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Village of
Holley
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Newsletters
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HOLLEY VILLAGE HIGHLIGHTS SPRING 2008
Mayor- John W. Kenney Jr.
The village board has been represented at the monthly meeting of the Orleans County Supervisors the past quarter. We met with county legislators Henry Smith and David Callard. We met with a representative Reynolds' offices to discuss means of obtaining assistance for the village in March.
Clerk/Treasurer Connie Nenni resigned her position to work the Holley Central School district office. The resignation takes effect April 1, 2008, her dedication and work in the village office will be a great loss. We wish her well in her new job. As Mayor, I am currently working to find the best qualified replacement for Clerk/Treasurer.
The Board has been notified by Scott Parker that he intends to retire. Scott has been employed by the village for more than thirty years. He currently is the supervisor of the village electric/water department. The board intends to replace him internally and with no increase in staff. Scott's knowledge will be used in a consultant capacity.
Our new Police Chief, William Murphy has added with board approval, two new officers to the police department. Please welcome: Robert C. Bramer as a full-time officer and Michael Z. Johnson as a part-time officer. These additions will hopefully allow the village to satisfy the criteria of the Orleans County Civil Service department.
With the electric sub-station near completion; the village Industrial Park will hopefully entice down-state companies to relocate in Holley. The village has been working with the EDA to make this a reality.
The Holley fire hall roof will be replaced as soon as weather permits. R.A. Haitz Co. Inc. located in Batavia was approved to do this project. It is estimated that one week to ten days will be needed to complete the installation.
F.Y.I.
· The board has hired J. O'Connell & Associates, grant consultants to a one year contract
The village has received notification of $15,000 each from Assemblyman Hawley and Senator Maziarz. The efforts of the two state congressmen will help with improvements to our village (museum windows, sidewalks etc.)
As always, I am thankful for your support and hope you will attend our regular scheduled meeting on the 2nd Tuesday of each month. Please feel free to contact me about your concerns. Phone 638-5144.
CLERKS OFFICE - Connie Nenni, Clerk/Treasurer
I want to thank Frank Zona for all his hard work on our present website. Frank has volunteered his time over the last few years creating and updating this website. Although that site is still there we have abandoned it at this time. We are presently working on a new website that will be able to be updated easily by our staff. When this website is available we will notify everyone. You will be able to access information from all departments along with forms, minutes from meetings and upcoming events.
The next general village election is June 17, 2008. The open positions are: Mayor-2 year term and two positions for Trustee-2 year term. The open positions are for John W. Kenney Jr. (Mayor) and Ross Gaylord (Trustee) and John Heise (Trustee). Petitions can be picked up at the Village Clerk's Office starting April 1, 2008.
Please find a new copy of the recycle schedule attached to this newsletter. It shows the items that can be recycled as well as what holidays change the pick up date. Note there is a new phone number to call with questions and or problems.
Would you like to help our soldiers? Do you have any unused cell phones or accessories? Assemblyman Steve Hawley's office is collecting these items to send to the soldiers. There is a drop off box in the Village Clerk's Office that will be there for at least a few weeks.
For those of you who do not know I will be leaving the village at the beginning of April to accept a position with the school district. I have enjoyed getting to know so many of you and will hopefully continue to see you at the school.
Have a great summer!
CODE ENFORCEMENT - Ron Vendetti
As the weather warms up it's time to assess our homes and properties for winter damage. Check for broken gutters, damage from frost heaves, and repair leaky roofs. House numbers, not in script, must be 4 inches high and contrast in color to the building. Every building in the Village of Holley will be checked for the proper numbers in April. Take a look you may be surprised to find yours are not there.
Tenants, your landlord is required to have smoke detectors in each bedroom and outside the bedroom areas, the same as single family homes. If you do not have smoke detectors in your apartment and the landlord has not provided them contact me at 638-6367 x105. Everyone should test smoke detectors regularly.
We've had two instances in recent months where smoke detectors have saved the buildings and possibly lives.
DPW- Lewis Passarell, Superintendent
We had a long hard winter. I do believe it's over finally. The village is going to have brush pickup from May 1st to June 1st only. After June 1st brush must be bundled in 4 ft sections and tied. Also please remember if any lawns were damaged by our sidewalk plow we will repair it. Please call us at 638-6333. If no answer please leave a message. The DPW will be grooming our parks all summer long. Please remember to keep dogs on a leash and please pick up after your dogs.
We will be black topping 3 streets this year to keep our program going.
ELECTRIC DEPARTMENT - Scott Parker, Electric and Water Superintendent (638-6587)
RE: Why have the electric bills in the Village of Holley been as high as they are?
The New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) is an entity that was formed by New York State to govern all of the high voltage transmission lines throughout the state. Under the New York Independent System Operator all transmission customers incur "transmission use costs" (TUC's) hourly for use of the New York Transmission Network. Regardless of the choice of power supply, all entities serving load in New York State are subject to hourly "transmission use costs" (TUC's).
Beginning November 2007 through February 2008, numerous 345,000 volt (345 kV) transmission facilities throughout upstate New York were taken out-of-service for maintenance. When major transmission facilities are taken out of service, the transfer capability from West to East is reduced. Therefore, less expensive generation located in the western part of the state cannot be fully utilized to supply load in the eastern part. When demand for electricity reaches levels that exceed the transfer capability into an area, more expensive generation facilities that normally wouldn't be operated need to be utilized to serve load.
During November, the transmission outages mentioned above appeared to have limited impact on transfer capability. However, beginning in December through February, the impact of the 345 kV facility outages became apparent. The transfer capability from west to east was not sufficient to serve all the electric demand and generating facilities that normally wouldn't be utilized were called upon. The price difference between these "out of merit" generators and less expensive, yet available generators in the western part of the state is referred to as congestion.
Another component of the transmission use charges is the marginal loss expense. The marginal loss expense in the contest refers to costs associated with the incremental electrical losses on transmission facilities. As transmission lines become more loaded, the greater the losses. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") has made marginal losses an integral component of firm transmission service in Independent System Operators throughout the country. We'd like to emphasize that since the inception of the NYISO the municipal systems has opposed the imposition of this marginal loss expense.
The question has been posed "why didn't the NYISO do a better job scheduling these outages"? First, we must recognize that the New York Control Area is a summer peaking system. Couple this with the fact that transmission facility ratings decrease in the warm summer weather relative to winter conditions and we can conclude that the NYISO apparently scheduled these 345 kV transmission facilities out-of-service in a manner to avoid high summer load conditions. Additionally, to ensure reliable operation of the bulk power system, the NYISO must also coordinate transmission outages with the generation outages. The highest level of generation maintenance is scheduled during the fall and spring months. The Village of Holley, along with many other Municipal Electric Systems have their "peak power usages" during the winter months. This makes electric costs higher when the 345 kv transmission lines are down for maintenance during the winter months.
These expenses, marginal losses and congestion, as stated previously are integral components of firm transmission service under the NYISO. The marginal losses expense has been occurring since the NYISO went operational in 1999. The municipal systems membership voted at that time to have this expense passed through to each system. Congestion expense on the other hand, was agreed by the membership to be an agency expense subject to an annual review.
In conclusion, we hope that the above explanation sheds some light on these very complex charges.
VRI ENVIRONMENTAL SVCS - Ken Scherrieble, Principal
What's been happening at the Wastewater Plant?
Winter is a time for getting things done within the buildings at the facility. This year VRI painted the Lab, office space and bathrooms at the treatment plant as well as stripping and waxing all the floors in the main building. All the indoor areas were cleaned and re-organized as we get ready for the outside work that will be necessary when the spring thaw is complete.
In addition to the usual winter upkeep, we did have a major piece of equipment submit to the wear and tear of years of continuous use. One of the clarifier units was found one Saturday morning with a broken chain, and the lose end of that chain wrapped around a drive sprocket. This is not a pretty sight!
Work commenced to repair the situation and get the clarifier back on line. After a couple days of hard work we were able to get things back up and running. This does illustrate a very important point. The treatment plant is now well over 30 years old and is need of major rebuilds of large components like the clarifiers. Over the next few years it will be necessary to re-invest in this major Capital Facility. I don't know if many of you realize this, but to build a plant like the one we have would cost somewhere around $ 6,000,000.00. So making provisions to invest the necessary dollars over the next couple of years will go a long way to preserving the plant into the future and is money well spent.
On that note, don't forget to check your basement sump pumps and roof drains to make sure they are not hooked into the sanitary sewer. Every gallon that goes into the sewer cost every taxpayer valuable dollars in the form of wear and tear on equipment, chemical and electrical costs.
HOLLEY FIRE DEPARTMENT - Rol Nenni, Chief
The Holley Fire Department will be Holding our annual Carnival on June 27, 28, and 29th. The Fireman's Parade will be on June 28th at 7:00pm. This year we hope to have even more exciting attractions and food. Please check the Holley Fire Department Website, http://www.holleyfire.com/, for details regarding the Carnival. We will post details about the carnival as they develop.
The Holley Fire Department would like to remind residents to change the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. The batteries should be changed twice a year, the same time you change the time on clocks for daylight savings time. This should be done regardless of the condition of the batteries.
With the warm weather approaching the Fire Department will be conducting training exercises throughout our response district. These training sessions will help use keep our skills tuned. Many of these trainings will involve the placement of our fire apparatus in various locations. If any homeowner would like the Fire Department to use their property training we would greatly appreciate it. This will allow us to assess your location for the best possible placement of our apparatus in the event of an incident at that location. This is crucial for the placement of our aerial ladder. Placement of apparatus is an important aspect of our initial response to an incident. If any homeowner or property owner needs the hardware replaced on the top of a flag pole please allow us to assist you with our ladder truck. This will be beneficial to us in many ways. We will be able to assess the placement of the ladder truck at your residence, train our operators on the use of the ladder, and give our firefighters hands on training with ladder top operations. Please E-Mail the Chief's office at holleyfire@rochester.rr.com if you would like assistance from the Fire Department.
We will be starting our annual fund drive in the upcoming weeks. A mailing will be sent to all address in our response district requesting donations. These donations will be used by the Fire Department to purchase vital equipment thus reducing the tax burden of property owners. This year we will be applying fund raising monies for the purchase of a new Thermo Imaging Camera. Our current Thermo Imaging Camera is reaching the end of its usable life. A new Thermo Imaging Camera will allow us to have the latest Thermo Imaging technology.
The Holley Fire Department will be soliciting donations by mail only on official Holley Fire Department Letter Head. We do not solicit donations via phone or E-Mail. It has come to our attention in recent weeks that someone posing as the Holley Fire Department has been soliciting donations via phone. These requests are false and fraudulent. Please report any requests for donations by Phone, E-Mail or non Fire Department Letter Head to the Police as they are false and fraudulent. Also beware that the Holley Fire Department does not endorse any organization to represent the Holley Fire Department.
Holley Yard Sales Date Change
This year, the Holley Yard Sales will be held on the first Saturday in August, August 2nd, NOT the first Saturday in June.
This change is due to the Town of Murray Bicentennial Celebration which will be bringing in lots of visitors to Holley (see article elsewhere in Newsletter).
In 2009, the Sales will go back to the usual first Saturday in June. Start cleaning out closets and attics!
Town of Murray Bicentennial Celebration -August 1-2-3, 2008
Did you know that besides living in the Village of Holley, you also live in the Town of Murray? There are 3 towns in eastern Orleans County (Clarendon and Kendall are the other two). The Town of Murray encompasses Holley, Fancher, Brockville, Hulberton, and Murray itself. It was incorporated 200 years ago and that calls for a party!
The Town of Murray Bicentennial Committee (headed by David Dill) has planned a wonderful weekend of celebrations. On Friday, August 1, there will be a ziti dinner followed by a musical revue at the High School, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Holley. Music from the past 200 years, plus music from past Holley High School musicals, will be featured.
During the day on Saturday, there will be a Classic Car Show (at the Firemen's Field), the Holley Village Yard Sales, a 'hands on' display of the Town of Murray's Big Trucks, various vendors along the canal path, horse-drawn carriage rides, and performances at the gazebo, to name just a few things to keep you busy! Refreshments will be served by different organizations throughout the village, including Italian ice, "hots & hams" and a bar-b-que! Saturday at 6 pm, a long parade will wind its way through the Village, featuring some of the best known Drum and Bugle Corps. The parade will end up at the Soccer Field, where we will all be treated to a Drum & Bugle Corps Show. A lavish fireworks display follows the Show.
Then, capping off a great weekend will be a Family Bocce Tournament at St. Rocco's.
Mark your calendars for the first weekend in August---it's Party Time for the Town of Murray!!!
Are your 5 cents deposit bottles and cans taking up space??
The Town of Murray Bicentennial Committee has 2 spots for you to drop off your 5 cents deposit cans and bottles and help defray expenses for the Bicentennial Celebration.
There is a collection box set up in front of Danny's Small Engines and an account set up for the Bicentennial at SunKing Recycling (in Brockport behind Dominoes). At both places, all you need to do is drop off your bag of bottles and cans-no mess and no fuss!
Your donation will help offset the cost of the Drum & Bugle Corps Show and the Fireworks Display. Thank you! (Contact David Dill with questions.)
COMMUNITY FREE LIBRARY - Sandra Shaw, Library Director
It looks like spring is finally on its way and the Community Free Library has programs and projects lined up for this season.
Our biggest program is the Student Art Show which will open Monday April 7th at 6:30 pm. We will have a reception and the awards for the different categories of artwork will be awarded at 7 pm. The judges for this show are board members from the Town of Clarendon, Kendall, Murray, Village of Holley and the Community Free Library. The awards will be presented by a representative of Assemblyman Hawley's Office. We are all looking to having a wonderful time that evening.
This show will continue until Friday April 25th. So please come in and see what the students of the Holley and Kendall school districts are creating. If you can not come in on opening night, come in anytime that we are open as the artworks will still be showing for three weeks.
April 14th through the 18th is National Library week and we are celebrating this with two basket giveaways and a Pajama Story Hour on Wednesday April 16th at 6:30 pm with our own Miss Rita. So come celebrate with us while your children are out of school.
We are also in the process of creating our summer program, so please keep an eye out for our program schedule this summer. We will again be distributing the schedule to the elementary school students in Holley and Kendall in June.
Our big plans this year are working on our Library Expansion project. Our architect is drawing up plans for us and we hope to have the finalized plans completed by May 1st. When I receive the final plans I will make appointments with the local town and village boards to demonstrate our vision and take questions from the community. They will then go on display in the Library for community perusal.
The expense of our expansion will be paid for from grant awards, community donations (both money and sweat equity) and money from the library's capital funds that was established many years ago for this reason.
We have already received offers from various Boy Scout troops to assist us with the painting of the interior of the building, and we are very excited about the prospect of working with them. Thus if any person or community group wishes to join us in creating a wonderful children's room, please let us know after the plans have been finalized and we know exactly what we are doing.
So have a Joyous Spring.
VILLAGE HISTORY - Marsha DeFilipps, Historian
Sunday night, April 14, 1912. It is a date that is known by most Americans as the date that the Titanic hit an iceberg and went down in the Atlantic Ocean, taking 1635 lives with her. Even today the story of the Titanic elicits chills and thrills from people.
Few people realize however, the local connection to the Titanic. Yet three Holley residents were on board the Titanic that fateful night. Only one survived. Her name was Lillian Bentham and this is her story.
She was one of a party of eleven who had spent the early months of 1912 in England visiting relatives. In the group was her godfather, William Douton of Holley, to whose care she was entrusted by her widowed mother.
Lillian had to be pushed into the last of the Titanic's 12 lifeboats by her godfather. She spoke of this in an interview with the Rochester Times Union in 1962.
"We all felt safer on the 11-story-high ship than on the cold ocean in a tiny eggshell," she declared. "It was just as our boat was being lowered that the awful realization seemed to hit everyone: The impossible was happening, the Titanic was going down."
Only three of her party survived the black night of April 14 and 15 when so many perished in the icy seas. This is even more unfortunate when one realizes that some of the lifeboats were not even half full of passengers. If all boats had been full to capacity, more than 200 additional lives might have been saved.
"If it weren't for my fur coat, I believe I would not be alive today, nor would the young steward, Mr. Fitzpatrick," she reminisced. "I had on a hooded steamer coat over my nightclothes, and Bert grabbed my fur one from a chair as we left the stateroom. That ‘extra' I wrapped around Mr. Fitzpatrick when we had rescued him from an overturned boat."
In gratitude, the steward gave her the tiny Scout whistle from his belt. He had blown it all night in an effort to call some other boat to their aid. Miss Bentham's lifeboat, No. 12, picked up about twenty men who had spent hours on the half-submerged hulk. One of them was dead.
"I have that whistle, some coins from the dead man's pocket, and a White Star Line button from the coat of an officer who later died in our boat," Miss Bentham revealed. "But I do not need them to remember; I will never, never forget any part of that nightmare."
The Bentham family moved to Rochester while daughter Lillian was abroad, so neither her mother, nor her ailing brother were able to meet her when the Carpathia arrived in New York. From various parts of the state however, eight friends did come to meet her.
"The first person I saw on the dock was my godmother, Mrs. Douton; and her first words were, ‘Where's William?' And the chill strikes me today that struck me that midnight, when I had to reply ‘He's gone.'"
Lillian Bentham married John Black of Rochester. The reports of her courage on the ill-fated journey were recorded in 1912, in a book titled, "The Sinking of the Titanic and Great Sea Disasters." Although Lillian seldom spoke to people about her experiences, others were known to talk of her action. According to the mentioned book: "Miss Bentham showed splendid courage. She happened to be in a lifeboat that was very much crowded - so much so that one sailor had to sit with his feet dangling in the icy cold water, and as time went on the suffering of the man from the cold were apparent. Miss Bentham arose from her place and had the man turn around while she took her place with her feet in the water."
Lillian Bentham Black was a survivor. However, two other Holley residents weren't as fortunate.
William Douton, a friend of Miss Bentham, did not survive. Nor did Peter McKain, an associate of Mr. Douton. A tribute stone is located in Hillside Cemetery in Holley, in memory of the two men. This marker was provided by the Oddfellows, an organization that both these men belonged to.
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