can look back on many summers – some better than others. What made the favorable years? Was it the weather, the economy, the activities on and around the lake, or those in the village? More than likely it was some combination of all three. We can do little to affect the economy and certainly nothing about the weather. What we can do is present the village, the town and our individual properties in their best possible light. I would like to thank the Town of Ellery the Village of Bemus Point, the Bemus Point Business ...

The continuing importance of public education

Local Commentaries

Recently, a friend gave me a book, “Sketches of the History of Chautauque County” written by Emory F. Warren and published in 1846. It traces the earliest history of our county including the establishment of school districts. Each school constituted a district. In 1835 the New York state Legislature passed a law to provide funding for books in school libraries around the state. “School District Libraries have thus become objects of profit and a just pride to all,” wrote Mr. Warren. “The choicest productions in literature and science are placed in the hands of every person who ...

It’s up to local school officials to keep graduation standards high

In Our Opinion

We understand why there was barely a yawn from the public a few weeks ago when the state Board of Regents officially decoupled the Regents exams from the state’s graduation requirements. It was really a pro forma step that everyone knew the state was going to take as part of its effort to create new pathways to a high school diploma. So, while it is a noteworthy change for the seniors in the Class of 2028 who won’t be required to pass four Regents exams in math, English, science and global studies to graduate, it also would have been news if the Board of Regents hadn’t changed ...

Don’t abolish the commission without a plan

Local Commentaries

I am pleased that members of the Jamestown City Council’s Public Safety Committee recently tabled consideration of Mayor Kim Ecklund’s proposed local law to abolish the City’s Strategic Planning and Partnerships Commission. While the commission has been inactive since early 2020, that lack of activity should prompt a serious discussion about its purpose, effectiveness, and future before any decision is made to eliminate it. Established in 1996, the Commission was created to develop and recommend strategic initiatives, establish community-wide goals, and help address issues ...

We need a new generation of community leaders

Local Commentaries

From an early age, my father taught me the importance of giving back. As a postman in our city for nearly 30 years, he saw the needs of our community that often went unnoticed—from seniors living in isolation to families waiting for housing support. He taught my brother and I that community isn’t something we simply live in; it’s something we help build. One of my earliest memories is accompanying my dad alongside an older gentleman he had befriended while delivering mail to Heritage Village. The man had no family in the area, no real connections outside of the group home he ...