The Peru Gazette

Source: Upcoming season at Adirondack History Museum  to feature WWI exhibits – Sun Community News & Printing

L-R Steve Bertrand, Kurt Hathaway, Dana Lawrence, Darcy Way, Jordhan Varin, Faye Lawrence, Adam Schneider & Sam Marcotte

By John T. Ryan

Peru – The staff at Bill’s Body Shop is #42 in the Peru Gazette photo series featuring people who make Peru a wonderful place to live. Located at 390 Military Turnpike, Bill’s Body Shop has served generations of local families for the past 55 years. The late Bill Lawrence and his wife Faye opened the shop’s doors in March 1963.

During those early years Bill and Faye worked side by side in the shop and relied on a few friends for extra help. In the 1970s they began hiring a staff. Today their son Dana and daughter Darcy have vital roles in the business. Darcy is office manager and estimator; Dana estimates jobs, orders parts and works with adjusters. Faye handles payroll, taxes and advertising and assists Dana and Darcy whenever she’s needed.

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Forest Rangers respond to search and rescue incidents statewide. Working with other state agencies, local emergency response organizations, and volunteer search and rescue groups, Forest Rangers locate and extract lost, injured, or distressed people from the backcountry.

Recent missions carried out by DEC Forest Rangers include:

Town of Brighton
Franklin County
Wildland Search: At 7 p.m. on July 5, a citizen discovered the vehicle of missing person 48-year-old Bruce Waite off Slush Pond Road. Waite is associated with an “Attempt To Locate” bulletin by the North Country Crime Analysis Center and New York State Police. A command post was set up at the Paul Smith Gabriel’s Volunteer Fire Department, and over the next eight days, Forest Rangers organized a large-scale search of the surrounding areas of Debar Mountain Wild Forest. During this time, a total of 405 personnel spent 6,400 hours searching for Waite. In total, the efforts included 27 Forest Rangers, Assistant Forest Rangers, Environmental Conservation Police Officers, State Police, Paul Smith Gabriel’s Fire Department, Franklin County 911 services, Search and Rescue of the Northern Adirondacks, and State Department of Corrections Response Team. State Police Aviation, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), and K-9 resources were also deployed. Searchers encountered difficult terrain, thick vegetation, and temperatures that exceeded 90 degrees. Despite covering more than 2,000 acres of forest preserve and recovering a few articles of clothing, search efforts were unsuccessful in locating him. Search efforts were concluded on Friday, July 13. State Police will continue the investigation and operations will resume if new information is found.

Town of Schroon
Essex County
Wildland Rescue: At 5:27 p.m. on July 9, DEC Ray Brook Dispatch received a call transferred from Essex County 911 regarding a 66-year-old male hiker from Cohoes who injured his knee after getting lost near Big Pond off Hoffman Road near Schroon Lake. Rangers Jacob DesLauriers and Arthur Perryman responded and located the hiker off the trail at the coordinates provided by dispatch. The hiker was evaluated, treated, and assisted out by Rangers to an awaiting ATV. After being transported to the trailhead, the subject declined further medical care.

Town of Keene
Essex County
Wildland Rescue: At 12:33 p.m. on July 10, DEC’s Ray Brook Dispatch received a call from a Boy Scout leader reporting that a 14-year-old group member had sustained an ankle injury while attempting to hike the Marcy Brook Trail. The group splinted the subject’s injury. The DEC Marcy Dam caretaker located the boy on the trail and began assisting him out of the woods. Forest Ranger James Giglinto responded to Marcy Dam with an off-road utility vehicle. Ranger Giglinto and the caretaker assisted the subject and one group leader down to the UTV, where they were then transported back to the High Peaks Information Center. All units were back in service by 5:30 p.m.

Town of Newcomb
Essex County
Wildland Rescue: At 12:54 p.m. on July 12, DEC’s Ray Brook Dispatch received a radio transmission requesting assistance for a 74-year-old male from Tinmouth, Vermont, who was fatigued and dizzy at Camp Santanoni. The subject, who has medical concerns, took a horse drawn wagon into Camp Santanoni. Upon arrival he complained of being light headed and nauseous. Forest Ranger Benjamin Baldwin responded to the camp, picked up the subject, and transported him to Newcomb EMS for assistance. The incident concluded at 2:45 p.m.

Town of Newcomb
Essex County
Wildland Rescue: At 8:30 p.m. on July 14, Assistant Forest Ranger Brendan Jackson reported to Ray Brook Dispatch that he encountered a hiking group near Lake Colden with a 17-year-old male hiker who had fallen ill during a hike in the High Peaks Wilderness. The hiker was unable to keep down any liquids or solids and needed assistance back to the trailhead. Jackson began hiking the group of four out to Upper Works while Forest Ranger Russell Martin came in from Upper Works to intercept them. The group was from a camp in the Speculator area and had been dropped off earlier in the week. Ray Brook Dispatch made contact with the camp to arrange for the group to be picked up upon reaching the Upper Works. By 11:22 p.m., the ill hiker’s condition had improved and the hikers were turned over to the camp driver and nurse.

Help Prevent Wildland Fires
Forest Rangers also responded to several smaller wildland fires during the past week. These were either the result of careless campfires or lightning strikes. Due to the dry conditions that prevail throughout most of the State, Forest Rangers remind people to be careful with fires or ignition devices. It is unlawful to leave a campfire unattended or unextinguished and to set any fire that may endanger the property of another.

Please visit the DEC website to learn more about how to prevent starting wildland fires on DEC’s website.

Be sure to properly prepare and plan before entering the backcountry. Visit DEC’s Hiking Safety and Adirondack Backcountry Information webpage for more information.

Peru firefighters on standby in Altona.

Source: Crews continue to battle 300-acre forest fire in Altona

The Peru School Board of Education will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, July 17, 2018 at 7:30 AM in the school district’s Community Room, adjacent to the main entrance of Peru Jr/Sr High School.

Anticipated Topics Include:

*Contract Award
*Confirmation of Reorganizational Items

All are welcome.

Source: High Peaks plan wins key APA approval, promises monitoring of growing crowds | NCPR News

Source: City facing fiscal stress | Local News | pressrepublican.com

• Main Street Project Rebid Planned
• Solor Farm Informational Meeting Scheduled
• Few discrepancies revealed in Insurance Review
• And more…

Department Head Reports for June accepted. Click here to review reports

The Board plans to solicit bids on the Main Street Improvement Project for a third time. Luck Brothers Construction was the only previous bidder; however, Luck’s bid far exceeded the awarded grant monies. Town Engineer Peter Gibbs recommended limiting the project to the vicinity of North Main Street rather than proceeding to the Dollar Store. Other smaller cost savings can also be made. The Board should make the final decision whether or not to rebid at its July 23rd meeting.  The project design engineer will be drawing up new specifications. 

A Board meeting date of July 18, 2018 at 6 PM was set to learn about the issues involved in establishing a solar energy farm within a town’s boundaries. Interest has been expressed in establishing a solar farm in Peru. The public is invited to this meeting. 

The annual liability insurance inspection recommended only few upgrades in procedures or equipment. Recommendations included placing a plastic covering on sharp fence edging at Laphams Mills Park; foul ball protection on baseball dugouts and placing “No Trespassing” signs at the reservoir. 

The Board approved a three-year snow/ice removal contract with Clinton County whereby the Town of Peru will plow 23.74 miles of county roads at a rate of $5,240 per mile for most roads and $6,097 per mile for snow belt roads i.e. roads subject to heavy drifting. Peru will receive $124,398 for the 2018-19 winter season with a 1.5% annual increase over the contract period.  

Highway Department Superintendent Michael Farrell reported that salt has increased in price from $76.10 per ton to $83.71. He also accelerated the purchase of snow plow blade parts.  He has been informed that price increases of steel parts are on the way.

An annual contract with Casella Organics from the sewage treatment facility at the rate of $1.10 per ton was approved. 

Dog Control Officer Dave Drollette reported that he took three dogs into custody since the Board’s last meeting.  Veterinarian fees of $234.57 were incurred on one dog. If the owner is not identified, the Town will pay the veterinarian fee. 

Water/Sewer Superintendent Courtney Tetrault will accompany AES engineers as they inspect backyard manholes. The inspections are part of the planned sewer system upgrade. 

A NYSEG natural gas informational meeting is scheduled for July 12th from 3PM to 7Pm at the Peru Town Hall.  Supervisor McDonald said all residents having access to NYSEG’s planned expansion have been notified. Anyone not notified but desiring natural gas should come to the informational meeting. 

Source: Comptroller calculates 2 percent tax cap for 2019 – Capitol Confidential

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Source: Dorms to be converted to rehab clinic – Sun Community News & Printing

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Source: Tri-Lakes Takes: Summer tragedies are personal for responders as well as families | NCPR News

Source: 3M gallons of partially treated sewage released into Lake Champlain

From the Office of Governor Andrew Cuomo 

• 14 Downtown Revitalization Projects Modernize Storefronts, Invite Further Investment
• Additional $4 Million Awarded Through SUNY 2020 to Support Jefferson Community College Expansion Downtown

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced 14 transformational projects for Watertown as part of the $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative award. In addition to the DRI funding, $4 million has been awarded through SUNY 2020 to support a Jefferson Community College expansion project downtown. The strategic investments in downtown Watertown will drive further economic growth and capitalize on the city’s historic buildings and culture. The investments are part of the Governor’s ongoing efforts to revitalize the upstate economy and create more opportunities for the North Country.

“Watertown is growing its economy around the strong culture, beautiful architecture and community spirit found across the North Country,” Governor Cuomo said. “With this investment, the city can build upon its success and drive further growth downtown while providing more opportunities for residents and businesses to lead a quality life across the region.”

Watertown was named a DRI Round 2 winner in October. The city’s downtown is a compact, intact 19th Century central business district centered on an historic Public Square with a mix of retail and professional services, offices, civic buildings, and cultural and recreational destinations. It also contains a variety of housing types at different levels of affordability. The projects announced today will amplify the city’s ongoing efforts to enhance its downtown through place making and adaptive reuse of historic and architecturally significant properties; improving walkability; and increasing opportunities for commerce. The city will strengthen its position as the primary hub of commerce and culture for Jefferson and neighboring counties, drawing residents from surrounding areas to its downtown assets and attracting visitor spending from seasonal residents and tourists.

The specific projects to be funded through the DRI include: Read more »

The Peru Community Church and St. Augustine’s Catholic Church are hosting their annual Vacation Bible School on Monday, July 30th to Friday, August 3rd, 9am to noon each day. The camp is open to all children ages 3 to grade 6 and will be held at the Peru Community Church’s Fellowship Center at 13 Elm Street in Peru. This year’s theme is Rolling River Rampage, where kids will take the ride of a lifetime with God and be involved in incredible bible-learning adventures, exciting science experiments, team-building games, enjoyable crafts, cool faith-building songs and snack time. You can register the day of or call the Peru Community Church at 643-8641 or St. Augustine’s at 643-2435 to register now. Also, be sure to follow the Peru Community Church Vacation Bible School Facebook page for announcements.

North Country Chamber of Commerce President Garry Douglas Opinion Story that appeared in the Monteal Gazette.

https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/opinion-canadians-have-friends-and-partners-in-plattsburgh

Source: Thai rescue mission: Team, coach freed from cave

NYSEG will conduct a natural gas public information meeting on July 12, 2018 from 3PM to 7PM at the Peru Town Hall. Anyone with questions about NYSEG’s announced expansion plans or anyone who would like gas coverage extended to a nearby street/road should be able to get information at this meeting.